NEWARK, N.J., April 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The PSEG
Foundation has committed $605,000 for
sustainability initiatives championed by Northeastern nonprofits.
The announcement marks a significant amount of funding from
well-known energy company PSEG for philanthropic initiatives that
are teaching people about the value of economic, environmental and
social responsibility.
"Earth Day is no longer just about
the environment. It's grown into a sustainability celebration,"
said Vaughn McKoy, PSEG's director
of corporate responsibility and sustainability, and president of
the PSEG Foundation. "Responsible organizations and leaders know
that the only way to long-term success and viability is through
taking a balanced approach to people, planet and profits."
- $150,000 over 2 years to
Sustainable Jersey, a program that is helping NJ communities go
green, control costs and take steps to maintain their long-term
quality of life for residents by giving leaders guidance, training
and technical support to help them implement a sustainable
development agenda. It is helping communities with solar and wind
projects, rain capture and reuse efforts, walking and biking
programs, building and operating community food gardens, launching
community outreach programs on recycling and energy, among other
initiatives.
A specific amount of PSEG's funding will be directed toward
towns in Southern New Jersey,
since initial feedback indicates that rural and less resourced
communities in this region are facing program participation
challenges.
- $400,000 over 3 years for the
PSEG Institute for Sustainability Studies at Montclair State University. PSEG's funding will
allow Montclair State to host a
significant examination of the major issues affecting long-term
environmental practices and sustainability issues in New Jersey and spur new partnerships between
academia, industry and community. It will fund a program that will
begin with a major international conference on sustainability this
fall, followed by two years of research to address critical issues,
and include a second conference addressing areas requiring further
research.
The Institute will conduct research, education and outreach in
an effort to balance preservation of Earth's life support systems
with its production of sustainable goods and services. Working with
the public, industry decision-makers planners and environmental
managers, the University will incorporate these concepts into its
approach to researching the management of urban watershed-coastal
ecosystems.
- $30,000 to Bridgeport Sustainability
Initiative BGreen 2020, a comprehensive sustainability
initiative intended to develop programs and policies that move
Connecticut's largest city toward
environmental, social, and economic sustainability. B-Green 2020 is
working to develop immediate and longer term programs which will
reduce the city's carbon footprint while growing its economy. To do
this, it plans to limit mobile emissions through the provision of
transportation alternatives and an emphasis on transit-oriented
development, to remediate brownfields and reactivate vacant land as
the foundation to vibrant neighborhoods and a growing tax base, to
expand the city's recycling capacity and divert more waste from
landfills and the waste to energy facility, and importantly to
identify opportunities to reduce energy demand through green
buildings and meet supply through renewable alternatives.
Burdened by a notable industrial past, declining population and
job markets, and numerous instances of environmental injustice,
Bridgeport faces significant
challenges in steering a course toward sustainable living. BGreen
2020 intends to change the image of the city by positioning it as
one that is green, clean, and safe.
- $25,000 to Clean Air
Cool Planet for their Climate Change Backpack, which includes
climate change lesson plans and props for educators. Through
environmental education for youth, the nonprofit hopes to create a
new generation of environmental stewards who will make lifelong
contributions to the kind of community greening programs that PSEG
supports.
PSEG funds will be used to fund the staff time and travel costs
necessary to promote and present five training workshops throughout
the State of New Jersey, field
educator inquiries and distribute backpacks. Funding will also go
towards subsidizing the costs of training for educators who could
not otherwise afford to attend.
PSEG (NYSE: PEG) is a publicly traded diversified energy
company headquartered in Newark, New
Jersey, and one of the ten largest electric companies in the
U.S. PSEG has been listed numerous times on the Dow Jones
Sustainability Index, and is committed to economic, environmental
and social responsibility.
Want to know what's new at PSEG? Go to
www.pseg.com/getnews and sign up to have our press releases and
weekly environmental commentaries sent right to your inbox.
SOURCE Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG)