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Ever-Green works with a range of individuals and organizations to understand the priorities, goals, and needs of the customers and communities we serve. Collaborating with stakeholders enriches our understanding of the benefit that our services can provide and can expand the reach and partnership of Ever-Green operations at the community, regional, and national levels. This may include groups and individuals served by utility systems, or potentially served by future systems under design, as well as those interested in the environmental, social, and economic considerations of the work.
We consult with the following key stakeholders for input that influences Ever-Green’s operational and strategic direction, as well as ongoing initiatives:
Customers: for the utility businesses we manage, Ever-Green works closely with customers to understand their needs, so that we can align our operational goals with their priorities.
Communities we serve: Ever-Green works closely with community organizations and leaders to understand the priorities around economic development and community services to help bolster community goals.
State agencies: Ever-Green works with state agencies responsible for commerce, energy, environmental protection, natural resources, and labor to understand state policy priorities and confirm compliance with regulatory requirements.
Local government agencies: Ever-Green partners with local government units that are responsible for planning, climate action, workforce, economic development, and finance to assist with fulfilling their goals as it pertains to our business.
Other key partners: other stakeholders include partners involved in the planning and execution of regional well-being, climate action, community engagement, energy planning, business development, higher education, and technological advancement.
Stakeholder Engagement
The energy systems that Ever-Green operates, manages, and maintains have a range of engagement approaches based on the system owners, customers, and communities that they serve. Our team members are engaged in community activities and work closely with building owners and customers. We respond to customer and community inquiries. We host customer events and regularly provide updates on the systems and company news. Each year, District Energy St. Paul and Duluth Energy Services customers have the opportunity to respond to a customer satisfaction survey to provide direct feedback.
When pertinent, meetings are hosted with local officials to discuss how our energy projects and energy operations intersect with local initiatives, anticipated policy changes or goals, rules and regulations, and opportunities to work together. Ever-Green participates in local, regional, and national working groups focused on workforce, environmental stewardship and climate action, equity, workplace safety, policymaking, industry advancement, training, and technology exchange. Additionally, customer and materiality surveys are conducted so that stakeholder concerns and perspectives are considered as the company develops and grows.
Understanding the goals and values of Ever-Green’s stakeholders is critical in shaping future company operations, partnerships, and investment decisions. In 2022, Ever-Green introduced our first materiality survey to identify the priority values and interests of our internal and external stakeholders, including employees, board members, and clients. In the survey, stakeholders were asked to evaluate the importance of a variety of priorities relevant to Ever-Green’s operations using a scoring system. The material topics were determined by our core values, and the rankings were discussed and decided by company leadership. This survey will be conducted tri-annually. The feedback provided by the 2022 survey was analyzed and the importance of each material topic is given in the chart below.
Impact on Ever-Green Energy
The results from the materiality assessment underscored our stakeholder’s high prioritization of system reliability, safety of employees and customers, and quality services.
In addition to the materiality survey, our annual customer surveys continue to show a growing interest in renewable energy among our stakeholders in Saint Paul and Duluth. This information is continuously shaping Ever-Green’s ESG policy and goals. Additionally, this survey will be updated in response to feedback collected and re-distributed in future surveying cycles.
Ever-Green has been led by an exceptional board of directors since its inception. The board has several essential responsibilities, including reviewing, editing, and approving the company’s purpose, values, strategy, reported information, and sustainability policy. The board is also responsible for identifying and managing economic, environmental, and social topics and their impacts, risks, and opportunities, including the implementation of due diligence processes. To understand stakeholder perspectives in this work, materiality surveys are conducted and presented to the board.
The board of directors convenes the following committees:
Committees are responsible for decision-making on economic, environmental, and social topics. These topics are reviewed and prioritized by committees for full board review and approval annually. Additionally, special learning sessions with the engagement of external speakers from a variety of relevant backgrounds are presented to the group regularly.
Ever-Green conducts a comprehensive enterprise risk assessment every three to four years that identifies action items related to organizational risk, including economic, environmental, and social topics. The identified action items are then shared with and reviewed and approved by the board and the relevant committees.
Integrity is a core value of the organization and its people. The company strives for excellence in business conduct and is committed to accountability and fairness, an approach that informs our policies and procedures, and day-to-day operations. All employees review and, when necessary, receive training on, and acknowledge Ever-Green’s employee handbook. The handbook and conflict of interest policy contain provisions that provide direction to employees on how to seek advice and guidance about ethical and lawful behavior and how to report related concerns. Reporting can be directed to the office of the general counsel, human resources, the CEO, or the board. Financial transparency and diligence are essential to business ethics and sustainability. The organization completes consolidated financial statements annually.
Financial Disclosure
No company funds or other assets are paid or furnished, directly or indirectly, to a political party or political candidate or incumbents. No political contributions are made by employees in the name of Ever-Green or any affiliate. Ever-Green has not received financial assistance from any government during the reporting period.
Conflict of Interest
If an employee is unsure whether a transaction, activity, or relationship constitutes a conflict of interest, they are encouraged to discuss it with their manager or company general counsel. An officer of the company must approve any exceptions to the Conflict of Interest Policy in writing. The governing body plays a key role in mitigating conflicts of interest. They are responsible for reviewing and approving the conflicts of interest policy, and if needed, arbitrate any conflicts. If a conflict arises, it must be reported to the company general counsel.
Ever-Green maintains the practice of continuous improvement to identify areas of opportunity and vulnerability where we can make an impact on operations and projects. Implementing our materiality assessment survey has bolstered this effort by including a larger audience in driving change across our organization and focusing on goals that are important to those that matter most to our team members, customers, and the communities we serve.
Ever-Green’s parent organization, District Energy St. Paul: Ever-Green’s parent organization, District Energy St. Paul, was founded over 40 years ago as a public-private partnership. This legacy remains with Ever-Green today, with collaborative partnerships and organizations providing opportunities to connect, learn, and grow as a business. Our partners are key to our connection to business, environmental, and industry collaboration: