Continuing nearly a quarter century of work helping buildings become more efficient and healthier, Green Building Alliance (GBA) is helping local organizations access lower cost capital for energy, water, and resiliency upgrades through the statewide Pennsylvania Sustainable Energy Finance (PennSEF) program. Thanks to a grant from the West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund, GBA is providing hands-on technical assistance to Western Pennsylvania organizations as they pursue PennSEF’s application and procurement processes.
PennSEF provides access to affordable financing to municipalities, universities, schools, hospitals, and large nonprofits for projects that promote energy or water efficiency and clean energy generation, in addition to economic development and environmental responsibility. Interested candidates will benefit from a free preliminary audit and available technical and legal guidance, in addition to pre-vetted vendor lists and built-in savings verification. The program is a partnership between the Pennsylvania Treasury Department, the Foundation for Renewable Energy and Environment, and the West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund.
“Through PennSEF, organizations can access capital and technical assistance to implement innovative performance upgrades, providing significant economic, environmental, and social benefits.” said Dr. Aurora Sharrard, Executive Director of GBA. “By serving as the Western Pennsylvania liaison for PennSEF, GBA hopes to empower organizations of varying sizes and capacities to reduce their costs and resource use, increase their resiliency, and even undertake deferred maintenance.”
“We are excited to partner with Green Building Alliance to promote the PennSEF program throughout the western part of the state,” said Pennsylvania Treasurer Joe Torsella. “GBA shares a commitment to developing projects that will save public and nonprofit entities money, reduce energy and water consumption, protect our environment, and provide opportunities for smart investors.”
Joel Morrison, WPPSEF Director expressed, “As a founding supporter of PennSEF, WPPSEF is proud to bring GBA’s technical expertise to organizations across the region. GBA is at the forefront of Western Pennsylvania’s energy transformation, and our partnership will catalyze sustainable change for generations to come.”
Organizations interested in financing their next sustainability project can contact GBA at (412) 773-6000 or info@gbapgh.org. To learn more about PennSEF, please visit freefutures.org/pennsef.
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About Green Building Alliance
Green Building Alliance (GBA) is a nonprofit organization that inspires the creation of healthy, high performing places for everyone by leveraging knowledge, transformative ideas, and collaborative action. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, GBA was founded in 1993 and is an aligned chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). With nearly 25 years of experience helping catalyze green buildings and sustainable communities in Pittsburgh, Western Pennsylvania, and beyond, GBA provides an unbiased, nonprofit approach to improving our built environment.
About West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund
The West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund (WPPSEF) is a nonprofit organization that invests in the deployment of sustainable energy technologies that benefit West Penn Power ratepayers in Pennsylvania. WPPSEF investments are focused in three broad categories: deployment of sustainable and clean energy technologies; deployment of energy efficiency and conservation technologies; and facilitating economic development, environmental betterment, and public education as they relate to sustainable energy deployment in the WPP service region.
About Pennsylvania Treasury
The Pennsylvania Treasury is an independent department of Pennsylvania’s state government. Led by the state treasurer, who is elected every four years, Treasury’s paramount responsibility is safeguarding and managing the state’s financial assets. It also receives Pennsylvania’s state revenue, manages state cash flow, and holds diversified short-term and long-term investments that earn income for state taxpayers. Treasury has a track record of pursuing opportunities that both represent prudent investments for the Commonwealth’s assets and promote environmental and sustainability goals. As of 2014, the Pennsylvania Treasury is custodian of approximately $100 billion in public assets.
About The Foundation for Renewable Energy and Environment
The Foundation for Renewable Energy and Environment (FREE) is a nonprofit, international organization established to promote a better future based on energy, water and materials conservation, renewable energy use, environmental resilience, and sustainable livelihoods. FREE partners with state and local government, universities, schools, hospitals and other nonprofits around the world to assist in program design for pooled energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Through its research arm, FREE conducts interdisciplinary and international energy and environmental policy research, including topics such as climate change, energy economics, urban sustainability, and technology assessment. FREE administers PennSEF for the Treasury Department.
