Star Tribune - A green turnaround (highlights Green Institute & Metro CERT)
Star Tribune: Article by Neal St. Anthony
MINNEAPOLIS—It took a hard-nosed business executive and a very engaged volunteer board to put the green back in the Green Institute.
The Minneapolis icon of a decade ago, which arose from once-contaminated land, retrieves and sells reusable materials from gutted buildings. It has saved hundreds of tons of useful stuff from landfills and millions of dollars from energy bills since 1993…
The institute’s Diana McKeown has responsibility for a metro-wide program of Clean Energy Resource Teams that provide technical assistance, conservation programs and energy-saving products at bulk prices to small businesses and neighborhood groups. One of the most popular products is a discounted “Vendingmiser,” which cuts the electrical use of vending machines by half, or about $150 per year…
On Friday, the Green Institute was notified it has won a $227,000 grant from the Minnesota Office of Energy Security to help 50 small restaurants, grocery stores and convenience stores in Minneapolis cut their energy bills over the next three years, according to Green Institute engineer Nancy Kelly.
Most of these ma-and-pa businesses are run by immigrants and minorities who operate on a shoestring.
“The objective [is] to develop stronger rebate programs to address this energy-intensive business sector across the state and to encourage adoption and implementation of sustainable best practices among small businesses,” Kelly said.
Clean Energy Resource Teams