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ENERGY STAR for Congregations
Most congregations can cut energy costs by up to 30% by investing strategically in efficient equipment, facility upgrades and maintenance. With free, unbiased information and technical support from ENERGY STAR, your congregation can more easily improve stewardship of your budget’s energy dollars, and of the earth by reducing energy waste and energy costs, while protecting the environment.
What You Get
- Free, accurate, unbiased information
- Technical support through our Email a Technical Question service and Technical Resources
- “How-to” guide for analyzing and upgrading your facility
- Energy equipment and service contractors and utilities
- Information about ENERGY STAR labeled products
- National and local recognition
- Public relations materials to promote your efforts.
- Marketing Resources
What You Can Do
- Help your members learn how to save money and reduce energy waste at home
- Prepare an Energy Strategy for the Future
- Join ENERGY STAR for Congregations for free technical support, information, awards eligibility, and your free hard copy of "Putting Energy into Stewardship" for your congregation.
- Download the no-cost ENERGY STAR for Congregations Guide: Putting Energy into Stewardship
(1.3MB) and use our Technical Resources to learn ways that your congregation can achieve energy efficiency. - Get expert help for remodeling, upgrading or expanding your facilities from Professional Engineers or Service & Product Providers.
- Work with qualified Architecture & Engineering Firms to build new facilities using our New Building Design guidance.
- Purchase ENERGY STAR qualified products to save energy throughout your facilities.
- Apply for a national award for your congregation.
What Others Are Doing
Other Programs of Interest to Congregations
- Canfei Nesharim — Jewish Resources for the Environment
- Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life
- Episcopalian Ecological Network
- Evangelical Environmental Network
- The Forum on Religion and Ecology
- Interfaith Power and Light
- Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Sciences
- National Association of Evangelicals
- National Council of Churches
- National Religious Partnership for the Environment
- Presbyterians for Restoring Creation
- Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth
- U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
EPA’s ENERGY STAR for congregations provides technical information and support to all interested congregations. If you know of appropriate links to environmental efforts by other faith-based organizations that might be shown here, please contact us.
News
- 2008 Small Business and Congregations Award Winners
- EPA Press Release
Selected Resources
Did You Know?
If America’s more than 300,000 houses of worship cut energy use by 10 percent…
- Nearly $200 million would be saved for congregations’ missions and other priorities.
- More than 5.4 billion kWh of electricity would be available without additional cost and pollution.
- More than 2 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions would be prevented, equivalent to the emissions of about 400,000 cars, or to planting over a half million acres of trees.
