Eco-Friendly

“Sometimes a girl’s gotta have some chocolate!” – Carrie Underwood

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Are you like Carrie Underwood and need to have your chocolate fix? Now you can feel a little less guilty as you partake in all the wonders of chocolate. The artisan factory of SPAGnVOLA Chocolatier is wind powered by Clean Currents!

Sustainability is key, from the actual growing of the cacao beans to the roasting and finally, the beautiful chocolate creations. SPAGnVOLA grows the cacao beans at their estate in Hato Mayor Del Rey, Dominican Republic and their Gaithersburg factory is where all the magic happens.

We sat down with Laura Brooks to learn more about SPAGnVOLA and why the environment is important.

CC: Why did you think it was important to support clean, renewable wind energy?

LB: Clean energy is important because it follows SPAGnVOLA’s philosophy of clean and sustainable practices.

CC: Why did you pick Clean Currents?

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Clean Currents: The Matchmaking Business

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Bikers rest after a morning of touring Baltimore’s parks

True love blossomed between wind powered businesses at the Tour Dem Parks, Hon annual bike ride. Clean Currents came out to feed weary athletes pedaling their way through Baltimore’s parks.

Riders young and old got to enjoy a taste of Michele’s Granola and B’more Organic’s drinkable yogurt. B’more Organic operates around their core values of generosity and sustainability – they donate 10% of all profits to the charity Jodi’s Climb for Hope. Michele’s Granola, – named after founder Michele Thornett- sells wholesome, mind-blowingly delicious granola, which happen to make excellent energy-boosting snacks in the middle of a long bike ride.
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States Take Charge on Clean Energy

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Christie Johnson is the summer Customer Engagement Intern at Clean Currents. She is a rising junior in the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service with a concentration in Environment & Energy studies.

I was skeptical. Entering the briefing “State Clean Energy Initiatives and the Value of Federal-State Partnerships”, I had no preexisting knowledge of state sustainability efforts. As excited as I was to attend, I was prepared to be wholly underwhelmed. My expectations were completely surpassed.

Representatives from across the U.S.- literally from Alaska to Massachusetts- spoke about clean energy ventures in their states. From impressive solar statistics in California, Massachusetts and Connecticut to the prospect of offshore wind in Maryland and a long-time-coming hydroelectric dam in Alaska, it became clear to me that states are pursuing far more clean energy initiatives than I was aware.

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Wind Farms

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The United States has some of the best wind resources of anywhere on earth.  In fact, the country’s wind power potential exceeds 30 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity, or nearly 10 times the country’s existing power needs (NREL Wind Resource Potential, 2010).

Clean Currents buys renewable wind energy from a number of domestic sources which vary depending upon which Clean Currents wind power product you chose (National Wind or Neighborhood Wind™).

Clean Currents sources its Neighborhood WindTM from Pennsylvania

The Highland North Wind Farm is located within the PJM electric grid, covering Maryland, DC, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia.  Electricity produced by the wind turbines at Highland North feeds directly onto the same grid that our homes, businesses, shops, and schools pull power from.  By choosing Clean Currents Neighborhood Wind™, you are helping to increase the share of renewable energy right here in our region.

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B-Corporation

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What are Certified B Corporations?

Certified B Corporations are companies that take into consideration social and environmental factors when making business decisions. They pay attention to the triple bottom line: people, planet, and profit. To formalize this committment, they undergo a third-party audit of their operations to ensure that they:

  • Meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards.
  • Meet higher legal accountability standards.
  • Consider community stakeholders. 

 greencommitment

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Green Summer Travel Tips

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Who doesn’t love to travel light? Less of a load is always a welcome change. Reduce the load on your mind by traveling “light” and green! Here at Clean Currents, we came up with some great ways to minimize your impact on the planet while you enjoy your summer vacation.

1. Choose a local destination. Never been to that museum in the city? Or how about the beach only a train ride away? There are tons of local vacation destinations all over the U.S. and sure to be plenty in your state. Better yet, have a “staycation” and explore your own town! It’s a perfect chance to relax and enjoy the tourist sights in your area.

2. Travel Green. Avoid the stress and chaos of the airport AND cut your carbon emissions. Carpool or take public transportation to your vacation destination and once you get there! By finding a destination with public transportation, you can save money and emissions by avoiding renting a car. If there is no public transportation, rent a bike. It’s a great way to explore a new city and no need to find a parking spot!

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I Heart CC

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For almost 4 years, I’ve been part of the Clean Currents team as we’ve worked hard to transform the relationship customers have with their electricity supplier. We want our customers to love their energy company. Based on some of our recent surveys, we’re doing pretty well on this front with both our business and individual customers. Getting positive comments from customers through emails, social media, and at events has been one of the most rewarding parts of my job.

Now that I’m getting ready to say goodbye to head back to school, I wanted to share some of the reasons why I LOVE Clean Currents.

1) We care.

The people that work for this company have a tremendous amount of passion. As a group, we care about climate change, the environment, our community and – of course – our customers. Our kitchen conversations are often about local volunteer opportunities, our awesome new CSA, the Stop Keystone rally over the weekend, or an interesting Grist article about sustainability or environmentalism. In terms of caring about customers, my coworkers will stay late to figure out the answer to a tricky customer question or work evenings and weeknights to attend an event for one of our business customers — and always with a smile.

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(Em)powering Philadelphia

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There are thousands of mentoring programs in the country serving three million youths. Dozens of states and cities have launched mentoring programs, and many corporations have their own initiatives. If there is one thing that Americans seem to agree on, it is that millions of children need guidance from positive adult role models.

That’s why it was so easy to create Lots of Power, our new mentoring program in Philadelphia that addresses one of the city’s biggest problems–vacant lots. Our project will pair high-school age students with professional designers and architects to research and develop innovative concepts for specific vacant lots in Kensington.

During the six-week program, teen participants will work in teams with professional mentor to gain real-world experience using design thinking to discover and exhibit creative potential, communicate their ideas and take positive action in their communities.

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How Clean Currents Wind Power Works

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Residents and businesses in Washington, DC, Maryland and Pennsylvania have the power to choose their electric supplier. If you pay your electricity bill, you can choose to support renewable energy every time you turn on your lights.

The Quick Answer

When you switch to Clean Currents, you will still receive one electric bill from your utility. However, Clean Currents will be responsible for the generation and transmission of your power. For all the electricity you use in your home or business, we purchase enough Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to match your electricity usage.

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Purchasing Wind Power: It’s Like Buying Organic, but a bit Different

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It’s the summer — the season of fresh produce. So, what does that have to do with wind power? Because purchasing power impacts markets:  both farmers markets and energy markets.

When you want to buy organic strawberries at the grocery store, you select the ones with the green sticker from the organic section and bring them to the checkout.

You’ll pay a little extra for that organic produce, and part of your payment goes to the organic farmer who produced the strawberries.  In this transaction, it’s clear that your purchase supports the sustainable growing practices that organic farming represents.

Unfortunately, being a socially responsible energy consumer isn’t quite as simple. If it were, I have a feeling that we would be using much more renewable energy in the US, and that Clean Currents might already be a fortune 500 company.

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