LG Electronics, PTO Today Celebrate Earth Week By Engaging Youth, Launching Energy-Saving Campaign

WASHINGTON, April 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- This Earth Week, LG Electronics USA and PTO Today – an organization serving parent-teacher organizations from schools across the country – have teamed up with Team ENERGY STAR to educate American youth and families about saving energy at home.

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Team ENERGY STAR teaches kids how to save energy and help protect the climate with fun educational activities, and energy-saving actions they can do at home with their families. Last year, more than 10,000 young people participated in the inaugural launch of the campaign.

For the 2013 campaign, PTO Today has created a Go Green Night kit, which helps PTO & PTA leaders plan, promote, and execute a fun family school night event around saving energy and the environment. Within the Go Green Night materials, PTO Today incorporated characters from 20th  Century Fox's new movie, EPIC (in theaters everywhere May 24) to help inspire young people and teach them about energy and the environment in a interactive and engaging way. The movie is a 3D computer-graphics adventure comedy about a teenage girl, who is transported to a secret universe, where there is an ongoing battle between the forces of good, who keep the natural world alive, and the forces of evil, who wish to destroy it. The film stars Beyonce Knowles, Amanda Seyfried, Josh Hutcherson, Colin Farrell, and Pitbull.

In an effort to inspire kids to learn about preserving the environment, LG Electronics and PTO Today are asking youth to join Team ENERGY STAR and with help from the heroic team from EPIC, take a pledge to save energy at home. After signing up and taking the EPIC Pledge, kids are encouraged to share their EPIC energy-saving story for a chance to win prizes from LG Electronics and Fox. 

"PTO Today is proud to partner with Team ENERGY STAR in an effort to bring families together to learn what we can all do to help to make our planet a better place to live – and that learning starts both at home and at school," says PTO Today founder Tim Sullivan. "Go Green Night is an easy way for kids and parents to connect with their school community about this important issue in a fun and engaging way."

"Team ENERGY STAR continues to be a great way to involve young people in two critical issues of our time – saving energy and protecting the climate," said Jill Vohr, Director of Marketing, EPA's ENERGY STAR Labeling Branch. "Finding fun ways to engage and educate kids about saving energy will make a big difference for families today and tomorrow."

James Fishler, senior vice president, marketing, LG Electronics USA, said, "As a company committed to protecting the environment and educating consumers about energy efficiency, LG is thrilled to join Team ENERGY STAR for a second year and excited to provide kids who share their EPIC energy saving stories a chance to win cool LG products like smartphones, TVs and computer monitors."

Kids can join Team ENERGY STAR by visiting energystar.gov/team where they will get easy-to-download educational and interactive materials, such as a comprehensive Action Kit, the ENERGY STAR Home Check-Up, an EPIC activity booklet, and a Professor Bomba Goggles-Making Kit. Participants are also encouraged to come back and share their stories about protecting the environment by saving energy where they will be showcased on energystar.gov/changetheworld and throughout social media. 

The first 200 families to submit a story to Team ENERGY STAR will receive two tickets each to EPIC, courtesy of 20th Century Fox. Winning submissions will win prizes provided by LG Electronics, including ENERGY STAR certified HDTVs and computer monitors, as well as docking stations, smart phones and feature phones.  Top winners also will be featured on LG's billboard in New York's Times Square.

Team ENERGY STAR is part of the multi-year, EPA campaign, Change the World, Start with ENERGY STAR, developed to engage Americans of all ages in saving energy, money and protecting the environment with ENERGY STAR. If every American household took part in the Change the World, Start with ENERGY STAR Pledge, we would: Save more than 126 billion kWh/yr of electricity, save $18 billion in annual energy costs, and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from 20 million cars.

About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR is a program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency helping us save money and protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices. ENERGY STAR has nearly 20,000 partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes, buildings and businesses and the ENERGY STAR label can be found on more than 65 product categories.  In 2011 alone, Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, saved enough energy to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 41 million cars — all while saving $23 billion on their utility bills.

About PTO Today
Since 1999, PTO Today has been connecting with and serving PTO and PTA leaders and school families at schools across the country through a broad variety of print, online and in-person resources all aimed at fostering greater parent involvement in schools.  A division of School Family Media, Inc., PTO Today's services include PTO Today magazine, more than a dozen "PTO Expo" conferences around the country, and the School Family Nights® series of parent involvement events.  Learn more at www.schoolfamilymedia.com and www.ptotoday.com.  For more information about Go Green Night, please visit www.schoolfamilynights.com.

About LG Electronics USA
A proud 2013 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year, LG Electronics USA, Inc., based in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is the North American subsidiary of LG Electronics, Inc., a $45billion global force and technology leader in consumer electronics, home appliances and mobile communications. LG Electronics sells a range of stylish and innovative home entertainment products, mobile phones, home appliances, commercial displays, air conditioning systems and solar energy solutions in the United States, all under LG's "Life's Good" marketing theme. For more information, please visit www.lg.com.

SOURCE LG Electronics USA, Inc.