Alliance Hosts League of Green Embassies Event Featuring U.S. Ambassador to Finland

Washington, D.C. — On May 11, U.S. Ambassador to Finland Bruce Oreck urged a group of ambassadors to make their embassy buildings more energy efficient. Oreck, who also serves as the chair of the League of Green Embassies (LoGE), told the crowd at the Alliance’s headquarters that saving energy is worth the investment.

The Alliance also took ambassadors and embassy sustainability staff on a tour of its L.E.E.D-Silver office.

A Chance to Lead

“I invite you to rush head-forward to grab hold of … energy efficiency opportunities,” Oreck told the ambassadors and their sustainability department staff, noting that such opportunities could be as simple as changing the type of light bulbs used in the embassies to spearheading building retrofits, like the Alliance’s recent energy makeover at the residence of the U.S. Ambassador to Belgium.

Oreck suggested that his fellow ambassadors could help “all our respective countries” by working together through LoGE to advance energy efficiency.

Leading embassies in sustainable building practices, Oreck is renovating the U.S. embassy in Helsinki, Finland, to obtain L.E.E.D.-platinum status. To that end, he's equipping the building with state-of-the art, energy-efficient technologies. 

Case Study: Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Oreck's presentation included a Q&A session in which ambassadors and their staff discussed embassies that have made great strides in reducing energy consumption. For instance, the Canadian Embassy is taking part in a number of energy-saving initiatives.

As an Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star program partner, the Canadian Embassy is a year and a half into a retrofit that will save the building $320,000 annually through improved energy efficiency. In addition, the embassy loans employees bicycles for free and replaces aging vehicles in its fleet with fuel-efficient ones.

The League of Green Embassies

Nearly 70 embassies from around the world belong to LoGE. These members commit to save energy through energy efficiency, renewable energy and water conservation. Member embassies also aspire to influence their host countries and mobilize the public to save energy.

For more information, view this video (below) of Oreck speaking with Alliance President Kateri Callahan about the makeover of the Ambassador’s residence in Brussels.