EDF Climate Corps Success Stories

In its first two years, EDF Climate Corps fellows have identified almost $90 million in potential savings for the companies at which they have worked. Just as impressive, companies report that they are implementing upgrades representing 84% of the energy savings recommended by the fellows.

The program began in 2008 with seven fellows and grew to include 26 fellows in 2009. In 2010, 51 fellows are working with leading companies to identify ways to reduce energy usage and costs in buildings around the country.

Highlights from 2010

Follow this year’s fellows as they share their experiences throughout the summer on the Innovation Exchange blog.

Highlights from 2009

• Giant Food Stores - Chris Anderson

  Chris Anderson spent his summer steeped in the grocery retail world as a Climate Corps fellow at Giant Food Stores, headquartered in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

  During one facility tour, Anderson found himself looking at freezer doors, wondering why some had heaters while others had more energy efficient anti-fog film. By probing beyond the initial answer, he uncovered an anti-fog product that could be retrofitted on existing doors which, if implemented at 2/3 of stores, could reduce CO₂ emissions by 26,000 metric tons per year and end the inefficient practice of heating up freezer doors.

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. - Neelam Bhatia

  Neelam Bhatia spent her summer as a Climate Corps fellow in Austin, TX at Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD), an innovative technology company. Bhatia evaluated energy efficiency opportunities such as lighting retrofits, energy management software and thermal energy storage at the company's Lone Star Campus building and data center.

  As part of her fellowship, Bhatia examined AMD's use of energy during peak and off-peak hours and calculated that AMD could capitalize on lower off-peak energy rates to potentially save thousands of dollars every year. She also discovered rebate opportunities from Austin Energy that could reduce the upfront costs and payback periods of AMD's energy efficiency investments.

  In total, Bhatia identified opportunities that could save AMD up to $1.3 million over the life of the projects. In addition the opportunities could save up to 3.5 million kWh of electricity annually.

• SunGard - Ryan Whisnant

  Ryan Whisnant, a joint MBA/MS student at the University of Michigan, spent the summer as a Climate Corps fellow at SunGard, an IT services company headquartered outside Philadelphia.

  Although SunGard had implemented a fair number of energy efficiency measures at its headquarters before Whisnant started his Climate Corps fellowship, his diligent attention uncovered lighting timer errors that resulted in 1/3 of the open floor lighting remaining on during non-business hours. According to Whisnant, fixing this problem in just one building could save SunGard nearly $20,000 annually.

  Whisnant also developed a plan to cut energy use in the company's headquarters by 25%, through lighting retrofits and HVAC upgrades. If implemented across the company's 7 million square feet of office space worldwide, the plan could cut SunGard's energy bills by over $5 million annually.

Read more stories from 2009 fellows »

Highlights from 2008

• Intuit - John Joseph

  At Intuit, Climate Corps fellow John Joseph identified a wide range of energy saving opportunities—from upgrading the air conditioning and heating systems to installing controls so that lights in bathrooms and lounges turn off automatically when not in use. These projects could save the company more than half a million dollars per year in energy costs.

• Cisco Systems - Emily Reyna

  At networking technology giant Cisco Systems, Climate Corps fellow Emily Reyna helped develop plans for a new energy-saving device for equipment in R&D labs that would save an estimated $8 million per year (with an 18-month payback) and reduce Cisco's greenhouse gas emissions by 3%.

Read more stories from 2008 fellows »

Posted: 17-May-2010; Updated: 07-May-2010