SIG started our Earth Week a little early when Michael Cichetti and Andrew Cheek supported Georgia State | Perimeter College’s Earth Day Expo on Friday, April 15th at their Clarkston campus. There was great attendance as many students got extra credit from their professors by attending the expo and writing reports about what they learned. Booths were set up by the EPA, Chattahoochee River Keeper, and about 15 other vendors. SIG’s main goal was to encourage students to think about a career in sustainability, or at least be a little “greener” in their day-to-day lives.
On Wednesday April 20, Cindy Heimanson, Lyndsay Webb and Brett Rockman enjoyed the chance to visit with tenants in the lobby of Premier Plaza I right next to our own Atlanta headquarters in Premier Plaza II. SIG had some cool giveaways on hand: 100% recycled tire coasters, recycled plastic chips clips, recycled notebooks, and more, which brought several visitors to our table. In addition, SIG held a raffle where tenants had the opportunity to win an amazing coffee-themed basket complete with a coffee grinder, local roasted coffee, and locally bought snacks. This 2-hour event was the perfect platform for SIG to educate others on the importance of sustainability, the services we provide, our goals, and our mission. It was truly a success and everyone walked away with at least one more practical idea of how to “GO GREEN”!
SIG’s Tim Peterson and Kathy Grawe worked the SIG booth at the Earth Day Celebration at Sanctuary Park in Alpharetta, GA on Thursday, April 21st. There were several other booths of local green vendors each offering helpful info and interesting giveaways. Tim and Kathy enjoyed talking to tenants of the park, and found that most of them already knew what LEED was. This is because five of the park’s ten buildings are LEED certified, including a LEED Platinum certification for the Delta Dental building. SIG’s most popular giveaway this year were the coasters made of recycled tires. A special thanks to JLL for providing such a well-organized event that included lunch for the building occupants at Sanctuary Park.
Asa Posner, Senior Sustainability Manager at SIG, spent his entire week in New York City doing a wide variety of LEED and Earth Week activities in seven New York buildings. Below is a summary of the projects he worked on.
On Monday 4/18 and Tuesday 4/19 – Asa conducted Transportation/Thermal Comfort surveys at 125 Broad St. (Cushman & Wakefield) and at 1325 Avenue of the Americas (Paramount Group).
Wednesday 4/20 – Earth Day event at 900 Third Avenue (Paramount Group). There was a used shoe drive and an Earth Day recycling quiz where prizes were raffled off for the most correct answers.
Thursday 4/21 – Earth Day event at 745 5th Avenue (Paramount Group). Items that were given away to tenants included cupcakes and tree seedlings (white pine and Norwegian spruce).
Friday 4/22 – Conducted Transportation/Thermal Comfort surveys at 712 5th Avenue (Paramount Group).
Earth Day event at 712 5th Avenue (Paramount Group)
Giveaways included:
- Personalized Earth Day/712 5th Ave. cookies.
- A smart LED TV was raffled off for completing the transportation/thermal comfort surveys.
Earth Day event at 1301 Avenue of the Americas (Paramount Group)
Giveaways included:
- Two bicycles were raffled off.
- Sign-ups to become an organ donor were available. The theme was “recycle yourself”.
Asa visited the Earth Day events at 31 West 52nd St and 1325 Avenue of the Americas (Paramount Group) and delivered some handouts.
Also throughout Earth Week, Collin Shepard, Sustainability Consultant at SIG, helped Cushman & Wakefield at the Mansell Overlook property in Roswell, GA during Earth Week by facilitating LEED Transportation and Thermal Comfort surveys, a raffle drawing, and also a waste audit at one of the buildings. Georgia Commute Options was also present at Mansell Overlook to help educate the building occupants on how to take advantage of their alternative commute programs and incentives and to encourage sustainable transportation to and from the buildings.
Finally, Jason Kiefer, one of SIG’s Co-founders, spent time in California at Oracle’s Earth Day event in Redwood City, where he educated tenants about LEED and what it means. He also spoke on ENERGY STAR certification and alternative commuting options. He also did a building walk through as well as Earth Day activities with the 50 Beale Street team in San Francisco.
Helping others learn sustainable practices is something SIG team members are very enthusiastic about. We always enjoy helping out at the various Earth Day activities around the country. Thanks to our clients for making each of the events a unique learning opportunity for all who attended.
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