Powersmiths International is committed to building a sustainable future by developing three technology platforms: high efficiency transformers, advanced power metering technologies, and a sustainability management platform. By supplying products that reduce energy waste, and that measure and highlight how an organization is doing, Powersmiths helps organizations accelerate progress towards their sustainability goals.

A continuous improvement “lean and green” strategy guides Powersmiths’ product design and manufacturing. It takes steps throughout the design and production process to ensure that customers never pay for waste that can be avoided. Initiatives such as the use of biodegradable product packaging, and the reduction of harmful volatile organic compounds in production processes, are just a few examples of the extent to which Powersmiths takes its values seriously.

Toronto and Region Conservation is excited to announce the Living City Awards. These awards will recognize leaders in three categories: Regional Biodiversity, Healthy Rivers and Streams, and Sustainable Communities. In the category of Sustainable Communities, The Living City Pearson Eco-Business Zone Award will recognize a business leader from the Pearson Eco-Business Zone. The theme of the 2010 award is “Early Adopters” in recognition of Partners in Project Green’s first year.

An Early Adopter is a company that has implemented innovative and cutting edge strategies as part of an overall integrated sustainability strategy. All businesses located within the Pearson Eco-Business Zone are eligible. The project or activity must be a comprehensive, integrated approach to sustainability, and the project or activity must yield measurable results, such as financial and/or resource savings, new business opportunities, and the like. Originality of the project or activity will also be considered.

The daily commute can be frustrating and expensive, not to mention damaging to the environment. With many companies looking for ways to improve their environmental footprint, sustainable transportation options are becoming more attractive and are creating a healthier and happier working environment for employees.

Smart Commute is part of a network of Transportation Management Associations (TMAs) across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) that works with employers to help encourage the use of sustainable modes of transportation among their employees. With customized, sustainable transportation programs, Smart Commute helps companies reduce their overall carbon footprint while making commuting easier, healthier, and more enjoyable for their employees.

Among the many workplace programs offered by Smart Commute, the Carpool Zone has been very successful in changing commuting behaviour. The Carpool Zone is a state of the art ride-matching software that helps employees find carpool partners as close to their work or home as possible based on a customized search criteria.

Partners in Project Green, an initiative led by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) and Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA), has established a new Sustainable Hospitality Consortium. This is the first of its kind in the GTA. The Partners in Project Green Sustainable Hospitality Consortium is a facilitated team of organizations in the Pearson Eco-Business Zone that are committed to attaining World Class Environmental Sustainability Performance.

A survey by the Hotel Association of Canada this year showed an increasing awareness of environmental issues among hotel guests and an increased importance to the promotion of eco-friendly practices to their guests. The hospitality sector in the Pearson Eco-Business Zone, 12,000 hectares in the Greater Toronto Area that includes the entire Toronto Pearson International Airport as well as portions of the Region of Peel, City of Toronto, City of Mississauga and City of Brampton, had a total energy consumption of 2,505,000 GJ in 2008. Members of the Hospitality Consortium are striving to reduce their consumption by leveraging each other’s strengths through sharing, learning and improving to achieve accelerated results in their sustainability programs.