Green Communities Coalition

NEWS RELEASE

Date: October 7, 2009
Contact: Jamie Johannsen, Green Communities Coalition
Phone: 815/494-6977

Informational Meeting on Household Carbon Reduction

The Green Communities Coalition will host a public informational meeting introducing an educational program, The Low Carbon Diet, aimed at helping households improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. The meeting will be on Thursday, October 15, 2009 at 6:30PM at Emmanuel Lutheran Church on 920 Third Avenue in Rockford. Free, all are welcome.

Beginning in April, 2009, the Education Committee of the Green Communities Coalition has been teaching families how to reduce their households' carbon emissions with The Low Carbon Diet. Twelve families registered for the first session, held for six weeks at the Maria Montessori School in Rockford. This pilot program will launch what GCC hopes will be a community-wide network of volunteers who will continue to offer the free training sessions to groups and families.  The Low Carbon Diet program is offered to interested individuals and households at no cost.

The Low Carbon Diet is a 30-day program for households to lose 5,000 pounds of CO2. Households participating in this program use a simple guide book that shows, step-by-step, how to reduce household CO2 output in just one month's time. Green Communities Coalition President, Jim Roberts says, "we hope you'll not only complete the program, lessen your carbon footprint, but help become a facilitator as well. This program is the single most important action we can take to have an impact on carbon dioxide reduction. Our consumption habits must change, and you are the spark to effect this needed change." Any school, church or organization that would like to host a Low Carbon Diet series should call Mike Kearny at 815/871-1863. To learn more, visit www.greencommuninitiescoaliton.org

Green Communities Coalition is a non-profit grassroots organization of Northern Illinois dedicated to preserving and improving our environment through positive action.  We seek to build a cooperative coalition with partners in the communities where we live.  We work with churches, schools, non-profit organizations, government, business or individuals.  We collaborate to develop actions designed to improve the environment.  The Green Communities Coalition's initial project was working with Mayor Larry Morrissey and the City of Rockford to make Rockford a Cool City.  In June, 2008, Mayor Morrissey signed the U.S. Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement. Begun in 2005, the Cool Cities campaign empowers city residents and local leaders to implement smart energy solutions to save money and build a cleaner, safer future. To learn more, visit www.greencommuninitiescoaliton.org