Green Business Program LaunchED We are pleased to announce our new Sustainable Sandhills Green Business Program (GBP).

The goal of the GBP is to expand the adoption of sustainable practices in our communities by encouraging local businesses to “green” their operations, educate their employees and customers, to reward these leaders and to track the combined program results in dollars saved and resources conserved. SList of Green Businesses >>

We are pleased to announce our partnerships with the Public Works Commission (PWC) of Fayetteville and Sustainable Ft. Bragg in the support of our Green Business Program.  Additionally, the Green Business Program was piloted with the help of the Cumberland County Library System, the Cumberland Community Foundation, The Apple Crate, the CAMEO Art House Theatre and McKim & Creed. Each of these businesses agreed to be a pilot participant, going through the certification process and providing feedback on the program during the first quarter of 2008.

On April 10, 2008, the program was unveiled at a luncheon to over 100 participants.  Present were city leaders, city council members, business owners, as well as other non-profit leaders.  The program's intent and focus was explained, as well as some detail regarding the functioning of Green Business Checklist and the benefits of the program. We hope to offer this program to our eight county region, but will initially focus on Cumberland County, where the program is being supported in part by a grant from the Cumberland Community Foundation.

This innovative program will help to reduce waste, promote recycling, encourage energy and water efficiency, encourage the use of green products, limit transportation emissions and educate employees, customers and other businesses regarding these issues. These are but a few examples of the ways businesses and our communities will benefit from the Green Business Program.

The GBP is being offered to businesses many sectors, including Office & Retail, Restaurants & Grocers, Entertainment & Recreation, Hotel & Motel and Services.

The checklist is divided into four sections:

• General: Awareness, Purchasing & Transportation
• Solid Waste
• Water Efficiency
• Energy Efficiency

Each checklist includes several required measures and a number of optional measures. The optional measures allow businesses flexibility on their path to certification. Businesses may already satisfy a number of the measures and YES, would receive credit for those existing practices! There may also be green practices that have already been implemented—maybe some that we have not thought to include on our checklists—an "other" option is available for businesses to personalize their environmental efforts! We expect to learn as much, or more, from our program participants as they do from being a part of the program. The procedure for periodic reporting from participants will also allow us to track the results of the program as the number of participants grows.

All participants that gain certification will receive a decal, an electronic logo for use in their own marketing efforts, and local media recognition, a spot on our website, as well as a feature spot in our bi-weekly Eblast. All certified businesses will also receive a letter from the mayor, thanking them for their sustainability efforts.  We will also host an annual awards program to recognize the leaders in each sector for innovation and effort.

Jodi Price Hajosy is our Green Business Program Coordinator and is currently working with numerous business to achieve certification. She is originally from Pittsburgh, PA, but has lived all over the country and world. She has 17 years of experience in Occupational and Environmental Health, and we are fortunate to have her on staff to develop and administer the GBP. Jodi holds a BS in Environmental Health with minors in Biology and Safety Science, an MS in Occupational and Environmental Health and an AA in Spanish.  In addition to being fluent in Spanish, she has also studied German and French. She and her husband are the proud parents of three children; Yuri (9), Max (5), and Elizabeth (3).

Read More >>for additional information on the Sustainable Sandhills Green Business Program contact Jodi at jodiph@sustainablesandhills.org or 910.484.9098.