Energy Star and The Cheeky Daddy's EPIC Challenge

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi

   Since the beginning of conservation, there have been the few that try to change the world for the better. As a young student, my classmates and I were taught about recycling and conservation. I was a cub scout, a boy scout, both teaching me about how to better take care of this world. Since then, it's gotten to the point where I won't drop a gum wrapper, and our recycling bin is always more full than the landfill bin.

   Enter the latest challenge from Energy Star. Partnering with Blue Sky and their film EPIC, Energy Star is challenging families to be more conservation minded when it comes to energy use. Living in an area that experiences HIGH energy bills in the summer, I'm all ears for a way to cut down on that cost. Yet, at the same time (not as an afterthought), I've always wanted to try leave the third rock from the sun a better place than I found it. So....

The details: 

The Environmental Protection Agency presents Team ENERGY STAR, an initiative to get kids and families on board to help protect the climate through easy-to-implement, money-saving actions and provides them an outlet for sharing their passion for preserving our environment. To help with this, ENERGY STAR has partnered with PTO Today and LG Electronics USA, and brought in the heroic characters from the new movie EPIC to help kids learn about the importance of saving energy while having fun at the same time.

Here’s how it works: Families can go to energystar.gov/team. There they can sign up and take a pledge for energy efficiency. Team ENERGY STAR will give them plenty of practical energy saving ideas right there on the pledge page. The first 250 families to pledge will receive a free DVD of EPIC the movie!

At the site they can download EPIC-themed educational activities and games on saving energy and protecting the climate. After submitting their pledge, families can enter the “Most EPIC Player” contest by sharing the site through Facebook or Twitter. The 25 entrants who get the most likes and/or retweets will win prizes from LG: computer monitors, TVs, smart phones and MP3 docking stations.

The top 5 winners will get featured on LG’s NYC Times Square billboard!

What is ENERGY STAR?

ENERGY STAR is a program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency helping us save money and protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices. ENERGY STAR has nearly 20,000 partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes, buildings and businesses, and the ENERGY STAR label can be found on more than 65 product categories. In 2012 alone, Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, saved enough energy to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 50 million cars — all while saving $24 billion on their utility bills.

In a nutshell, you help more while saving more. 

   *** If you're reading this far, then you're one of the elite. ***

   Join @thecheekydaddy on Twitter on Wed. 8/21 at 4pm EST for the 

#TeamENERGYSTAR Twitter party. We'll be discussing eTopics, sharing ideas, and such. 

   The Cheeky Daddy is behind this program and excited about the challenge. Not only is there a chance to score some eStuff, but you'll find yourself more conservation minded along the way. We've been trying to teach our children about the environment and cost savings this past year or two, so it's right in line with what we're doing. 
   Good luck, keep trying, and TURN OFF THAT LIGHT! (shameless Looney Toons rip-off)

J.