Takoma Park Makes Finals Of National Energy Savings Competition

TAKOMA PARK, MD — Takoma Park is among ten cities and counties that have advanced to the final round of the Georgetown University Energy Prize, a national competition to rethink the way America’s small- to medium-sized towns, cities, and counties use energy, according to a press release.

The competition prompts local governments, residents, utilities, and other community leaders to work together to demonstrate success in sustainably reducing energy consumption.

Takoma Park is among the highest performing communities nationwide, based on total energy savings per household. Takoma Park has already saved almost 101 billion BTUs of energy, and reduced carbon emissions by 5,364 metric tons.

To reduce their energy consumption, the nominated communities:

• Implemented bold new local policies on energy-transparency, energy-savings, and clean energy technology;
• Conducted deep data-mining of their energy use and community infrastructure;
• Focused on increasing energy efficiency in neighborhoods with high energy use in all income brackets;
• Created novel financing mechanisms to enable their residents to invest in new energy upgrades; and
• Used radically unique approaches to support behavior change, including gamification and the latest methods in social science research to help their communities rethink how they use energy.

“Takoma Park is at the forefront of a nationwide competition to bring together communities with a shared goal of reducing energy consumption,” Energy Prize executive director Uwe Brandes said in a statement. “Our ten finalists have achieved impressive energy savings and reduced municipal and household energy budgets. They serve as models for other communities across our country and have offered innovative energy-saving strategies that can be replicated and scaled.”

The following communities have been selected to advance to the final phase of the Georgetown University Energy Prize:

1. Chula Vista, CA
2. Walla Walla, WA
3. Takoma Park, MD
4. Fargo, ND
5. Fort Collins, CO
6. Berkeley, CA
7. Oberlin, OH
8. Bellingham, WA
9. Montpelier, VT
10. Bellevue, WA

The Energy Prize Judging Panel will review final reports about each community's energy-saving plan, performance and future prospects in December. The panel will select a winning community and provide them with a prize package that includes support toward $5 million in financing for an energy efficiency dream project, as well as workshops and education opportunities for the winning community.

Photo By Patch Editor Cameron Luttrell