Sustainable Pittsburgh is pleased to announce the top scorers of the Carbon Reduction Sprint. Hosted by Sustainable Pittsburgh, Sprints are free and friendly timebound competitions for businesses, municipalities, and other organizations to jumpstart progress on key sustainability topics. After six months of close competition, the Top Scorers in the Carbon Reduction Sprint are as follows:
Workplace Category
Luxfer Magtech – 100 Points
Runner-Up: Allegheny County Downtown Campus – 96 Points
Restaurant Category
Portia’s Donuts & Bobas – 133 Points
Runner-Up: 40 North Bar & Restaurant – 109 Points
Shop Category
Bike Share Pittsburgh – 91 Points
Runner-Up: The Life Potion – 83 Points
Municipal Category
Palmer Township – 155 Points
Runner Up: Pittston City – 138 Points
The Carbon Reduction Sprint launched in late 2023 and concluded June 28, 2024. Nearly 120 organizations competed among peers to reduce their carbon emissions. Of the group, 50 municipalities from across the commonwealth participated, along with 69 shops, restaurants, and other workplaces based in southwestern Pennsylvania.
The Sprint involves a series of point-earning questions via an online platform that participants can choose to answer, all related to reducing carbon emissions. Questions include whether an organization tracks its energy usage, if an organization uses renewable energy, or has installed energy-efficient equipment. Encouraging bicycle use and carpooling, as well as purchasing from local suppliers are other actions that organizations can take. In total, Carbon Reduction Sprint participants took a whopping 940 actions during the course of the competition.
“The Carbon Reduction Sprint offers a structured approach for organizations to plan their sustainability strategy as it relates to carbon emissions reduction,” shared Joylette Portlock, Ph.D., Sustainable Pittsburgh’s Executive Director. “Reducing carbon emissions is an urgent priority for our region, as we increasingly work to respond to a changing climate. Participating in the Sprint helps move the needle toward a more resilient, healthier southwestern Pennsylvania. We’re proud to recognize the achievements of Sprint participants.”
The Top Scorer in the Workplace Category, Luxfer Magtech, is located in Saxonburg, Pennsylvania. The company specializes in developing, manufacturing, and supplying a broad range of products that safeguard and protect. They are a leading manufacturer of magnesium chips, granules, powders, and pieces, as well as ground and inert-gas atomized powder products.
“Luxfer Magtech’s participation in the Carbon Sprint Challenge helped our Saxonburg facility develop and implement measurable actions to reduce the environmental impact of our operations on the communities in which we operate,” said Carlos Ortiz, Corporate ESG Specialist, Luxfer Holdings plc.
“Participation in the Sprint increased employee engagement, awareness, and encouraged execution of small, but impactful actions that reduce our carbon footprint and further our long-term sustainability goals. Some of the actions implemented at our Saxonburg facility which positively impacted our participation include turning off idle machinery, reducing heating and cooling in unoccupied buildings, LED lighting upgrades, and implementing equipment upgrades. Sustainability, including the reduction of carbon emissions, is a key focus area of our business strategy.”
Luxfer Magtech earned Silver designation as a Sustainable Pittsburgh Workplace just last week.
Portia’s Donuts and Bobas claimed the top spot in the Restaurant Category. Owner and CEO Portia Diaz shared, “Participating in the Sprint has helped me to really think about how I am impacting the environment and ways that I can reduce my carbon footprint. The questions and exercises made me realize what I am doing is helping the environment but also there are other things I could be doing that I didn’t even know about. I have always felt that we have to start somewhere no matter how little of a step we might think it is; a step forward is a starting point to move forward in reducing carbon emissions.”
Portia’s mobile bistros bring handcrafted donuts, bobas, specialty coffees, and unique desserts to fairs, festivals, and community events. Diaz is actively working toward earning formal designation as a Sustainable Pittsburgh Restaurant.
Shop Category Top Scorer Bike Share Pittsburgh owns and operates POGOH, Pittsburgh’s bikeshare system. Bikeshare Pittsburgh is a 501c3 nonprofit driven by a social mission to provide Pittsburgh with a joyful, sustainable, and affordable mobility service for all residents and visitors. Customers choose a pricing plan, then proceed to rent, ride, and return bicycles from official POGOH stations throughout the city.
Erin Potts, Director of Marketing & Community Outreach for Bike Share Pittsburgh, stated, “The Carbon Reduction Sprint helped our team become more aware of the meaningful steps that POGOH is already taking to mitigate carbon emissions, including saving energy during non-business hours, setting our air conditioning to a higher temperature, and supporting alternative transportation that reduces carbon emissions. Our business is designed to build a more sustainable mobility future for Pittsburgh; carbon reduction is built into the mission of our organization. The Sprint also helped us identify additional ways that we can improve, like performing an energy audit to help us better understand our usage, and better weatherizing our doors and windows.”
Of particular note, Bike Share Pittsburgh earned the top score in the Shop Category for last year’s Social Equity Sprint and is actively seeking formal designation as an official Sustainable Pittsburgh Shop.
Palmer Township earned the top score among municipalities. Based in Northampton County, Palmer Township is on the eastern end of the greater Lehigh Valley and boasts a population of around 21,600 residents. The township is also recognized as a Silver certified Sustainable Community through Sustainable Pennsylvania.
Sustainable Pittsburgh partnered with four organizations during the competition to elevate various topics covered in the Carbon Reduction Sprint. Energy Efficiency Alliance, Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Pennsylvania Resources Council, and Western Pennsylvania Conservancy each have specific expertise in areas that can impact carbon emissions including energy efficiency, transportation, procurement and waste reduction, and green space.
Reducing carbon emissions is critical for ensuring southwestern Pennsylvania’s strong quality of life and economic competitiveness. An organization that works toward reducing carbon emissions can reduce costs and improve resilience against extreme events that impact operations and supply chains. Municipalities that proactively integrate climate adaptation into their initiatives will be better prepared for increased heat and more extreme precipitation events.
In addition to Sprints, other Sustainable Pittsburgh recognition programs include:
- Sustainable Pittsburgh Workplace – open to workplaces of multiple sectors/sizes, including virtual businesses and organizations
- Sustainable Pittsburgh Shop – open to retail/“mom and pop” establishments
- Sustainable Pittsburgh Restaurant – for brick & mortar establishments with a kitchen
- Sustainable Pennsylvania – for municipalities throughout the Commonwealth; managed in partnership with Pennsylvania Municipal League
Over 40 organizations are engaged in the Sustainable Pittsburgh Workplace program (launched in 2022), and eight have earned designation to date. More than 250 shops and restaurants have earned sustainable designation in southwestern Pennsylvania, and across the Commonwealth, 134 municipalities have earned certification, including 90 in southwestern Pennsylvania. Certified sustainable municipalities are home to more than 4.1 million residents across the state.
Sustainable Pittsburgh believes that businesses, nonprofits, institutions, and local governments have the power to make this region a better place for all. Based on market-selected practices and peer-reviewed by knowledge experts, these voluntary recognition programs present a framework that can be used to drive measurable impact at organizations and in communities. Offering these tools, making connections, and elevating the good work of these organizations are integral to Sustainable Pittsburgh’s mission to empower decision-making that builds a fundamentally equitable, resilient, healthy, and prosperous region.
Organizations can create an account to begin the process of earning designation at any time, and they can progress over time to higher levels of designation. More information is available at SustainablePittsburgh.org.