Montpelier Advances to Final Round in National Competition

The Georgetown University Energy Prize recognizes top performing communities for increasing energy efficiency, reducing municipal and household energy budgets.

Georgetown University announced that after competing for nearly three years, 10 communities have advanced to the final round of the Georgetown University Energy Prize (GUEP), a national competition to rethink the way America’s small- to medium-sized towns, cities, and counties use energy — and Montpelier, the smallest capital city in the United States, is one of them!

In December, a panel of judges representing academia and industry will evaluate each finalist community’s approach to innovative, replicable, scalable energy efficiency programs and will select a winning community based on a combination of energy performance scores and the advancement of new best practices over the course of the two-year energy-saving period.

Advancing to the final phase of the Georgetown University Energy Prize are following 10 communities (appearing in alphabetical order):

  • Bellevue, Washington
  • Bellingham, Washington
  • Berkeley, California
  • Chula Vista, California
  • Fargo, North Dakota
  • Fort Collins, Colorado
  • Oberlin, Ohio
  • Montpelier, Vermont
  • Takoma Park, Maryland
  • Walla Walla, Washington

Net Zero Vermont wishes the City of Montpelier continued success and pledges our continued support for its efforts as it works to become a net zero energy community by 2030.

About The Georgetown University Energy Prize

The Georgetown University Energy Prize aims to rethink America’s energy use by harnessing the ingenuity and community spirit of towns and cities all across America. From 2013 – 2017, the Prize has challenged small- to medium-sized towns, cities, and counties to rethink their energy use, and implement creative strategies to increase efficiency. Throughout the competition, local governments, residents, utilities, and other community leaders worked together to demonstrate success in sustainably reducing energy consumption. For more information, visit www.guep.org.