First Chinese Company Joins Climate Counts' Industry Innovators Program

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) MANCHESTER, NH - June 4, 2010 - Climate Counts announced that Broad Air Conditioning, a China-based manufacturer of non-electric air conditioning and sustainable building solutions, has joined the organization’s Industry Innovators (i2) program. Broad joins the six charter member companies— Amtrak, Ben & Jerry’s, Clif Bar, REI, Shaklee, and Timberland — in choosing to go through the rigorous Climate Counts i2 scoring process, used to track the climate performance of nearly 150 other well-known companies since 2007. Climate Counts – and its i2 program – was launched with support from organics pioneer Stonyfield Farm. Like other participating i2 companies, Broad earned Climate Counts’ top “striding” designation.

“We’re incredibly excited that Broad is making a commitment to lead on the climate crisis. This is a global crisis, and we need model companies from every corner of the world to be actively involved in solutions,” said Climate Counts Executive Director Wood Turner.

Climate Counts has partnered exclusively with the non-profit Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy (JUCCCE) to expand the reach of its i2 program in China. JUCCCE Chair Peggy Liu said, "70% of energy in China is used by industry, so the Climate Counts program could be a crucial tool for reducing energy use and emissions in this region."

Buildings account for 40% of worldwide energy consumption and produce a corresponding level of greenhouse gases that drive climate change. Broad develops cooling, heating, and power solutions that run on waste heat and can reduce building energy consumption with low cost and low technology. Broad requires that employees attend sustainability training when they join the company. The company’s products and efforts at climate protection are being featured throughout the six-month Shanghai Expo, which opened in May and is expected to host 70 million people by the time it closes in October. Broad is providing energy efficient air conditioning for all 200 Expo pavilions.

“We’re proud to join some of the world’s most recognized environmental business leaders in Climate Counts’ i2 program,” said Zhang Yue, founder and chairman of Broad Air Conditioning. “Humankind must work a quickly as possible to reduce our impact on the planet in order to preserve our home for future generations. Climate Counts’ i2 program helps bring to light and share the best practices of companies engaged in this vitally important work.” 

The i2 program extends the scope of Climate Counts – launched over three years ago with support from organics pioneer Stonyfield Farm – to work with businesses not currently ranked in its annual scores. The Climate Counts scoring ranks companies on 22 criteria in four key areas: (1) measurement of climate impact; (2) reduction of climate impact; (3) support for public policy that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions; and (4) external transparency and clarity on climate actions—to spur greater corporate climate responsibility and consumer action.

“People say the US is in a green race with China,” said Turner. “Our feeling has been that we should be working on the climate crisis together, and we’re proud to have Broad Air Conditioning as our first Chinese partner in that race.”

About Climate Counts

Climate Counts is a non-profit organization bringing consumers and companies together in the fight against global climate change. Launched with financial support from organics pioneer Stonyfield Farm, the Climate Counts Company Scorecard was developed with oversight from a panel of business and climate experts from leading non-governmental organizations and academic institutions. Criteria are based on their effectiveness at accomplishing a single goal – solving the global climate crisis. Since 2007, Climate Counts researchers have used these criteria to rate the climate actions of nearly 150 companies (representing approximately 3,000 brands) in 16 industry sectors. Companies are given the opportunity to confirm or provide public data sources. Information on all scored companies is available at www.climatecounts.org and on Facebook and Twitter (@climatecounts).

About JUCCCE

Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy (JUCCCE) is an NGO changing the way China creates and uses energy. As of June 2010, the group has taught over 150 Chinese mayors and 50 executives of State Owned Enterprises on energy smart cities. JUCCCE has given away 130,000 energy efficient light bulbs across seven cities to empower students and community members to be energy advocates, accelerated Smart Grid development in China, and helped launch the first Smart Grid exhibition center in China, at Yangzhou. More information on JUCCCE is available at http://www.juccce.com/ and on Twitter (@juccce).