In our first Best Of Issue, Green Living Magazine is proud to acknowledge the individuals and businesses that have made a conscious and sustainable impact on the community — all as voted on by readers. Arizona has experienced substantial growth in recent years, and, as such, the focus on sustainability and living more healthful lives has also been in the spotlight. Here, we invite you to learn more about the movers and shakers in the green living space. Congratulations to our winners!
Originally conceived by a collective of Napa County industry associations and environmental nonprofits, Napa Green is now an independent nonprofit program under the umbrella of the Napa Valley Vintners (the lead association for Napa County wineries). In 2021, Napa Green became the world’s first sustainable wine-growing program to redevelop completely its vineyard certification standards to focus specifically on critical issues like climate action, regenerative farming, and social equity and inclusion.
Today, Napa Green is the leading sustainable wine-growing program providing comprehensive, systematic, soil-to-bottle certification for growers and vintners. “We are one of only four programs nationwide that facilitates sustainability certification for vineyards and wineries, and the only program focused explicitly on climate action,” says Executive Director, Anna Brittain. “Our members stand as leaders exemplifying that caring for nature and community elevates quality and experience for employees, customers, and community, now and in the future.”
The Napa Green mission is threefold: to adopt the rigorous Napa Green Vineyard and Winery certification standards; to influence the adoption of leading sustainability and climate action practices in the global wine industry and beverage sector; and to measure and track ongoing performance for water and energy use, waste diversion, and Scope 1 and 2 emissions from vineyards to wineries.
Currently, there are 88 Napa Green-certified wineries, representing nearly 40 percent of all certified sustainable wineries in California. “We launched our new, cutting-edge Napa Green Vineyard certification standards in 2021, and more than 50 growers are either certified or in transition to certification, representing over 15 percent of Napa County’s total vineyard acreage,” Brittain says.
In order to become Napa Green-certified, vineyards must implement more than 100 standards across six core elements, while wineries must implement more than 120 sustainability and stewardship standards. While vineyards and wineries outside of Napa are ineligible for certification, there is demand for Napa Green to broaden its reach.
“We are exploring how to expand our team and capacity to make this a reality,” Brittain says. “The goal of Napa Green is to set the highest bar for rigorous sustainability and climate action standards for the global wine industry. Our region and wines capture global attention, meaning our leadership can be an outsized force for change.” www.napagreen.org
Runner up: Ikea, www.ikea.com
