Neighborhood Environmental Partners Program

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Neighborhood Environmental Partners Program
An Environmental Community Service Program
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Purpose
To increase dialogue and interaction between
businesses and citizens, regarding local
environmental issues by promoting and
implementing local environmental projects and
improvements.
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NEP

• The NEP Program will award business, citizen
  groups and municipalities that work together to
  implement environment projects in their
  neighborhoods.

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Who can participate?

• Businesses
• Citizen Groups
• Municipalities

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Benefits to Business

• Improved relations with neighbors
• Attain corporate environmental goals
• Recognition and good publicity
• Possible marketing campaign
• Employee Pride

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Benefits to Neighbors

• Cleaner, safer, and more attractive neighborhoods
• Confidence in local businesses
• Sense of empowerment
• Neighborhood Pride

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Recognition Levels

• Participants can apply to receive a
  Neighborhood Partners Award or Neighborhood
  Partners - Gold Award by choosing from a toolkit
  of activities. Participants can also suggest and
  use their own creative ideas.

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Activity Categories

• The activities fall into three general
  categories
• (1) environmental education,
• (2) environmental improvements, and
• (4) environmental mentoring.
• Applicants can choose or suggest ideas that fit
  any of the above categories

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Activity Levels

• Level I Neighborhood Partners Award
  Introductory, one-time activities, few or no
  partners.
• Level II Neighborhood Partners - Gold Advance,
  ongoing activities, multiple partners.

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SAMPLE TOOLKIT
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Example Activity

• Environmental Improvement
• Businesses and citizen groups cooperatively
  sponsor a household hazardous waste collection
  day or thermometer exchange

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Example Activity

• Environmental Improvement
• Businesses and citizen groups cooperatively
  sponsor a neighborhood beautification/cleanup day
  such as a tree planting, river cleanup,
  drain-stenciling, litter clean up, water-quality
  testing, painting a mural with an environmental
  theme, or other environmental type activity

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Example Activity

• Environmental Education
• Businesses and citizen groups work together to
  offer yearly scholarships for community youth
  going into environmental fields

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Example Activity

• Environmental Mentoring
• Commit staff and/or funding to mentor another
  business through the process of developing and
  implementing an EMS

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NEP Program Requirement

• All NEP Participants Must Have a Published
  Environmental Policy/Mission Statement
• Businesses and citizen groups can work together
  to establish an environmental policy or mission
  statement .

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Recognition

• Recognition would be provided for each
  achievement level by sending the participating
  partners a certificate or poster of achievement
  and a sticker with the NEP Neighborhood
  Partners logo.

The stickers will be year specific
Neighborhood Partners 2005 or Neighborhood
Partners 2005 Gold Level
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Recognition Cont.

• NEP Participants will also be recognized on the
  DEQ website and press release.
• A letter on recognition will be sent to local
  area municipality and chamber of commerce.

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Case Studies

• Outstanding, noteworthy, or especially creative
  or effective projects/activities will be written
  up as Case Studies and/or added to the next
  edition of the toolkit to increase the number of
  project ideas for future participants.

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Phase I Clean Corporate Citizens

• The NEP program will initially be rolled out to
  Clean Corporate Citizens

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Program Schedule

• Phase 1
• June 2004-January 2005 DEQ accepting
  applications from C3s.
• March 2005 First Awards Issued
• Phase 2
• Roll out to all business, local government
  and neighborhood groups.

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NEP Coming to a Neighborhood Near You!!!