Five Green Business Leaders Promoted on County Ride On Buses; Local Businesses Inspire Others to “Get on the Bus!” by Earth Day

For Immediate Release: Thursday, March 16, 2017

In the spirit of Saint Patrick’s Day, celebrating all things green, five Montgomery County Certified Green Businesses will soon be promoted for making green business good business.  Each company will be displayed on public service announcements (PSAs) appearing on the side of the County’s Ride On buses with the tagline “Follow the Leader” in recognition of being early adapters of greening their operations.

Bethesda Green, Honest Tea, Innovative Business Interiors, the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce and The Maven Group have re-certified twice since the inception of the Montgomery County Green Business Certification Program seven years ago.

The Green Business Certification Program is a voluntary recognition program managed by the County’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in partnership with the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce (MCCC) and Montgomery College.  It helps County businesses green their operations and prosper in the new green economy by encouraging local consumers and other businesses to consider Certified Green Businesses when making purchasing decisions.

“It’s no easy task to maintain certification over several years,” said Barbara Ashe, Executive Vice President of the MCCC, one of the Certified Green Businesses to be honored.  “A couple of years ago we worked with DEP to raise the bar on certification and embed continuous improvement into the process.  For certification to be meaningful, it simply needs to be challenging.”

“We regard this network of nearly 80 Certified Green Businesses as a leadership group, helping to pave the way to a greener, more modern and vibrant economy,” said Lisa Feldt, Director of DEP.  “We want to use the example of these forward looking businesses to inspire others to follow their lead.”

To encourage participation in the Program, the County is offering an incentive: new businesses joining the Green Business Certification Program will have the opportunity to be featured on the bus PSAs later this spring and summer.  All businesses that submit their applications by Earth Day (April 22^nd), and are subsequently certified, will be eligible.  Appearing on County buses is a favorite perk among the Green Business community, as it is estimated that one bus ad generates about 100,000 views over the course of a month.

For more information on the Green Business Certification Program go to http://www.mcgreenbiz.org/.

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Release ID: 17-439
Media Contact: Judy Stiles 240-777-6507