Book Description

On October 19, 2009, the White House launched the GreenGov Challenge to ask all Federal and military personnel to share ideas about how the federal community can lead by example, green the government, and meet the goals of President Obama's Executive Order on Federal Sustainability. The GreenGov Challenge generated more than 5,000 ideas and 165,000 votes from 14,000 federal employees. This report presents the results of the GreenGov Challenge. Each category includes a list of unique ideas, listed by popularity as determined by the number of votes. Each idea is attributed to individuals as they identified themselves, with some individuals submitting multiple ideas. The total vote count for the top idea in each category is included, along with a 'word cloud' that represents the frequency with which specific words and concepts appeared in submissions. Major themes that emerged from the 5,000+ ideas that were submitted are summarized and presented as well. The GreenGov Challenge demonstrated that the federal community is committed to leading by example through transforming how they work in practical ways that have real results. Many of the ideas that were submitted--like eliminating cafeteria items that can't be recycled or composted--can be implemented immediately. Others--like installing motion sensors to lighting systems and retrofitting bathrooms to conserve water--will take resources and planning over the longer term. Taken as a whole, the results of the GreenGov Challenge help to illuminate a course of action that will make the Federal government's operations more sustainable, responsible, and efficient. And for that, the Federal community owes each individual who has participated in the GreenGov Challenge a debt of gratitude.