CSX and Environmental Defense Fund Fellow Create Framework to Optimize Efficiency, Cost Savings

Sep 16, 2014 11:40 AM ET

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., September 16, 2014 /3BL Media/ - For the fifth consecutive year, CSX welcomed an MBA student to the company’s Jacksonville headquarters as part of the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) Climate Corps, a fellowship program that pairs trained MBA students with leading companies and organizations to implement strategies and programs that drive energy efficiency. This year’s CSX fellow, Felise Man from the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, focused on developing an energy management plan that could be deployed across the company’s facilities.

“CSX strives to identify ways to continually make our business more sustainable. Expanding our energy management plan enables us to more effectively measure our performance to ensure the company meets its environmental targets,” said Carl Gerhardstein, assistant vice president, health, environment and sustainability, CSX.  “Our EDF fellows play a key role each year in helping us to advance these initiatives.”

Throughout Man’s 10 weeks at CSX, she established a framework to support the company’s energy efficiency projects. This customized plan is tailored to optimize energy and cost savings at CSX facilities through 2020.

As part of her work, Man created an energy management software tool to track projects and spending, benchmark electricity usage and savings, and project total avoided carbon emissions and renewable energy implementation against CSX’s environmental targets. The tool will aid CSX’s future reporting on energy efficiency and will drive collaboration across business units. 

About EDF Climate Corps
EDF Climate Corps (edfclimatecorps.org) taps the talents of tomorrow’s leaders to save energy, money and the environment by placing specially-trained EDF fellows in companies, cities and universities as dedicated energy problem solvers. Working with hundreds of leading organizations, EDF Climate Corps has uncovered nearly $1.3 billion in energy savings. For more information, visit edfclimatecorps.org. Read our blog at edfclimatecorps.org/blog. Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/EDFbiz and on Facebook at facebook.com/EDFClimateCorps.

About Environmental Defense Fund
Environmental Defense Fund (edf.org), a leading national nonprofit organization, creates transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems. EDF links science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships. For more information, visit edfbusiness.org. Read our blog at blogs.edf.org/business. Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/EDFbiz.

About CSX
CSX, based in Jacksonville, Florida, is a premier transportation company. It provides rail, intermodal and rail-to-truck transload services and solutions to customers across a broad array of markets, including energy, industrial, construction, agricultural, and consumer products. For more than 185 years, CSX has played a critical role in the nation's economic expansion and industrial development. Its network connects every major metropolitan area in the eastern United States, where nearly two-thirds of the nation's population resides. It also links more than 240 short-line railroads and more than 70 ocean, river and lake ports with major population centers and small farming towns alike. More information about CSX Corporation and its subsidiaries is available at www.csx.com. Like us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/OfficialCSX) and follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/CSX).