Global Green announced an innovative partnership with National Grid in 2015 that will include a significant investment to create climate resilient disaster preparedness hubs in communities devastated by Superstorm Sandy with the installation of advanced energy efficiency technologies. Up to five community sites will be upgraded, including the Church of God Christian Academy in Far Rockaway, Queens and the Martin Luther King Center in Long Beach, Long Island. Global Green and National Grid hosted an education event this morning at the Christian Academy with Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder for community leaders, students and families to learn about these important upgrades, and to help families take emergency preparedness steps that will make them safer in the event of future storms. The resiliency hubs will be centrally located in the heart of the community, and designed to provide emergency light, heat and power indefinitely during a crisis. These resiliency hubs will be upgraded with advanced energy efficient technologies including solar photo-voltaic electric power and electric storage systems, as well as gas and electric efficiency improvements. The upgrades also have the benefit of helping to reduce monthly utility bills—a savings that can be devoted to community programs year-round.
This initiative was privately shared at a panel on climate resiliency during the 2015 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting, and serves as the next phase in Global Green’s Solar for Sandy effort that launched in 2013 to help increase resiliency against future storms through the installation of solar systems on community hubs. This effort also supports National Grid’s Connect21 initiative, a blueprint to drive advances in America’s natural gas and electricity infrastructure – creating a more customer-centric, resilient, responsive, efficient and environmentally sound energy network to meet the needs of the 21st century.
Muse School
This year we kicked off a global partnership with MUSE School’s Seed-to-Table program. We recognized Emma Leyson, a fourth-grade MUSE student with the Global Green / MUSE ECO Leader Award, as well as three Global Green Champions from the Environmental Charter Middle School and the Tom Bradley Global Awareness Magnet School.
The innovative MUSE Seed-to-Table curriculum program is focused on students actively engaging in the reduction, conservation and repurposing of food, energy and water resources. The program explores the following areas: nutrition, cooking, permaculture, composting, GMOs, sustainable agriculture, alternative energy, organic farming, worm farms, and best use water practices.
The collaborative program between MUSE School and Global Green gives teachers the opportunity to establish Seed-to-Table programs on their campuses and develop student growth and education in the reduction, conservation and repurposing of food, energy and water. Besides providing a platform for conservation, the Seed-to-Table program also integrates science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM), giving students the opportunity to preserve the planet while learning academic content. Launching in the summer of 2016, the MUSE School / Global Green Seed-to-Table fellowship program is set to certify teachers in the MUSE Seed-to-Table program.
