Companies and Cities Take on Better Buildings Challenge

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced 14 initial partners who committed to President Barack Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge, resulting in more than $500 million and 300 million square feet dedicated by private sector partners and local governments to improve energy efficiency.

 
The challenge is part of the president’s Better Buildings Initiative launched in February as a way to “catalyze” private sector investment in commercial building upgrades, and make commercial buildings in the nation 20 percent more efficient in the next ten years.
 
The initial partners announced by Secretary of Energy Steven Chu at the Clinton Global Initiative America meeting in Chicago include private sector companies, financial institutions and local governments.
 
Earlier this month, the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness — who co-leads the initiative along with former President Clinton — recommended prioritizing the initiative as an important way to support job creation.
 
"Improving building energy efficiency on a large scale is a challenge we can’t afford not to take," Chu said. "It will create jobs, reduce energy waste, save our businesses and institutions money, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil."
 
The challenge also supports Obama’s goal of helping businesses save nearly $40 billion annually in energy costs to allow them to grow, invest in new technology and create American jobs, officials said.
 
Upgrading energy performance of the built environment will also lower pollution and spur market growth, said Nancy Sutley, chair of the Council on Environmental Equality.
 
"The Better Buildings Challenge harnesses the creativity and ingenuity of leaders across the public and private sectors to ensure America leads the world in tapping the potential of saving energy to create jobs,” she said.
 
The initial partners will work with the Department of Energy to further develop the details of the challenge in advance of another round of partnership announcements in the fall, officials said.
 
The Better Buildings Challenge Portfolio partners include Best Buy, Green Sports Alliance, Lend Lease, Transwestern and USAA Real Estate Company, whose pledges total 260 million square feet of buildings and facilities.
 
The Challenge’s financial allies include Abundant Power, Citi, Green Campus Partners LLC, Metrus Energy, Renewable Funding and Transcend Equity, whose financial backing total $575 million over the next 18 months.
 
 
Better Buildings Challenge Community Partners: More than 47 million square feet, hundreds of city blocks of enrolled buildings and facilities, and up to $30 million in financing
 
Additionally, the cities of Atlanta, Seattle and Los Angeles will serve as partners and report back energy usage data.
 
"The Better Buildings Challenge will make American businesses more competitive in the global economy by saving them billions in energy costs — savings they can spend on growing, expanding and hiring new workers," said Laura Tyson, member of the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness and professor of Global Management at UC Berkeley.
 
"It will help put construction workers and contractors back to work and it will increase the production of energy-efficient products at U.S. manufacturing facilities. The first round of partners committing to the Better Buildings Challenge today are taking an important step to support job creation across the country."