3Degrees, one of the nation's leading providers of renewable energy and carbon offsets, today announced that B Lab, the B Corporation certification body, has recognized 3Degrees as a Certified B Corporation™. A B Corporation is a new type of company which uses the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.

"As a company whose mission is to accelerate the world's transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy, certifying as a B Corporation was a no-brainer for us," said Steve McDougal, President of 3Degrees. "The process for becoming a B Corporation was comprehensive and thorough, and has helped us better measure the impact our actions have on our employees, suppliers, community, consumers, and environment."

History of Sustainable Business Leadership

A five-time winner of the U.S. Department of Energy's Green Power Leadership Award, 3Degrees is one of the nation's leading Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) and carbon offset providers. 3Degrees provides green power and carbon offset products and services to Fortune 500 companies, utilities, green building firms, and other organizations that are working to make their operations more sustainable.

By partnering with 3Degrees:

• Utilities and Load-Serving Entities (LSEs) can utilize 3Degrees’ comprehensive Community Connect^sm methodology and expert program management team to launch, expand, and manage voluntary green power and carbon balancing programs that build their brands and strengthen their customer, regulatory, investor, and other stakeholder relationships.
• Businesses, government agencies, and nonprofits can mitigate the environmental impact of their operations, products, and services by matching their electricity use and unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions with Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and carbon offsets.
• LEED green building firms can make their buildings' energy use more sustainable, earning points toward LEED green building certification.
• Renewable energy and carbon reduction project developers and owners can bring RECs and carbon offsets to market, encouraging the development of similar projects.

Through these partnerships 3Degrees helps increase demand for renewable energy and carbon offsets, and channels capital to renewable energy and carbon reduction projects -- thus accelerating the world's transition to a low-carbon, renewable energy economy.

What is a B Corporation?

In order to be recognized as a Certified B Corporation, 3Degrees had to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance and legally expand its corporate responsibilities to include consideration of stakeholder interests.

B Corporation performance standards are comprehensive, measuring a company’s impact on its employees, suppliers, community, and the environment. As of August 2012, there were over 580 Certified B Corporations from more than sixty industries, representing a diverse multi-billion dollar marketplace.

Unlike traditional corporations, Certified B Corporations are legally required to consider the impact of their decisions on their employees, suppliers, community, consumers, and environment.  Long term this will lead to a legally recognized new corporate form (similar to a C Corp or an S Corp) and tax incentives, procurement preferences, and a social stock exchange for sustainable businesses. Already eleven states have passed benefit corporation legislation, and the city of Philadelphia passed a tax break for Certified B Corporations in December 2009. In April 2012, San Francisco passed legislation giving procurement incentive to benefit corporations in the Bay Area. 

In order to achieve the B Corporation certification, 3Degrees participated in an assessment process established by B Lab, the B Corporation certification body. The assessment included frank disclosure of information relating to 3Degrees’ operations, hiring and promotion procedures, environmental management practices, and governance.

3Degrees has also become a B Corporation service provider. As a B Corporation service provider, 3Degrees offers other B Corporations discounts on renewable energy in the form of Green-e Energy certified Renewable Energy Certifications (RECs), and greenhouse gas emission reductions in the form of verified carbon offsets.

About 3Degrees

3Degrees' mission is to mitigate the effects of climate change by accelerating the world's transition to a low-carbon, renewable energy economy.

3Degrees realizes this mission by providing green power and carbon offset products and services to Fortune 500 companies, utilities, green building firms, and other organizations that are working to make their operations, products, and services more sustainable. By matching their electricity use and unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions with Renewable Energy Certificates and carbon offsets, organizations and individuals provide support to green power and greenhouse gas emission reduction projects and mitigate the environmental impact of their energy use.

Winner of the U.S. Department of Energy's Green Power Leadership Award for five straight years, 3Degrees is headquartered in San Francisco, California, with regional offices throughout the country. To learn more, visit www.3degreesinc.com and follow us on Twitter.

About B Corp

Certified B Corporations 1) meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance; 2) legally expand their corporate responsibilities to include consideration of stakeholder interests; and 3) build collective voice through the power of the unifying B Corporation brand.  As of August 2012, there were over 580 Certified B Corporations from over 60 industries, representing a diverse multi-billion dollar marketplace. 

About B Lab

B Lab is a nonprofit organization dedicated to using the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.  B Lab drives systemic change through three interrelated initiatives: 1) building a community of Certified B Corporations to make it easier for all of us to tell the difference between “good companies” and just good marketing; 2) accelerating the growth of the impact investing asset class through use of B Lab’s GIIRS impact rating system by institutional investors; and 3) promoting supportive public policies, including creation of a new corporate form and tax, procurement, and investment incentives for sustainable business.

OLD 3Degrees

OLD 3Degrees

3Degrees is environmental commodities sales, trading and advisory firm. Its mission is to mitigate the effects of climate change by accelerating the development of a low-carbon, renewable energy economy.

3Degrees realizes this mission by helping organizations buy, sell and market environmental commodities, such as Renewable Energy Certificates and carbon offsets. By partnering with 3Degrees, these organizations can use environmental commodities to build stakeholder value.

In 2010 3Degrees was named the Non-Utility Green Power Supplier of the Year by the U.S. Dept. of Energy, the #1 REC Trading Company in North America by Environmental Finance Magazine, and the #2 U.S. Voluntary Emissions Reductions Dealer by Energy Risk Magazine.

More from OLD 3Degrees