VBSR Member News Round Up – 1/31/24
Governor’s Institutes of Vermont: The Governor’s Institutes of Vermont (GIV) is now accepting applications for the 2024 offerings of its residential summer programs. This year, GIV will be offering eight different summer Institutes including Arts, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Environmental Science & Technology, Global Issues & Youth Action, Health & Medicine, Mathematical Sciences, and Technology & Design. Each Institute works with local businesses, community organizations, and educational centers across Vermont to offer students the learning adventure of a lifetime. Learn more here.
Mamava: In addition to having just celebrated their 10th Anniversary by returning to the site of their first lactation pod placement, Champion Member Mamava’s innovation in the world of “inclusive guest experience” continues to expand. Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles is one of the latest locations to deploy Mamava pods (five!) to increase convenience and comfort for breastfeeding parents pumping and nursing. The arena hosts over 240 events a year—from annual GRAMMY Awards to Disney on Ice—and is home to four professional sports teams. Now attendees can enjoy shows and games while also feeling included if they are breastfeeding. Learn more here.
UVM: A new white paper co-authored by Gold Member UVM’s Gund Institute for Environment offers approaches for companies to track and disclose their impacts and reliance on nature. Companies now have an outsized impact on biodiversity worldwide. Simultaneously, those businesses often rely heavily on those same natural systems. So it’s critical to reduce the impacts the private sector exerts on the biodiversity that supports our lives.The paper demonstrates that biodiversity and ecosystem reporting can be streamlined and scientifically robust. Learn more here.
VEEP: The Vermont Energy Education Program (VEEP) brings experiential learning to K-12 classrooms across VT, so students (and their teachers) can understand where our energy comes from and how our energy usage impacts the climate. VEEP is now offering hands-on workshops for adult audiences as well. These workshops are especially useful to businesses and communities that are considering weatherization initiatives, transportation planning, or other energy conservation/emissions reduction work. Interested in hosting one for your employees, or sponsoring one in your local community? Learn more here.
Adventure Dinner and AO Glass: VBSR members Adventure Dinner and AO Glass were recently featured in a long-form story on NBC’s 1st Look. Not only does the feature showcase an appreciation for our state’s talented and mindful communities, but it also homes in on the offerings we share that remind us to slow down, step off the beaten path, and soak in the possibilities around us. When it comes to why it all works, “Community is everything,” says Sas Stewart of Adventure Dinner. Learn more here.
VEIC / Efficiency Vermont: Champion Member VEIC’s Efficiency Vermont program has announced that Vermonters are increasingly embracing heat pumps to cool and heat their homes and businesses, with more than 63,000 installed through the end of 2023. Vermonters have installed more heat pumps per capita than any other state in New England, with 97 heat pumps for every 1,000 residents. And heat pumps are seen as a key factor in combatting climate change: a typical U.S. home could cut its heating-related climate pollution by 45-72% by switching to an all-electric heat pump in place of a gas-fired furnace. Learn more here.
Vanguard Renewables: Vanguard Renewables has announced that renowned supplier of maple syrup, The Sugarman of Vermont, has joined the New England chapter of the Farm Powered Strategic Alliance. This collaboration aims to reduce the environmental impact of food and beverage manufacturers while supporting regional dairy farmers. Member companies commit to recycling their unsalable food waste through Farm Powered anaerobic digestion on local dairy farms, thereby generating renewable energy. Learn more here.
VSJF / DeltaClimeVT: The eighth DeltaClimeVT energy and climate business accelerator program has opened up the application process. The Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund (VSJF) program is designed to accelerate the drive towards a zero-carbon future for Vermont, by helping Vermont’s utilities increase adoption of clean energy, smart building and electric vehicle technologies that enable the integration of distributed energy resources with the grid. Application deadline: February 5, 2024. Learn more here.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont: The Snow Days of Gold Member Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont have returned! Snow Days is their way of helping Vermonters shake off the cold weather blues by getting outside and enjoying all the great winter activities our state has to offer. The connection with nature and time with friends, family, and neighbors supports personal wellness, community ties, and rejuvenates our spirit during this time of year. Join events, share photos, win prizes and more. Learn more here.
NOFA-VT: NOFA-VT has announced new Farmer Resilience Grants – a pool of funds they will distribute directly to farmers as grants to fund projects that will improve longer-term resilience on farms. Learn more here. They have also announced their conference keynote speaker for their Winter Conference later this month: Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, a regenerative agriculture visionary and the founder of Tree-Range Farms and Regenerative Agriculture Alliance. Learn more here.
Vermont Arts Council: Each year the Vermont Arts Council spends a day at the Vermont Statehouse advocating for arts, culture, humanities, and the broader creative sector in Vermont. This year’s “Creative Sector Day” was held on January 23 and focused on updating legislators and giving committee testimony. Learn more here.
VOBA: The Vermont Outdoor Business Association (VOBA) Outdoor Recreation Day at the State House is now open for registration. You can join other outdoor business enthusiasts in Montpelier on Friday, February 16th – just carve out a few hours to join from 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. to meet with legislators, listen to testimony, and network on a wide range of issues from flood relief and climate resiliency to sustainable recreation, conservation, workforce, and more. Learn more here.
ASBN: The American Sustainable Business Network (ASBN) has released its COP28 Recap. Each year world leaders gather at the Conference of Parties (COP) to negotiate and discuss global climate commitments and the biggest questions surrounding the climate crisis. If you want a succinct recap of implementation of the conference, the Paris Agreement, and the Kyoto Protocol, this is a great place to start. Learn more here.
UVM: Gold Member University of Vermont (UVM) always has opportunities for Vermont businesses to engage with talented undergraduates and graduate students. Don’t miss these upcoming ways to connect with UVM students and avail yourself of campus assets related to hiring.
- UVM Annual Spring Job & Internship Fair: UVM invites recruiters from regional and national organizations to campus to connect with UVM students about job and internship opportunities. The Wednesday, February 28 event is the largest career fair of the semester at UVM and includes organizations from all industries who want to recruit Catamounts. Learn more here. Still have questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out to John Kim, UVM SI-MBA Career Advisor, at John.Kim@uvm.edu.
- UVM Summer Intern Housing: Have you got interns coming to (or staying in) the Burlington area this summer? If so, UVM has affordable, accessible housing for them. With residence halls located minutes from downtown Burlington and easy access to local attractions and transportation, your visiting interns can make the most of their experience. Learn more here.