In 2024, the Accelerator celebrated a major milestone as we graduated our inaugural Color Your Organization Green (CYOG) cohort and welcomed the second cohort. Participants’ accomplishments reflect the program's broad impact, including the Rochester Area Community Foundation’s $436,087 investment in sustainability during 2023-2024 and Goodwill’s diversion of millions of pounds of waste from landfills in 2023. Additionally, hundreds of employees and clients across our region are positively impacted by partners such as Catholic Charities Family and Community Services, EPI, and Butler/Till, while smaller organizations like Connected Communities and the Gandhi Institute deliver meaningful, localized impact that enhances community sustainability efforts. By engaging key organizations in our region through CYOG, we’re amplifying our community impact and driving a shift toward a secure, regenerative future that advances community-wide sustainability. 

Besides CYOG, we also revived Green Drinks, a networking series that provides sustainability-minded professionals with a space to connect and collaborate. This year, 59 individuals attended, with 47 joining for the first time. Each Green Drinks event is hosted by a local organization with their own sustainability story. This year’s hosts included Iron Smoke Distillery, NextCorps, and Marilla’s Mindful Supplies. We have a diverse group showing up each session, and we continue to have good participation from a range of area businesses and nonprofits.