Toyota Green Initiative Launches at Historically Black Colleges and Universities

TORRANCE, Calif., Oct. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- The Toyota Green Initiative is an environmental stewardship platform designed to empower Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) students and alumni on the benefits of adopting a sustainable lifestyle. The Toyota Green Initiative will provide multiple touch points to mobilize the collegiate audience to go green including a content-rich website (http://www.ToyotaGreen.com) and an HBCU campus tour.  

At the hub of the Toyota Green Initiative is the interactive website ToyotaGreen.com, which will provide easy cost-saving tips on going green, eco-conscious articles, videos, campus events and volunteer programs. ToyotaGreen.com features a Promise Drive to secure personal commitments from site visitors on the reduction of their ecological footprint and adoption of a green living philosophy.

"The Toyota Green Initiative is an extension of our key focus to support educational and environmental programs and provides our future leaders the tools and resources to be environmental stewards in local communities," said Jim Colon, vice president of Toyota product communications for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.  "Continuously working towards sustainable mobility, Toyota strives to preserve the natural environment and establish systems to provide a brighter future for coming generations."

The Toyota Green Initiative Tour will reach HBCU campuses through mobile tour sponsorships of the CIAA (Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association) and the 2010 BET Black College Tour with a fully-immersive educational experience leveraging unique elements of ToyotaGreen.com. The tour will feature a simulated recycling center and energy-efficient monitors centered around an 18-foot tree installation built of sustainable materials, powered by a solar generator.

Supporting the Toyota Green Initiative are Coalition Members, a collective-based alliance of diverse voices including eco-conscious national thought leaders, influencers and celebrities dedicated to moving communities forward. The Coalition Members are led by Earthseed, LLC, an organization that aims to reconnect people of color to the earth and inspire the transformation of urban communities; and Lance Gross, HBCU college graduate and actor on Tyler Perry's hit TBS sitcom HOUSE OF PAYNE.

The Coalition Members will host Green Lectures on select CIAA campuses and also serve as mentors and judges of the Toyota Green Initiative Contest. To enter to win a one-year lease on a new 2011 Toyota Prius and a tree park for their campus, students must take the Promise Drive and register by submitting a plan at ToyotaGreen.com that will restore, improve or sustain the environment at their local campus or campus' community.

To learn more about the Toyota Green Initiative, please visit http://www.ToyotaGreen.com.

About Toyota

Toyota established operations in the United States in 1957 and currently operates 10 manufacturing plants, including one under construction.  There are nearly 1,500 Toyota, Lexus and Scion dealerships in the U.S. which sold more than 1.77 million vehicles in 2009. Toyota directly employs nearly 30,000 in the U.S. and its investment here is currently valued at more than $18 billion, including sales and manufacturing operations, research and development, financial services and design. Toyota's annual purchasing of parts, materials, goods and services from U.S. suppliers totals more than $22 billion.

For more information about Toyota, visit http://www.toyota.com or http://www.toyotanewsroom.com.

SOURCE Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.