The Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Santa Monica (UUCCSM) won the Excellence Award for Social Responsibility and Stewardship of the Natural Environment.  Here are some (but not all) of the reasons the church was honored by the City of Santa Monica, Sustainable Works and the Chamber of Commerce for these Sustainable Quality Awards:

• UUCCSM had Southern California Edison, their energy company, perform an energy audit in 2007 and completed Sustainable Works Business Greening Program in 2008.
• They installed reflective film on the office windows and replaced more than 50 incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent lights.

  

• Their energy bill decreased form 2,166 KWh per month to 1980 kWh – a 9% decrease.
• To prevent pollutive runoff into the ocean, they installed 3 cisterns on their patio.
• Additionally, their landscaping includes low water use plants and a drip irrigation systems.
• UUCCSM performed remodels using Santa Monica’s Green Building Guidelines.
• They are reusing materials such a floors, doors and built-in furniture.
• They post weekly green tips in their announcements and offer a range of adult education classes throughout the year.
• They hosted three Green Living Workshops funded by the City of Santa Monica and provided by Sustainable Works.
• UUCCSM donated $250 to TreePeople for a grove of 20 trees and members attended a tree planting event in the Santa Monica Mountains.

This is not the first time UUCCSM has been acknowledged in their community for their stewardship of the Earth, in 2008 they won an Oscar for Energy Efficiency and Conservation from California Interfaith Power and Light.

UUCCSM is in candidacy to become a Green Sanctuary.  Check out the full list of accredited Green Sanctuaries at the UUA website.