Year-End Reflections from C3's Corporate Sustainability Team
With the election results in and the potential for new challenges to federal climate action, we know that local action is more important than ever. Our Corporate Sustainability team is committed to partnering with local organizations of all shapes and sizes in this effort. We know how important they are to meeting our community climate goals and creating the liveable, clean, and just future we strive for.
Let’s look back on a successful year of this work, and ahead to our big plans for 2025.
Building climate leadership with the GBA
We had another strong year with our circle of commercial climate leaders, the Green Business Alliance.
As a group, we continue to work on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from community-based operations, with a focus on buildings and vehicles. This year’s accomplishments included new gains on energy efficiency, multiple new solar projects in the pipeline, new workplace EV charging and new EV fleet additions. The combined annual GHG reductions of this group are over 6,800 metric tons of CO2 and counting. That’s the same as taking 1,500 cars off the road each year! This includes our flagship first cohort achieving a 36% reduction from baseline, well on the way to their 45% goal by the end of 2025.
The GBA gathers to learn more from Charlottesville’s Resilient Together Team and hear the latest in local climate hazards, climate resilience, and designing business-collaborative solutions.
As much as I love crunching these numbers, the best part about the GBA is the people, and the shared learning opportunities that our gatherings create. This year we convened for a workshop on climate resiliency, learned about community solar and unique financing models, and heard from UVA on their sustainability success and ideas for collaboration. We capped it all off with a pre-holidays toast at Green Drinks Cville.
Lastly, our invitation to the GBA has always been to be part of creating systemic change. We made good on this in 2024, with eight GBA members among the 25 organizational supporters of our Zero-Emissions Buses campaign. This successful campaign culminated in CAT’s pledge to pilot two new zero-emission technologies, and commit to a carbon-free fleet by 2040!
Supporting the non-profits that support our communities
One of the most important roles our corporate team plays is providing professional energy services to non-profit organizations that typically can’t afford them. Energy coaching can be expensive and also hard to access, as most consultants are not set up to serve small local organizations and make a profit. Further, while there are thankfully now several programs that assist low-income residents with these needs, there is a clear gap in public subsidy and programming for under-resourced commercial organizations.
Jacqui was thrilled to find spray foam during one of our non-profit audits!
That is why we are so proud to be full speed ahead helping local non-profits conserve energy, save money, and set climate goals. This year we’ve worked with more than a dozen partners in our cities, completing ASHRAE-qualified energy audits to identify quick wins and help with long-term planning. This has also included shepherding several partners as applicants to the Renew America Non-Profit’s program, which can fund up to $250k of energy efficiency upgrades! In fact, C3 partnered with five of the initial 30 applicants to this program in the DMV region. Pretty good batting average… Our fingers are crossed for these partners to get some good news on this funding in the new year.
Rolling up our sleeves with small businesses
Similar to non-profits, it is core to our mission of fostering climate-conscious local commerce to work with small businesses. Local businesses are the second-most trusted of any institution in the Commonwealth, just behind non-profits, according to the Virginia Community Engagement Index. That means that their actions can be amplified as an example to all of us.
Not to mention, thriving small businesses make for thriving communities. So what better than to help them save money on their energy bills and get a little more green awareness?
Sarah Sweet @ Scrappy Elephant cut her power bill in half with a new smart thermostat!
Enter C3’s Energy Efficiency Grants program. For the second year in a row, we are giving away $20,000 for energy conservation upgrades for local businesses, with a focus on woman- and minority-owned operations. We are in the process of wrapping up these awards, which will include storm windows, weatherization, new LED lights, smart thermostats, and even a heat pump water heater! Stay tuned for more details on this year’s amazing group after the holidays.
Educating and connecting
Last but not least, we are really loving our role as a connector and educator on green biz and green energy at the local level. We have especially enjoyed getting to know all the great business associations in our new city of Richmond, and talking to them about how to marry common-sense energy efficiency with lower operating costs and more liveable spaces.
Talking local business and climate action with Andrew Green (Viridiant), Kelli Lemon (Urban Hang Suite), Sydney Covey (Hourigan), and Michael Smart (City of Richmond).
Highlights of our connections included:
Our very successful Business of Climate panel at Quirk Hotel RVA, with nearly 100 in attendance to learn all about local business climate action.
Completing energy walkthroughs with member businesses from the Jackson Ward Collective.
A climate resilience workshop with the Resilient Together team and over 30 representatives from Cville area business partners.
Meeting with various business and neighborhood associations and coaching them on quick, easy green actions.
An EV Expo to showcase electric vehicles of all shapes and sizes in Cville.
Talking solar with John Kluge @ Thistlerock Mead Company.
What’s Next?
We’re expanding both geographically and programmatically, so keep an eye out for our Corporate team in 2025:
Growing and diversifying our Green Business Alliance in both RVA and Cville.
Teaming with Albemarle, Charlottesville, and LEAP to develop a unique, local resource hub for all things energy. C3 will be the commercially focused partner on this team.
Executing our Communities LEAP project in Richmond, to create a scalable approach to climate action in the commercial built environment and craft a pilot project for impact in Justice 40 communities.
Expanding our energy support offerings to include more capacity for non-profit audits, as well as focused workshops for non-profits and small businesses. This is thanks in large part to support from Albemarle County!
Reaching new business audiences and broadening our education and engagement to include contractors and developers.
Oh man, are we really going to do all that? Yes we are! And then some.
See you out there!
