The Reconstructionist Synagogue of the North Shore (RSNS) at 1001 Plandome Road is a lot greener today. During the congregation's annual meeting in May, RSNS members unanimously approved an annual budget to purchase all of its electricity from green energy sources. RSNS is at the forefront of an emerging trend of congregations, universities, Fortune 500 companies and even entire cities that see green energy as an important step toward reducing US dependence on foreign oil, fighting global warming and articulating their institution's socially-conscious values.

Conventional electricity generation is the nation's largest industrial source of air pollution. Green power electricity is partially or entirely generated from renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, and low-impact biomass and hydro resources, and generates electricity with low or zero greenhouse gas emissions (a major contributor to global warming). Furthermore, purchasing green power supports the development of new renewable energy capacity.

"A congregation's budget speaks to their values as much as any mission statement," said Cantor Eric Schulmiler, the congregation's Prius-driving social action liaison, whose own home is partially powered by solar panels on his roof.

RSNS is purchasing 100,000 kilowatt hours (KWh) of wind, small hydro and bioenergy-generated electricity from Sterling Planet, a green power provider that is participating in the Long Island Power Authority's (LIPA) Green Choice Program. The U.S. EPA, using average avoided carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions nationally, estimates that RSNS's green power purchase will eliminate the production of more than 138,000 pounds of CO2 emissions, an act equivalent to planting nearly 20 acres of trees, or taking a dozen cars off the road.

Following their decision to "go green," RSNS became one of only 13 religious institutions nationwide to join the EPA Green Power Partnership, and one of only two in the entire country to qualify for the EPA's prestigious Green Power Leadership Club. The Green Power Leadership Club honors Green Power Partners that have made an exemplary green power purchase that significantly exceeds minimum Green Power Partnership purchase requirements.

"The EPA applauds the Reconstructionist Synagogue of the North Shore for qualifying for the Green Power Leadership Club," said Kurt Johnson, program director of the EPA's Green Power Partnership. "RSNS is providing an excellent example for it members, the community and other religious institutions."

The Green Choice program is the most recent initiative in RSNS's continuing efforts to reinforce the Reconstructionist movement's emphasis on the Jewish practice of Tikkun Olam (repairing the world) through conscious consumption (a practice popularly termed "eco-kashrut"). In addition to switching to green power, the congregation has begun to replace old windows with new ones containing thermally efficient "low-e" glass, has just upgraded their heating system with five high-efficiency furnaces, and installed an energy-saving motion-sensor lighting system. RSNS also plans to recruit its members to purchase green energy - the congregation is sending LIPA's Green Choice enrollment forms to all 350 RSNS households, with the hopes of preventing even more greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere.

RSNS Rabbi Lee Friedlander explains, "Our hope is that this latest step in the greening of our congregation will inspire our members to follow the synagogue's example in becoming shomrei adamah, guardians of our planet and its limited resources."

RSNS is a community dedicated to change and committed to tradition. RSNS was founded in the late 1950s by a group of families looking to form a committed and caring community based on the tenets of Judaism and social justice. Its diverse membership hails from towns all along the North Shore of Long Island, including Port Washington, Roslyn and Manhasset.

The Green Power Partnership is an EPA voluntary program working to standardize green power procurement as part of best practice environmental management. Partners in the program pledge to switch to green power for a portion of their electricity needs in return for EPA technical assistance and recognition. The Green Power Partnership currently includes more than 600 Partners, including Fortune 500 companies, states, federal agencies, trade associations, and universities. Additional information about the Green Power Partnership, including a full listing of all Partners, is available at www.epa.gov/greenpower.