Staples and Starbucks Join the Better Buildings Challenge

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June 21, 2012

Staples and Starbucks are among the five most recent companies to join the White House’s Better Buildings Challenge.

Along with J.R. Simplot Co., Staples and Starbucks have pledge to add more than 50 million square feet of combined commercial building space, including 15 manufacturing facilities as they strive to meet the Better Buildings goal of cutting building energy use at least 20 percent by 2020.

Samas Capital and Greenwood Energy also joined the program pledging $200 million in financing, which will be available for energy efficiency upgrades through the program.

Launched in 2011, the Better Buildings Challenge is part of the Obama Administration’s strategy aimed at reducing energy waste in commercial and industrial buildings. Under the program, private sector CEOs, university presidents, and state and local leaders commit to taking aggressive steps to reduce the energy used in their facilities, and pledge to share data and best practices with others around the country.

Seventy organizations have joined the Better Buildings Challenge, accounting for more than 1.7 billion square feet of building space, including more than 300 manufacturing plants. Combined, they have also pledged nearly $2 billion to support energy efficiency improvements nationwide.

In December when the programs was announced by President Obama and former president Bill Clinton, Kohl’s, Supervalu and Walgreens were some of the first retailers to sign on, along with dozens of other companies.

GRD Views: Kudos to the major retailers that are pioneering this important program. It would be great to see the retail industry lead the pack in this Challenge over time. -- John Failla for Green Retail Decisions

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