A new way to save energy, save money and make a difference in your community
Focus on Energy is testing a new pilot focused on empowering rural Wisconsin communities to save energy while investing in local organizations. By changing a few old habits at home, participating residents can reduce energy bills and help the community raise up to $25,000 to support local nonprofits that make the community great!
The Save to Give Challenge encourages energy-saving behaviors and offers a range of benefits to participating communities:
- Communities share in a fun, community-building, and unifying challenge.
- Residents save energy and money and earn points by recording a few actions they took to conserve energy each week.
- When enough residents accrue points by saving energy, the community’s favorite nonprofits earn donations from Focus on Energy!
Here’s how it works
In participating communities, residents sign up for the Save to Give Challenge online. During two, 8-week long donation campaigns – one in the winter and the other in the summer – residents can:
- Choose the nonprofit organization they would like to support
- Learn easy ways to save energy in their home
- Earn donation points for their favorite nonprofit with every energy saving action they took and record each week
When enough residents sign up and earn points by saving energy, the community’s chosen nonprofits share the $25,000 donation prize money from Focus on Energy.
Participating Communities
Starting in 2021, the Save to Give Challenge launched in the City of New Richmond and the Village of Mt. Horeb as the second phase of the rural behavior pilot. Both communities will finish their second campaigns in 2022. Bayfield County and the City of Lodi participated in the first phase of the pilot.
Participate in New Richmond's Save to Give Challenge
2022 Save to Give Challenge Nonprofit Eligibility Forms
The eligibility forms for nonprofits interested in receiving funds for Focus on Energy's 2022 Save to Give Challenge pilot can be completed today. Please fill out one of the forms below that pertains to your community's challenge to express your organization's interest in participating in the pilot.
New Richmond Nonprofit Eligibility & Interest Form: https://focusonenergy.formstack.com/forms/save_to_give_charity_nomination_application_new_richmond
Mt Horeb Nonprofit Eligibility & Interest Form: https://focusonenergy.formstack.com/forms/save_to_give_charity_nomination_application_mt_horeb
Eligibility
Eligible communities meet the following minimal criteria:
- Population size does not exceed 30,000 people
- Majority of ZIP codes included (>50%) are classified as rural [PDF]
- Definition of community is clear and has an easily understood "hub" (i.e., city, county, school district, etc.)
- Must have an electric or gas utility that participates in Focus on Energy and there is a strong preference for utilities that utilize the MyMeter energy platform.
- Community’s associated electric utility agrees to incorporate the selected digital platform to engage participating customers in behavior change prompts and track progress