Air Quality Contacts
For more information, please contact Victoria Martinez.
"Because the It All Adds Up steps are voluntary and easy to do, they're easy to introduce. We think it's catching on. We hear people saying they like doing something small that can make a difference."
Lou Pocalujka, Consumers Energy, Michigan's chief public utility company and coalition partner of the West Michigan Shoreline Regional Development Commission, MI
The following articles contain information worth considering when building your own air quality outreach and education program. Get details about memorable air quality events, relevant legislation, and national activities and programs.
Noteworthy articles include:
The Race to Excellence recognizes the achievements of outstanding individuals and organizations—among them a longtime It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air partner—who work in the transportation management field or support transportation choices across the country.
Sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Race to Excellence emerged in 2005 as an addendum to the federal government's voluntary Best Workplaces for Commuters (BWC) program—a joint EPA/U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) initiative that gives participating organizations national recognition and technical assistance to help promote sustainable transportation options for their employees.
"The response to the Race to Excellence challenge is great," noted Patrice Thornton, manager of the BWC National Network and the 2006 Race. "We received almost 20 percent more applications than last year, and there was a marked improvement in program quality and the activities our partners are putting in place."
A broad range of participants, including transportation management agencies, business districts, transit authorities, and employee transportation coordinators have joined the Race to Excellence, which is open to BWC network members and transportation coordinators who work for BWC employers.
Honorees receive gold, silver, and bronze medals for their efforts to make it easier for workers to leave their cars at home—a key message of It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air.
It All Adds Up participants get involved
The Pima Association of Governments (PAG), an It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air participant since 2002, received a gold medal in 2006. PAG conducts an annual Best Workplaces for Commuters "list release," which highlights Tucson-area employers that meet EPA's National Standard of Excellence in commuter benefits. They also promote and report on progress with BWC at transportation and air quality committee meetings and in communications with employee transportation coordinators and, in past years, have given BWC employers recognition plaques during their Travel Reduction Awards ceremony.
"We're always looking for ways to keep our program fresh and exciting," said Mary Ann Soto, an employer representative for PAG's Travel Reduction Program. Widely distributed to the Tucson media, Soto said the list release is a great way to generate publicity for large and small employers that demonstrate environmental leadership and make other contributions in their communities.
"Best Workplaces for Commuters is a great springboard for generating community-wide interest and support in finding solutions to traffic and air quality issues," she said. "Plus, it helps us strengthen and build new public-private partnerships that are dedicated to making Tucson a better place to live-and perhaps most important of all, lets commuters realize that they can make a difference by choosing to use transit, carpool, bike, telecommute, or walk to work."
Since 2001, EPA and DOT have recognized thousands of organizations, representing millions of employees. Together they have saved hundreds of millions of gallons of fuel and millions of metric tons of carbon dioxide.
"The Pima Association of Governments and so many other organizations are doing super work," Thornton commented. "We're thrilled to be a part of their efforts, and excited about recognizing these groups and individuals at ACT's conference. The Race has turned out to be a fun and meaningful way to show our appreciation."
The Race to Excellence awards repeat annually, so find out if your organization is eligible to enter the next Race.
Click for more information about the Best Workplaces for Commuters' Race to Excellence.
Click to learn more about the benefits of joining the Best Workplaces Network.
The free, commercial-quality materials and positive messages behind It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air are "more important than ever" to finding effective, economical ways to inform the public about the impact of transportation choices on traffic congestion and air pollution.
That was the core message heard during a roundtable where 30 air quality and transportation professionals, representing communities in 20 states, assembled to talk about their experiences incorporating It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air into their public outreach and education campaigns.
The luncheon discussion, hosted by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), took place during a U.S. EPA/STAPPA-ALAPCO National Air Quality Conference in San Antonio. Roundtable attendees, many active It All Adds Up partners in air quality, met face-to-face with their transportation and air quality colleagues and FHWA air quality representatives to share ideas and opinions about the initiative and talk about future challenges and solutions.
Almost all agreed that, as they watch their budgets shrink, It All Adds Up is fast becoming a key resource for keeping their air quality public education and outreach programs afloat. Many credited their program success to the wide variety of free, commercial-quality marketing materials, messages, and support they get from It All Adds Up.
With It All Adds Up, "we can beg, borrow, and steal at will, and create a strong air quality program that has national recognition," said Margee Chambers from Spokane County Air Pollution Control Authority in Washington. "To get products, I always go to It All Adds Up first," she said, noting that she especially appreciates never having to think about the cost or hassle of getting reproduction rights, because all of the materials are free.
Laura Artates from the Nashville Metro Health Department said she particularly appreciates the season-specific materials. "The seasonal approach is the most helpful part of It All Adds Up," Artates said. "It's refreshing and it's helpful to planning a good campaign and keeping our messages in front of people year round." Joni Brown from Air Victoria, Texas, agreed, adding that when necessary, she can easily change a word or two to reflect the climate in her region.
The partners also expressed appreciation for the diversity of materials that are available from It All Adds Up and requested that the selection remain the same—wide and varied. And while some It All Adds Up products might not appeal to everyone, every item holds value and importance to someone. For example, when an attendee from Roanoke, Virginia, expressed her indifference toward the It All Adds Up radio ad scripts, Susie Kapahee, from Washoe County Health Department in Nevada, stressed an opposite point of view. "Don't you dare cut the radio ad scripts," said Kapahee, who heads the Air Quality Management Division at her organization. "We use those scripts most of all."
"The roundtable provided us with a valuable opportunity not only to shake hands with our partners in air quality, but also to hear firsthand what their needs are," said Kathy Daniel, an air quality specialist with FHWA.
When offering suggestions for improvement, many participants said they wanted information and guidance on how to tap funding and earn transportation conformity credits for their outreach program. Others wished for more air quality fact sheets, and one requested just a link to the AirShare web page.
