Tag Archives: carbon footprint

10.03.14
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TNCS Uses Viridian’s Power with Purpose!

power-with-purpose-at-tncs

Power with Purpose!

The New Century School has always prioritized environmental sustainability through recycling, community responsibility, and supporting local agriculture to name just a few ways. TNCS has also always strived to use and to support green energy. Remember our Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge? Although Clean Currents was shuttered due to circumstances beyond their control, TNCS has now partnered with Viridian, a larger socially and environmentally responsible energy company. Says Head of School Alicia Danyali, “Leaving a smaller carbon footprint can make a big long-term difference for our environment. The more invested, the bigger impact on conservation.” TNCS has once more gone green!

Raise Money for TNCS while Lowering Your Carbon Footprint!

Even better, Viridian is sponsoring a TNCS fundraising initiative. By enrolling in Viridian’s affordable green energy service, you can monetarily support TNCS. That’s right—every time you pay your utility bill, TNCS receives income! More importantly, you can make a significant and measurable impact on the environment. Says Viridian’s Eric Forseter, “We help TNCS raise money and simultaneously help green the Earth. Instead of paying a sales person a commission, for every electric meter that signs up under TNCS, Viridian donates a minimum of $24 a year to the school. If 20 families sign up, that’s nearly $500 in annual donations.” Not bad! Key here is that this is an ongoing donation. Unlike Clean Currents that made a 1-time contribution to TNCS per enrolled family, Viridian pays out every time you pay your utility bill. “This goes on forever!” said Mr. Forseter.

And it’s so easy! Instructions for enrolling are given below, and you continue to get the same delivery, service, and billing from your current utility (BGE for most of us). Enrollment in either of two electric options (50% green or 100% green) takes less than 5 minutes. Mr. Forseter explains that the 50% option costs less and is therefore what many people opt for (saving the earth while saving money). Even going 50% green for 1 month is the equivalent of recycling for 1 year, so just imagine what going 100% green would do for the environment! Enrollment in a green gas option is also available.

Seeing Green

Check out these truly wonderful benefits—benefits to our shared environment, to our beloved school, and to your individual pocket.

  • Viridian donates a minimum of $24 annually for every customer TNCS enrolls.
  • Choosing Viridian will result in an average offset of 11,000 pounds of carbon annually, the equivalent of planting 134 trees.
  • Your rates will remain competitive with your utility, and your billing service will never change (you are only choosing the supplier of your energy, not your utility, which distributes the energy).

Note that Viridian is guaranteeing a better rate than the utility can provide on the 50% green option. The average household can expect to save $5 to $50 per month. “A great deal is that the company will refund you 110% if their rate exceeds the utility’s,” says Mr. Forseter.

How To Enroll with Viridian

To sign up, you will need your electric account number; BGE customers will need your Electric Choice ID on your bill:

  1. Go to viridian.com/newcenturyschool. (Make sure you have your energy account number.)
  2. Click the “Become a customer” link at the top of the page.
  3. Enter your zip code and electric utility, then select Electric. Select Gas if you want a carbon offset for Gas supply.
  4. Follow the steps to enroll in the 50% fixed-rate plan 3DOM for electric and 25% carbon offset for gas (if you choose 100%, your environmental contribution will be higher but your bills will increase).
  5. If you are interested in going solar, check the box to receive a free consultation with SolarCity, the solar partner for the program. Solar customers result in a donation of $100 to TNCS and ongoing annual payments.
  6. Questions? Contact Eric Forseter (eforseter@hotmail.com) or call Viridian Customer Care at (866) 663-2508 for more information.

Please spread the word—Viridian is not just local to Maryland, but is also licensed in Washington, D.C. on up through Massachusetts. As long as your friends and families sign up for responsible energy under the special TNCS-specific Viridian URL given above, TNCS will reap the fund-raising benefits.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please click FAQs for answers to many of your questions. Then join us and the more than 3,800 other non-profit organizations in “greening the energy grid!”

TNCS elementary parent volunteer LaShon Johnson (lashon.johnson85@gmail.com) will be coordinating this fundraising event. Ms. Johnson will be contacting the TNCS community with additional information as this fundraising initiative gets going!

02.15.13
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Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge: TNCS Update

It’s a good week for clean energy. It started off with President Obama pledging renewed attention to clean energy in his State of the Union address:

“Today, no area holds more promise than our investments in American energy. After years of talking about it, we’re finally poised to control our own energy future . . . We have doubled the distance our cars will go on a gallon of gas, and the amount of renewable energy we generate from sources like wind and solar — with tens of thousands of good American jobs to show for it . . . And over the last four years, our emissions of the dangerous carbon pollution that threatens our planet have actually fallen.”

