The CoolCalifornia.org Small Business Award Program was established to recognize small California businesses and organizations that have demonstrated leadership and made notable, voluntary achievements towards reducing their climate impact. This was our inaugural year. Our 27 award recipients come from 22 cities across the state. Staff and management from the state agencies and the small business community selected the 2009 winners from a competitive pool of over 100 applicants. Among the 2009 award recipients, the number of employees per business ranges from 3 to 75. The average number of employees is 21. Multiple sectors within the business community are represented among the winners including home, business and professional services; food, lodging and entertainment; retail services and supplies; and auto-related services. Applicants took a variety of actions to save money while reducing greenhouse gas emissions including installing compact fluorescent lights or solar panels; supporting carpooling; reducing waste and water consumption, telecommuting and moving office locations to reduce transportation emissions; developing business-specific climate action plans; and incentivizing climate-friendly behavior with employee award programs.
Bowman Design Group is a small exhibition design firm. Key climate friendly actions that Bowman is being recognized for include conducting a greenhouse gas inventory through membership in the Climate Registry; writing and following a company-wide sustainability plan; reducing total greenhouse gas emissions by 65% (2006-2008); and demonstrating corresponding cost-savings, e.g. 30% reduction in electricity costs annually.