"When we heard that people wanted to learn how they could earn conformity credits and get funding for their voluntary air quality education and outreach programs, we responded with a Q&A on the topic," Daniel said. "Now you can find out how one partner in air quality is doing just that-getting conformity credits and Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program funds using It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air." Click to read the interview.
Victoria Martinez, an environmental specialist with FHWA, also responded by introducing a new consumer fact sheet. "In addition to updating the materials, we've also created a new transportation and air quality fact sheet." Martinez said the fact sheet provides tips and statistics that organizations can use "as is" or incorporate into their collateral materials. "We know how challenging it can be to develop effective air quality outreach and education programs. That's why It All Adds Up exists—to make the job a little easier."
If you aren't communicating transportation and clean air messages to your Spanish-speaking residents, you might only be halfway there.
It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air rolled out a brand new collection of print and broadcast Spanish-language materials and other resources to support organizations in their outreach efforts to this important—and growing—market segment. The materials collection is free and gives air quality and transportation organizations another great way to effectively get the word out about the simple steps individuals can take to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution in their communities.
"For many of our It All Adds Up partners in air quality, the Spanish-language component is essential to achieving a complete and successful air quality public education and outreach campaign," said Kathy Daniel, an air quality specialist at Federal Highway Administration.
It's easy to see why Spanish-language materials are in such high demand. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Hispanics comprise the nation's largest race or ethnic minority, with more than one in ten U.S. residents a Spanish speaker.
Daniel said the new materials were developed in response to numerous requests from partners in air quality and other transportation and air quality professionals who were looking for ways to deliver clean air messages and outreach initiatives to their Spanish-speaking audiences.
This diverse assortment of commercial-quality Spanish-language print, television, and radio ads were translated from some of the most widely used and influential messages and materials in the It All Adds Up English-language collection.
The Spanish-language collection includes:
A Spanish translation of the It All Adds Up 10 Simple Steps flyer (PDF, 485KB) A Spanish translation of the It All Adds Up Three Simple Steps for Summer flyer (PDF, 4590KB) A Spanish translation of the It All Adds Up Two Simple Steps for Winter flyer (PDF, 386KB)
Spanish translations of three It All Adds Up live-read radio ads 
trip chaining (MOV, 3673KB), alternate choices (MOV, 3641KB), and vehicle maintenance (MOV, 3696KB)) The materials, along with additional tips and resources for building an effective Spanish-language campaign are housed in the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air One-Stop Spanish Shop.
It All Adds Up messages and materials can be customized to accommodate the names, logos, and/or URLs of your organization and other sponsors.
Over the next few years, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) will spend more than $600 million to promote the Safe Routes to School (SR2S) program—an initiative that helps finance local infrastructure projects and educational programs that encourage and enable primary and secondary school students to safely walk and ride bikes to school.
The measure also supports national health and environmental objectives to reduce traffic congestion, fuel consumption, and air pollution, which is good news for some It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air participants who spread the same messages.
The SR2S program is part of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), legislation signed into law in August 2005 that authorizes federal surface transportation agendas for highways, highway safety, and transit.
SAFETEA-LU retains and increases funding for environmental programs that were in previous transportation laws, while adding new programs, such as SR2S, that also contain an environmental component.
"This is exciting federal legislation," said Tim Arnade, FHWA's SR2S program manager. State Departments of Transportation will administer no less than $1 million annually to qualifying state, local, and regional agencies, including nonprofit organizations. "It's a very grassroots, non-traditional program," Arnade added.
While the lion's share of SR2S funding must be applied to infrastructure projects, 10% to 30% of it must go toward enforcement, public outreach, and education programs. The following non-infrastructure-related activities qualify for SR2S funding:
For It All Adds Up partners and coalitions already doing safe routes education and outreach, now is a good time to present to your State DOTs your firsthand knowledge of the various partners involved and to emphasize the importance of developing a well-researched, effective education and outreach initiative.
For example, Spokane County Air Pollution Control Authority (SCAPCA) has already developed "Move It!" an interactive, application-based workshop to teach middle- and high-school students the concepts and elements of community design that comprise a safe walking environment. Students use their skills to assess their school neighborhood, address safety issues, and brainstorm practical solutions. The ultimate goal of the project is to engage students in the act of public involvement, while making their school community safer for their schoolmates and pedestrians.
The Washington State DOT's SR2S program director could benefit from SCAPCA's experience with "Move It!" as well as SCAPCA's encouragement to work with other State DOTs to develop commercial-quality television, radio, and print ads and educational materials in order to spread consistent SR2S messages nationwide and for much less money than if each state developed its own materials.
"We all want these dollars to go as far as possible," Arnade said, noting that states must appoint SR2S program directors-a mandatory requirement of the legislation. "If you think your program might be a natural fit, contact your state DOT representative." To find the names of state appointees, please click here
More information about the Safe Routes to School program is available at:
If it's safe to bicycle and walk in your community, please consider using the free, commercial-quality It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air television, radio, and print ads and flyers that promote bicycling and walking. Please visit the alternate modes materials.
When looking for opportunities to forge national partnerships to help spread the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air messages and support the efforts of partners in air quality nationwide, Mills Corporation, purveyor of 14 megamalls around the country, stepped up to the plate.
Throughout 2004, Mills ran the It All Adds Up television ads on Mills TV, the closed-circuit television systems within their malls, free of charge. Mills TV reaches an annual audience of more than 220 million consumers. This is an excellent opportunity to promote clean air and responsible transportation choices to a national audience.
Mills aired the trip chaining and maintenance ads along with the alternate choices ad to coincide with the fall messages. What a great way to blanket the region with clean air messages!
The Mills locations that participated in the partnership were:
