ACE – Advocacy, Community Service, Environment
What do trail building, loaves and fishes, and earthworms have in common? These are ways QBP advocates for the bicycle industry, fulfills our commitment to community, and helps make our environment green for generations to come. Collectively, we call these programs Advocacy, Community Service and Environment (ACE). More than a series of feel-good initiatives, ACE is a values-centered way of doing business that is actually good for our business and the entire bike industry.
Advocacy
At QBP we believe bike trails are healthy for everyone: children, athletes, suburban commuters, grandma and grandpa, bike dealers and bike vendors, too. When you build more trails, more people will bike and want to bike. That’s why we hired a fulltime advocate to lobby local and federal governments for trail-building funds. The results have been pretty impressive so far. Working with grassroots citizen’s groups and legislators, QBP helped to secure $4.5 billion in federal funds for a host of bike-and-pedestrian-related projects including:
- Safe Routes to School, a program that makes it safer for children to walk and bike to school
- Obtain funding for the Non-Motorized Transportation Pilot Program, a $25 million each to develop transportation networks for cyclists and pedestrians in Minneapolis and three other American cities
- Procure billions more for individual trail projects across the country
Realizing that advocacy begins at home, QBP encourages employees to bike to work and supports them with a Bike Commuting program. Not only do we ride on trails, we build them, too. Area off-road trails benefit from contributions of employee time and dollars to Minnesota Off-Road Cyclists and the International Mountain Biking Association.
Community
The philosophy guiding QBP’s Community Service Program is simple and direct. We give back to the community that has given so much to us. We do this in many ways:
- We reach out to homeless and at-risk youth by supporting Full Cycle, a Minneapolis-based charity that trains young people in beginning, intermediate and advanced bicycle mechanic courses
- We chop, dice and serve in the charitable kitchen of Loaves and Fishes to help feed the hungry
- We donate whole Santa sleds of new bikes and other gifts to Toys for Tots
- We promote bicycle safety through programs at public schools and support bike rodeos and other fun efforts that engage children in biking
- We rock down the trail with Trips for Kids, an organization that introduces urban children to the wonders of mountain biking
Environment
LEEDing the Way
As part of our commitment to a healthier planet, QBP built an earth-friendly warehouse expansion that is certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEEDTM) Green Building Rating System. Established by the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED sets rigorous standards for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. As a result, we are reducing the amount of electricity, gas and water QBP uses each year, making us 30 percent more efficient than Minnesota building code requires. Outfitted with innovative wastewater technologies, storm-water retention strategies, high-efficiency appliances, and a design that capitalizes on natural light, the building creates a human-friendly environment for everyone that walks through our doors.
We also encourage sustainable design and construction practices through continuing education. Visitors to QBP can tour our facility and learn more about the building’s innovative energy performance and design elements. To arrange a tour, please e-mail landerso@qbp.com or call 1-800-346-0004.
Green Power
In late 2006, QBP crowned its new distribution center with a rooftop array of solar panels. By replacing energy that normally comes from coal-fired power plants, the 40-kilowatt system will prevent 65,000 pounds of carbon dioxide and other noxious chemicals from entering the atmosphere each year. That’s the equivalent of planting 4,379 trees in the nature preserve beyond our building. QBP will sell excess energy back to Minnesota’s power grid. The solar array is the largest system in the five-state region.
The Worms Crawl In
QBP is experimenting with a composting program that uses worms to break down leftovers from the company lunchroom. Our specially bred redworms are champion eaters, gobbling more than half their body weight in coffee grounds, used tea bags, banana peels, apple cores and vegetables. The end product of all this feasting, called casings, is loaded with microbes and nutrients. Prized by gardeners and organic farmers, castings are blended with topsoil to make a highly fertile bed for plants. QBP volunteers plan to use these compost products in a new company vegetable and flower garden.