GE Lighting's Environmental Awareness Campaign Offers Tips to Save Money on Energy this Earth Day


CLEVELAND-Each of us can make a significant impact on the environment without even knowing it. Whether it's switching to an energy-efficient light bulb or planting a flower, each small change today can make a positive environmental impact tomorrow.

One way GE Lighting is helping consumers, educators and retailers make those small changes is through its 2010 GE Project Plant-a-Bulb initiative, a campaign tied to Earth Day during April (video link: www.gelighting.com/na/videos-media/?vuuid=yw5pnuc1&categoryid=14613).

"Individuals may not know the level of influence they have on the ecosystem, and that even the smallest changes can yield results," GE Lighting Guy Brice Cooper says. "At the end of the day, we're all accountable for the world we live in. GE Project Plant-a-Bulb gives us all a chance to be involved."

According to the energystar.gov Web site, if every household in the U.S. replaced just one 100-watt incandescent light bulb with an Energy Star® qualified GE Energy Smart® bulb, we would avoid an amount of greenhouse emissions equivalent to taking 800,000 cars off the road.

GE's national, grassroots community effort is aimed at raising awareness about the cost-saving benefits of using energy-efficient lighting while encouraging individuals to get involved in helping the environment for future generations.

Everyone can get involved with this effort by visiting the main Web site at www.GEProjectPlantABulb.com or becoming fans of the GE Project Plant-a-Bulb Facebook fan page at www.GEPlantABulb.com/Facebook. These pages will offer visitors the chance to watch and share an informational 30-second video with their network of friends, family and co-workers.

GE Lighting will plant one flower bulb, up to 200,000 bulbs, for every person who watches the GE Project Plant-a-Bulb video on the main Web page and other online venues during the month of April.

How GE is Spreading the Word

The initiative, which started in March and runs through the end of April, encourages educators from kindergarten through 12th grade to visit www.GEPlantABulbEducators.com to download lesson plans and register their schools to become part of this national environmental awareness effort. At least the first 100 schools to register and download the lesson plans will receive a free GE Project Plant-a-Bulb Grow Pack, including 100 flower bulbs and a How-to-Plant Guide.

"The site will serve as an interactive reference where teachers can find links to educational videos, detailed lesson plans and downloadable classroom flyers," Cooper states. "It's a great opportunity for students to learn about energy efficiency and how their actions can make a difference for our planet."

The classroom flyers are meant to direct students to the Web site, where each visit will count as a vote toward a school-planting day in their community. The three communities with the most visits will receive a high profile planting day with GE Lighting Guy Brice Cooper and a team of volunteers.

Another way GE Project Plant-a-Bulb is working to educate people is through local retailers across the country. Participating stores-over 500 stores are signed up thus far-will receive a GE Project Plant-a-Bulb Grow Pack with flower bulbs to plant at a local school, neighborhood-park or other public area to demonstrate the store's commitment to its community.

To learn more about GE Project Plant-a-Bulb and how to save money and energy with alternative lighting options, while helping out the earth, please visit www.GEProjectPlantABulb.com

About GE Project Plant-a-Bulb

GE Project Plant-a-Bulb, a GE Lighting initiative formed in 2009, began with the goal of providing Midwest communities with education about the environmental benefits of reduced energy use. In the first year of the project, the GE Project Plant-a-Bulb team also planted thousands of flower bulbs at inner-city schools, educating students and beautifying the landscapes. For 2010, the initiative has been expanded to reach communities nationwide. For every viewing of the video on the main Web page and other online venues during April 2010, GE will donate a flower bulb - up to 200,000 total - to communities across the U.S. In addition, retailers participating in the initiative will be joining in to host community planting events. Schools will also have a chance to get involved: At least the first 100 to register will receive flower bulbs for planting at their school or in the community. The top three U.S. communities that view the online video will earn a planting event hosted by the GE Lighting Guy.

About GE Appliances & Lighting

GE Appliances & Lighting spans the globe as an industry leader in major appliances, lighting, systems and services for commercial, industrial and residential use. Technology innovation and the company's ecomagination(SM) initiative enable GE Appliances & Lighting to aggressively bring to market products and solutions that help customers meet pressing environmental challenges. General Electric (NYSE: GE), imagination at work, sells products under the Monogram®, Profile(TM), GE®, Hotpoint®, Reveal® and Energy Smart® consumer brands, and Tetra®, Vio(TM) and Immersion® commercial brands. For more information, consumers may visit www.ge.com.

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