> The SmartPower $10,000
Energy Smart Ad Challenge

SmartPower is proud to officially launch our $10,000 Energy Smart Ad Challenge, through YouTube and SmartPower.org. Just like in 2007, when we asked America to make great ads that promoted clean energy, we are now asking the creative video artists and message makers around the country to craft the best 30-second piece promoting energy efficiency and conservation to young Americans.

“Messaging to young people is a huge part of what it’s going to take to get our country Energy Smart,” said SmartPower Vice President, Jonathan Edwards. “Building a generation of energy efficiency ambassadors is a critical part of the energy puzzle.  If we can show young Americans that they can save energy and money just by being smarter about daily habits, we will have them on an Energy Smart food chain that makes their entire lives more energy efficient and conservation focused.”

To maximize the national awareness of our Energy Smart Ad Challenge, we have developed unique and interesting pages on social websites such as Facebook, MySpace and others.  We have also made this ad competition a topic of conversation at some of the leading Broadcast Communication and Marketing Departments at colleges and universities across the country.  Our efforts to date and those in the months ahead are sure to make for an even bigger and more competitive ad challenge than we had with our clean energy challenge. 

Last year, SmartPower awarded $10,000 to University of Nebraska student, Dan Sheppard, whose winning ad, “Telephones”, proved to be the most effective and unforgettable piece among a tremendous number of very strong and creative submissions.

“I remember how hard it was to pick the winner last time,” said Edwards. “The judging process was difficult, but exciting. We had the opportunity to see not only a lot of diverse film making talent, but--more importantly--a lot of strong, innovative messages that could effectively increase the public's understanding that clean energy is real, here and working.”

Contestants for the Energy Smart Ad Challenge are instructed to go to SmartPower.org, where they can easily find the rules and guidelines for the contest. There is a basic list of facts and ideas that contestants are asked to incorporate into a half-minute ad piece. The goal of the producer should be to make an ad that can create an awareness and concern among young Americans about how wasting energy also wastes their money and harms the planet. The winning ad will not guilt young viewers, but rather inspire them to make the necessary changes to stop energy waste.

“The electricity that’s wasted from leaving our different chargers and other items plugged-in when we’re not using them, as well as the waste that occurs when our electronics are on standby mode, is all called phantom load,” said Edwards. “And the amount of waste attributed to phantom load in America today is equal to the electricity generated from 17 coal-fired power plants! That’s huge! We want the SmartPower Energy Smart Ad Challenge to help us figure out how to best deliver that message to young Americans.”

The contest will stay open until Earth Day 2009.  A panel of marketing experts put together by SmartPower will then judge the entries. In addition to the $10,000 prize, the winning ad may be used in ongoing SmartPower Energy Smart campaigns throughout the country.

Good luck to all contestants! And may the best ad win!

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> The New SmartPower

That is why SmartPower has taken on a whole new mission and message when it comes to energy. “Let’s Get Energy Smart!” is the new call we are bringing to homes and communities across America.  By getting Energy Smart, we mean that Americans not only need to raise the consumer demand for clean energy by purchasing as much energy from wind, solar, water, geothermal and similar sources  as possible, but that all of us must also learn about the different ways in which we waste energy every day, and the easy means to prevent that waste through efficiency and conservation.

In the coming weeks and months, this new mission of marketing for an Energy Smart world will be implemented through several different programs and strategies.  These initiatives will carry the SmartPower signature focus of utilizing the new media, taking advantage of our award winning grassroots, field marketing tactics and, taking advantage of mainstream media and marketing promotions. 

However, SmartPower does not just have a new message and mission.  As any good marketer knows, you always need to simply keep your brand fresh and cutting edge.  And that is exactly what we have done.

Our new SmartPower mission is represented by an all new brand and logo—all of which are promoted by our fantastic new website!  That’s right—SmartPower.org is now fresher, more navigable and loaded with even more information than before.

“This new website is a major resource for us, as well as any of our current partners, future partners, and anyone who simply just wants to find out how to get Energy Smart,” said SmartPower President, Brian F. Keane. “Never has there been a better way for people to learn about SmartPower, and never have we had such a fun way to share what we’re all about to the whole world.”

Upon arriving at the website homepage, visitors will be greeted by the very familiar face of Brian F. Keane, who offers a brief tour of the site, including the highlighted sections made specifically for the different kinds of groups SmartPower works with—clean energy groups, utilities and other stakeholders.

Now, from the first minute someone new to SmartPower arrives at the site, she or he will know exactly what we’re all about and how we can help them to get Energy Smart. There are links to SmartTips telling how to save energy and money around the home, and—of course—information about how people around the U.S. can buy clean energy and help boost the market.

Visitors to the new SmartPower website will also continue to have quick access to our SmartPower Blog, as well as recent media coverage and press releases.  In addition, our entire eCommunitiy network is now accessible through SmartPower.org. That means the new website will serve as a hub to all of the additional blog sites we post for: Huffington Post, Shine and YouTube, as well as our various social networking sites:  Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, ThinkMTV, etc.

We encourage you to check out how we are utilizing these venues to increasingly spread our Energy Smart message. 

We also invite you to regularly visit our website for the latest SmartPower news, updates and new marketing campaign information. And be sure to bookmark it and email it around to your friends.

Additionally, by all means don’t hesitate to make our Facebook or MySpace page your homepage.

It’s all part of the fun of getting Energy Smart.  Here’s to a new message and a new goal of getting the world to be smarter about the energy we all use.