Then we heard that the ozone hole has shrunk to a record low. And, the week is closing with The New Century School’s own continued commitment a little closer to home. In TNCS Launches Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge, we detailed Clean Currents’ initiative to spread the green with GNEC. Having switched both TNCS and The Lingo Leap to 100% wind and solar power, they are now helping local families also switch over. GNEC brings 100% renewable, sustainable energy into your home. Plus, for every family who makes the switch, Clean Currents donates $30 to TNCS for their use in a school initiative of their choice and, with just 20 enrollments, Clean Currents will donate an additional $500 to TNCS!

What is that school initiative? Alicia Cooper-Danyali, TNCS Head of School, says, “The donation from Clean Currents for each family that signs up for Wind Power will be used toward a sound and lighting system for Building North.” Exciting news indeed!

So, How Are We Doing???

Well, today, February 15th is the exact midpoint of the GNEC, which began January 15th and runs through March 15th. So far, 5 households have made the switch. That’s great progress, but we can do better—for our families, our school, and our environment.

To make this process even easier, Clean Currents’ representative Emily Conrad is attending TNCS’s potluck tonight, where you can sign up on the spot. “There are only 4 weeks left in TNCS’s Green Neighborhood Challenge!” says Mrs. Cooper-Danyali. “Clean Currents will be at the potluck to answer any questions you might have and help you sign up for wind power at home. Please remember to bring your electricity bill or BGE Electric Choice ID (10 digit # on the top left of the 2nd page of your bill).”
Did you know that you can calculate your household’s carbon footprint with this online tool? You might be surprised by the amount of greenhouse gases you generate. One big step you can take to reduce this footprint is by converting your household to clean, renewable energy.
01.11.13
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TNCS Launches Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge

Exciting events are already afoot at The New Century School in 2013, a mere 2 weeks into the year! As reported last November, it’s time to kick off TNCS’s Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge (GNEC), sponsored by TNCS’s new green energy supplier, Clean Currents. By the way, Clean Currents was the December 2012 recipient of the Green America’s People & Planet award for their clean energy innovations and community-minded business operations—Congratulations Clean Currents!

yard sign proclaiming sustainable energy use

Join the Green Energy Neighborhood Challenge and clean up your home’s energy source!

Profiled in this blog in Blown Away with Wind Energy, Clean Currents is a local, independent green energy company, supplying TNCS and other commercial customers with wind and solar power options. In fact, TNCS and the Lingo Leap have been running on 100% wind power since October. Now, it’s time to bring it on home. Starting Monday, January 14th and running through Friday, March 15th, TNCS is partnering with Clean Currents during the Green Neighborhood Challenge to bring clean energy to you.

What is the Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge?

GNEC is Clean Current’s community engagement program. Since 2008, more than 150 Maryland and D.C. communities, schools, groups, and environmental non-profits have participated in GNEC, and, in 2013, Clean Currents is expanding into PA. The program provides both education about why sustainable energy is so important and the support for actually switching to wind power, all while raising money for local green projects. In other words, it brings 100% renewable, sustainable energy into your home. Plus, for every family who makes the switch, Clean Currents donates $30 to TNCS for their use in a school environmental initiative of their choice.

Benefits Galore

Sounds too good to be true, right? It isn’t. Sounds like a lot of effort, expensive, and time-consuming? It’s none of those either. By enrolling in TNCS’s GNEC online, families will see a line item on the power bill they are already accustomed to receiving each month. This line item is not an additional charge, it just means that the money you are putting toward energy suppy is going exclusively to fund wind power production (not power sourced from dirty and carbon-intensive fossil fuels). The charge is right around the same cost (give or take a few tenths of a cent, depending on the particular service) as, for instance, Baltimore Gas & Electric’s current charges. Even better, while BGE and other power companies’ rates fluctuate with the market and also throughout the day (i.e., peak-hour usage costs more than off–peak-hour usage), Clean Currents’ energy rates are fixed; rates are quoted in 12- and 24-month increments. The online enrollment process takes no more than a few minutes, and, once that’s complete, Clean Currents takes over. Your energy bill will reflect the changes within one or two meter readings. There’s nothing to install, and there are no hidden or additional fees.

And, again, TNCS gets $30 for every household who makes the switch! Note: this opportunity is not limited to TNCS-enrolled families. Anyone who wants clean, green energy can join the GNEC . . . but do please mention TNCS on the enrollment form!

Says Emily Conrad, Clean Currents Community Outreach Coordinator, “Our hope is that the Green Neighborhood Challenge will provide an excellent platform to bring The New Century School community together and empower both the students and their families to positively and quantifiably contribute to the school and the planet.”

Emily Conrad Community Outreach Coordinator for Clean Currents

Emily Conrad, Clean Currents’ Community Outreach Coordinator

5 Quick, Easy Steps to Joining the GNEC

Having trouble believing that such dramatic benefits can come from next to no effort? Read on.

