Photo courtesy of B Corporation

We don't know about you, but our favorite local news show is definitely Kojo Nnamdi on WAMU. That's why we're thrilled that our very own Gary Skulnik is headed to WAMU this coming Monday to talk B Corps with Kojo. Clean Currents was the first company in Maryland to register as a Benefit LLC , and we're all about sharing the B Corp love. As both a Benefit LLC and a Certified B Corporation, we're responsible to our employees, our community, and the environment -- not just our shareholders. As the first electricity supply company to become a B Corp, it was important to us to lead the way as a sustainable business.

We're so excited to hear Gary this coming Monday, February 11th. Be sure to tune in to hear the latest on B Corps from noon -- 1pm on WAMU 88.5 AM. During the show we will be on Twitter to answer your questions, tweet us your questions @cleancurrents using the hashtag #bcorpkojo.

Clean Currents with GNEC Leader, Liz Feighner at the 2012 GNEC Awards Ceremony

Thanks in large part to our Green Neighborhood Challenge (GNEC) leaders, Clean Current's GNEC program received national recognition and $5,000 through Green America's People & Planet award this past December.  Now its time to put that award to good use!

In the past, Clean Currents donated anywhere from $10 to $25 to support GNEC group's environmental initiatives for every household in their community that switched to wind power. Since 2009, we have donated over $20,000 to fund community gardens, recycling and compost programs, energy efficiency initiatives, tree plantings, and environmental education programs through GNEC.

Now each group that participates in GNEC receives a $30 donation for every household that makes the switch (provided they bring in 15 enrollments)--AND, thanks to the Green America award, we will donate an extra $500 to all groups that bring in 20 or more wind power enrollments during their GNEC campaign this year. And, because we wanted to have a little extra fun, we're making custom shirts for all GNEC leaders. Design to be revealed soon!

Additionally, we are improving our educational workshop offerings for GNEC group youth. Our workshops cover topics such as energy sources, energy efficiency, wind power production, and energy market structures and influences, and can include science experiments, skits, and art projects.  Through these workshops, we work with students to determine ways they can build a more sustainable community, just as their parents can through switching to wind power at home.

To date over 150 communities have engaged in the Green Neighborhood Challenge. These groups have helped thousands of residents make the switch to wind power and have lead creative and meaningful efforts to work and live with a more positive impact on the earth. If you have participated in a Green Neighborhood Challenge campaign and would like to share your story, please email Emily Conrad at econrad@cleancurrents.com. 

We look forward to engaging more communities in the program this year and giving more back to support their efforts.

A New Century School Student in their greenhouse

Schools like The New Century School (TNCS) in Fells Point, Baltimore consider lessons revolving around environmental sustainability to be a core part of preparing the next generation to take on the world. That is why partnering with Clean Currents was such a natural fit for the school.

Starting at age 2, students at TNCS are exposed to the "seed to table" cycle by spending time in the school's greenhouse each week. In the greenhouse, students plant, weed, and harvest flowers, vegetables, and herbs that supplement the organic, vegetarian lunch they eat everyday. Science classes are frequently held in the greenhouse where students observe patterns in nature, and learn about lifecycles through studying plants, butterflies, and tadpoles. The greenhouse also serves as an example of harnessing passive solar energy and collecting rainwater. 

Through the Green Neighborhood Challenge (GNEC), TNCS is expanding its environmental education offerings to include studies of energy sources, energy efficiency, and clean energy. In a workshop led by Clean Currents, students will learn how we can harness wind power to create electricity, and how we can deliver wind-powered electricity from where it's produced on wind farms to where it's needed in homes and businesses. This workshop will be the first of several lessons that will lead up to a student science fair focusing on projects that demonstrate sustainable food, water, and energy systems.

But the environmentally-based education at TNCS doesn't stop with the students... Head of School, Alicia Danyali has been sending notes to the parents educating them about how they can join TNCS in reducing the community's carbon footprint by making the switch to wind power. Parent, Kelly Horvath wrote 2 blog posts on the school's blog aimed at answering all the questions parents might have about making the switch, and a growing number of parents are talking with other parents about just how easy it is. 

"The New Century School is thrilled to be wind-powered by Clean Currents and to share what that means with our students and their families through our Green Neighborhood Challenge campaign" says Alicia Danyali. "It is a way to expand our program into the community and share the rewards". The funds raised through TNCS's GNEC campaign will help further and expand TNCS's sustainability-focused educational programs.  

 Maryland State of the State Address - Photo Courtesy of the Office of Governor Martin O’Malley

The first month of Maryland's legislative session has already passed, and we've heard about gun control, offshore wind, and more. While much is still to come over the next two and half months, offshore wind and a fracking moratorium have become a popular part of the conversation in Annapolis.

Offshore Wind

Governor O'Malley's Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013 is already making headway this session. This past Wednesday, the Governor delivered the State of the State Address where he announced, "There's another important thing we can do this year to create jobs, and that is off-shore wind."  In 2012, the US Chamber of Commerce ranked Maryland the #1 state in the nation for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Governor O'Malley has recognized that through offshore wind, Maryland can only take this lead further: "Moving forward with Atlantic offshore wind could make Maryland the new regional manufacturing hub for wind turbines. We will create jobs and we will generate abundant, clean, renewable energy, but only if we choose. Let's get this done" the Governor proclaimed in his speech.

The bill is starting to progress both in the House of Delegates and in the Senate. On January 21st, Speaker Busch brought forth the bill's House version, HB0226, to for its First Reading. It has since been scheduled for a hearing before the House Economic Matters Committee on Tuesday, February 5th at 1:00pm. In the Senate, President Miller presented the bill's cross-file, SB0275, for a First Reading on January 18th. SB0275 will have its first hearing on February 13th at 1:00pm in before the Senate Finance Committee.

Clean Currents recently announced public support of the Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013. See our statement here.

Fracking

On January 16th, 2013, Governor O'Malley introduced the FY2014 budget.  In this proposed budget, he set aside money to continue with funding studies of the risks associated with fracking in Maryland. On the following day, Secretary Summers and the Governor's 15-members task force on Marcellus Shale Drilling delivered a briefing of its current findings in a briefing before the House Environmental Matters Committee.

The discussion on fracking has been a strong initial surge this session in the fight against fracking in Maryland, but there is still a discussion among some lawmakers of a need for a fracking moratorium that would guarantee legal protections against fracking and also ensure that all of the dangers associated with fracking such as those to climate, human health and the environment, are accounted. Delegate Mizeur of Montgomery County has said that she is drafting a bill to replace the Governor's current moratorium with a legally binding one that could not be lifted until after, "vigorous independent scientific review."

So far this session, Delegate Robinson of Montgomery County and Senator Montgomery of Montgomery County have introduced HB 0337 and SB0514 entitled Natural Gas -- Hydraulic Fracturing -- Prohibition. Both lawmakers have also introduced HB 0341 and SB0513 entitled Environment Hydraulic Fracturing Wastewater -- Prohibited Acts. These bills have all undergone their first readings but have not yet been scheduled for their first hearings.

As these two topics develop throughout the legislative session, we will continue to post bi-weekly updates on any forward progress. See past updates and keep up by following us on Facebook and Twitter!