Better Buildings Challenge partner Cleveland Clinic has established the largest Green Revolving Fund in the healthcare industry to date. During the Better Buildings Summit in May 2016, Cleveland Clinic announced its $7.5 million Green Revolving Fund to finance and implement sustainability initiatives.
Green Revolving Funds (GRFs) are an innovative way for organizations, particularly for nonprofit higher education and healthcare organizations, to establish long-term funding for energy efficiency capital expenditure projects as the utility savings are reinvested back into the fund to be used for new energy efficiency projects. GRFs also necessitate and support the tracking of key energy saving metrics that help scale and target reinvestment for future projects.
With the funding, Cleveland Clinic has implemented several energy optimization strategies and building upgrades that have contributed to a 12.3% energy reduction as of 2015, including:
- Making targeted reinvestments;
- Utilizing ENERGY STAR-certified lighting appliances and equipment;
- Implementing an industry-leaning LED lighting retrofit strategy; and
- Numerous other energy reduction projects and programs.
Cleveland Clinic partnered with the Sustainable Endowment Institute’s Billion Dollar Green Challenge, which encourages higher education and healthcare institutions to join in a collective goal of $1 billion in green revolving funds. In its commitment to environmental health and proven successes, Cleveland Clinic serves as a leader in sustainability among the healthcare industry.
Learn more about Cleveland Clinic's sustainability initiatives at their Office for a Healthy Environment, and learn more about green revolving funds at the Billion Dollar Green Challenge.