Going green on a shoestring

Arlington County, VA, uses creative, no-cost ideas to make a big impact with a green initiative.

When Arlington County, Va. board chairman Paul Ferguson took office Jan. 1, 2007, for his one-year term, he made it clear he wanted to make “going green” his top priority. The communications team enthusiastically embraced the program, but faced significant challenges. Although they could use staff resources for the program, there was no budget allocated for communications or PR.

Preparation was key

Building on existing county energy management programs, Ferguson wanted to reduce Arlington County government’s greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent from 2000-2012, as well as educate the public. The team began preparing for the campaign launch a few months before Ferguson took office. Director of Communications Diana Sun says hitting the ground running was key. She also feels it was a plus that Ferguson was very specific about what he wanted to accomplish.