At Con Edison, we strive to put our customers and communities at the center of everything we do. Making their priorities our priorities is crucial to the success of our business and is a key part of our sustainability strategy.
Our diverse communities are made up of the more than 10 million people who rely on our services each day. Our customers, municipalities, advocacy organizations, employees, and shareholders are all key stakeholders whose input we seek and respond to as we move our business forward.
We engage with our stakeholders through a range of activities, including collaborative meetings on topics from advanced metering to clean energy to storm response, community involvement and investment, and employee volunteer programs. We also provide a stakeholder ombudsman to support ongoing collaboration with key groups.
In one example of a collaborative effort that helped to serve our communities, we hosted a weather summit where our own meteorologists explained to forecasters from local TV and radio how the weather affects our electrical, gas, and steam systems and what impact that has on our service to customers.
As an energy company, Con Edison operates in a highly regulated environment and is affected by policies and regulations adopted at the federal, state, and municipal level. New York is engaged in several ongoing efforts that demonstrate the state’s leadership in advancing a clean energy future, including: the Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) proceeding, which seeks to better integrate distributed energy resources into the grid and to innovate new utility business models; the Clean Energy Fund (CEF), which will support a wide range of clean energy activities implemented by the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA); the Clean Energy Standard program, which will chart the state’s course to generating 50 percent of its electricity from renewable energy resources by 2030; and the New York Green Bank, which seeks to leverage private capital to fund clean energy projects in the state. In addition, the state continues to participate in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and is preparing to meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan, a new rule to limit CO2 emissions from existing electric generation plants when legal challenges are resolved.
In each of these areas, Con Edison has a long history of advocating for solutions that achieve policy objectives in the most cost-effective manner for our customers.
As one of the largest companies in New York State, we play a major role in the economic development of the metropolitan New York area. And in these uncertain times, association with us remains a sound investment. We’re proud to say that we have increased dividends to our shareholders for 42 consecutive years. Shareholder engagement has always been a sustainability priority for us. The following is a list of some of our key activities:
For more information, refer to our Shareholder Services.
[table id=34 /]
In the past year, we have strengthened our working relationships with our strategic partners to better serve people and communities throughout the metropolitan New York area. Some examples:
Twenty-eight of our employees joined with Habitat for Humanity to build a home in Yonkers, NY, for a National Guardsman who served our country in Afghanistan.
We received a Corporate Responsibility Award for our STEM Days Out program, in which middle-school students visit the Intrepid Sea, Air, & Space Museum to learn about science, technology, engineering, and math, and our GOALS for Girls program, which enables women in STEM careers to serve as mentors for teenage girls.
We also work closely with the Hudson River Museum to introduce students to STEM careers and instill in those students an appreciation for the Hudson River’s rich natural resources and aquatic life.