Step 1: Go to http://www.cleancurrents.com/ (or click here).

Step 2: Click the orange circle on the right of the page that says, “sign up NOW”.

Step 3: Enter your zip code and click “VIEW RATES”.

wind turbines at Pennsylvania wind far,

This Pennsylvania wind farm is Clean Currents’ supplier.

Step 4: Choose from one of five listed plans that include 1) 12-month or 24-month options, 2) neighborhood or national (via Renewable Energy Certificates—RECs; watch the video) wind suppliers (see map of Clean Currents’ wind farms) that are both Green e-Energy Certified, and 3) 50% or 100% wind power and then click “Enroll now”.

Step 5: Complete the very brief electronic form, accept the terms, click “Submit”, and congratulate yourself for reducing your family’s carbon footprint in an immediate and quantifiable way!

Seriously—it’s that simple!

Do note that on the form you will be asked to “Please provide further details and your Green Neighborhood Challenge name, if applicable”; this is where you fill in “The New Century School” so TNCS gets credit for participating in GNEC. Another field on the form asks for your Electronic I.D., which is not the same as your account number, and can be found at the top left on the second page of your bill. A final note about the form concerns whether you are currently under contract with another supplier. Unless you have voluntarily opted for a supplier other than the utility company (in Baltimore City’s case, BGE), you are not currently under contract (BGE doesn’t count). If you are under separate contract, however, you may want to wait until your renewable window comes around before signing up with Clean Currents to avoid an early termination fee.

So come on everybody, make the choice between 1/14/13 and 3/15/13 to GO GREEN by accepting the Green Neighborhood Energy Challenge! You won’t regret it, and . . . it’s a “breeze.”

As always, kindly let us know your thoughts about this post in the comments section—we love to hear from you! Plus, stay tuned to see TNCS’s measurable process in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Baltimore!

11.23.12
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Blown Away with Wind Energy

On October 31, 2012, The New Century School decided to come clean. As part of an ongoing sustainability plan, TNCS switched off fossil fuel–derived energy and turned on with the environmental-friendly, clean energy provided by Clean Currents. Clean Currents delivers 100% wind- and solar-powered energy, a service that benefits the school; the environment; and, some say, the U.S. economy.

Clean Currents logo illustrates that power sources can be green

TNCS gets greener every day!

TNCS is fortunate to be located in Maryland, one of a handful of states (see map) currently enjoying a deregulated energy market for both electricity and gas (most states have deregulated one or the other or are not yet deregulated). This means that although Baltimore Gas & Electric owns and maintains the power lines, Clean Currents’ wind energy is what’s coming through those lines to power the school. In other words, consumers can choose not only who provides their power, but also have a choice in what type of power they buy, thanks to companies like Clean Currents.

With choices come advantages. The most obvious benefit to wind energy is its environmental friendliness. “Windustry” ameliorates climate change by not only providing a non-polluting source of energy but also by displacing the greenhouse gas emissions that have already polluted the atmosphere from conventional power. But there are other tremendous advantages, too. By reducing our dependence on fossil fuels, for instance, clean energy also makes us less vulnerable as a nation to the vagaries of the international oil market . . . and to the associated security risks. Moreover, ever-renewable wind is a cash cow for farmers. Wind farming almost effortlessly generates considerable income without taking up land needed for crops as well as creating jobs and boosting the economy.

So, as President Obama has pledged to move the United States toward energy independence, TNCS is doing their part to get there at the community level. Clean Currents was a natural choice for collaboration. Being a “benefit corporation, we have elected to build in commitment to the local communities we serve along with the environment. It’s part of our operating agreement,” says Emily Conrad, Community Outreach Coordinator for Clean Currents.

wind energy is sustainable, renewable, and readily available

Wind turbines harvest wind on a midwestern wind farm

And TNCS likes a company that is motivated as much by doing lasting good for its community as by its bottom line. The benefits to the school itself are also numerous. Besides going green, TNCS will host Clean Currents workshops with students that will focus on “age-appropriate activities around the world of energy,” says Conrad. This is another way that TNCS can reinforce to students the importance of respecting our world.

Finally, readers, you’re invited to ponder these very wise words:

When green is all there is to be
It could make you wonder why
But why wonder why wonder
I am green, and it’ll do fine
It’s beautiful, and I think it’s what I want to be . . .

Kermit acts as TNCS mascot for environmental sustainability

Sometimes, it IS easy being green!

P.S. Stay tuned to learn about the upcoming Green Neighborhood Challenge that will bring green energy to your door. That’s right—TNCS and Clean Currents are partnering to expand clean energy availability to the surrounding community. Look for a post about the Green Neighborhood Challenge in early 2013!