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> West Hartford, CT - #1 In the
State

West Hartford--the leading clean energy purchaser in Connecticut

In 2003, when SmartPower first announced its collaborative 20% by 2010^sm program in Connecticut and subsequently launched the Clean Energy Communities Campaign with its partner, the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund, West Hartford was one of the first communities to commit to the program.

And as of today, West Hartford has done much more than commit to purchasing 20% clean energy for municipal buildings.  In fact, the Hartford Courant recently reported that close to 1000 homeowners in West Hartford are supporting clean energy through the CtCleanEnergyOptions^sm program, making it the number one residential consumer of clean energy in the state.

The town currently has three separate 3kW solar panels that it has been awarded for its efforts in the campaign. Those panels provide clean, solar energy to the town hall and two different high schools.

"The SmartPower signature campaigns of 20% by 2010^sm and the Clean Energy Communities program, which are now found throughout different parts of the country, originally started in Connecticut through our collaboration with many organizations and the leadership of the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund,” said Brian F. Keane, SmartPower President. “It is exciting to know that the marketing programs that were born in our “marketing incubator” of Connecticut have not only spread across the country but are still strong and active with those original target consumers.  We are thrilled for the clean energy leaders of West Hartford and the town officials that helped make this happen.”

According to the CCEF, 84 out of 169 towns and cities in Connecticut, have now wisely committed to 20% clean energy by 2010.

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> SmartPower joins energy
experts in panel for The New
Republic

During the recent Democratic National Convention in Denver, the conversation about energy and the environment was everywhere you turned—on the streets, in the coffee shops and in the convention hall.

One venue in particular, the Tattered Cover Book Store, was host to a discussion event on the subject presented by The New Republic magazine.  The forum, entitled Environmentalism: What’s Next?, featured SmartPower President, Brian F. Keane, along with Sen. Ben Nelson, R-Neb.; Carl Pope, President of the Sierra Club; and Ted Nordhaus, Chairman of the Breakthrough Institute.

(The entire panel discussion can also be seen here, at Fora.tv.)

The panel engaged in conversation for over an hour on topics including the need to make clean energy affordable through advanced technology development, the importance of understanding differing attitudes the American public can have towards clean energy, and the necessity to not rely solely on the environmental message to convince the majority of people to practice energy sustainability.

Naturally, with those being the subjects at hand, and with a deep understanding of the importance of nuance when developing a message on energy for the general public, Keane had plenty to contribute to the conversation.

Senator Nelson stated that the Democrats in Congress recently built a perception that the party was against drilling for oil. He continued by saying the general public has developed a negative perception of the argument, “We can’t drill our way out of this”, because it does not—on its own—offer any insights into alternative solutions.

Agreeing with Nelson about the importance of language, Keane spoke about the frequent misconceptions the public makes when hearing the current messages about energy and the environment.

“We need to understand what the American people hear when we say words like this,” said Keane. “When we talk about “solar power”, the American consumer hears us say one hundred percent solar power. Nobody said one hundred percent, but that’s what people hear.”

He added, “We need to talk to people about diversifying their energy portfolio.”

Keane went on to say that the energy messages the American public needs to hear are ones that make it clear that the choice isn’t just oil or solar—in other words, today’s choice isn’t between fossil fuels and clean energy. We can all start to incorporate some of the mass amount of clean energy that is available today in America into our daily lives. And our demand will create more clean energy in the marketplace.

Needless to say, the whole event provided constructive discussion and SmartPower was proud to be part of it.

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> Meet Mr. Wright

So, to accommodate the rapid growth of SmartPower and our staffing needs, SmartPower is pleased to announce that Brian Wright has joined the SmartPower staff as its Director of Programs.  He will be responsible for the management and implementation of our project work, with a specific focus on the coordination and execution of our upcoming Energy Smart programs. Wright will also oversee SmartPower’s different campaign work in the states of Alaska, Connecticut, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Prior to joining SmartPower, Wright was the Director of Finance for the Massachusetts Hospital Association (MHA), a non-profit trade association, where he was responsible for all financial and managerial functions. Wright also held the position of Director, Member Services at MHA. In this role he was responsible for organizing and educating a network of hospital CEOs and Trustees, as well as developing a grassroots network of 50,000 healthcare advocates. Among his other notable positions before working at MHA, Wright served as Chief of Staff for the Boston City Council (1994-2000).

Wright has been active in local, statewide and national politics for the past 20 years. He earned his MBA from Boston College (2002), and his BS from Northeastern University (1992). Wright resides in North Grafton, Massachusetts with his wife and two children.

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> Barber is Back!

SmartPower is pleased to officially welcome Amy Barber as another of our newest staff members. You may remember Barber as a dedicated intern from Southern Illinois University Carbondale who worked at SmatPower headquarters in Washington, D.C. over the summer.  As of this past September, however, she is no longer an intern!  Barber has been hired to work for SmartPower full-time as Administrative Assistant in the D.C. office.  She is now serving as a critical player in our marketing campaigns and our new media initiatives.

“This is a special organization that is doing some very cool, and much needed work for energy independence and the environment,” said Barber. “I’m extraordinarily happy to help out with the SmartPower marketing mission.”

As Administrative Assistant, Barber is now not only aiding in the day-to-day SmartPower business functions (she’s the voice behind the kind “hello” when you call the office) but she is also managing different aspects of our marketing campaigns, as well as leading many of our multimedia marketing efforts.

Amy graduated with a BA in Journalism/Integrated Marketing Communications from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. During her time in at SIUC, she took an active role in community and volunteering worked for several environmental, business and democracy organizations.

So when anyone calls or stops by the SmartPower office, they can know that Amy is behind that extra bit of “energy” that we have around here these days.