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Community Housing Partners of Christiansburg has been named Best Green Organization by the Virginia Sustainable Building Network. Here is a press release from CHP:

Christiansburg, Va. – July 7, 2011 – Community Housing Partners (CHP) received last week the 2011 Best Green Organization in Virginia from Virginia Sustainable Building Network (VSBN) at their Green Innovations Award event. The award was granted to CHP for demonstrating over the past three decades its continued commitment to create affordable, green, and sustainable housing opportunities for communities throughout the commonwealth.

Janaka Casper, president and CEO of CHP, said, ” CHP endeavors to be a leader in the nonprofit world as a company actively seeking ways to be environmentally, as well as economically and socially, sustainable. We are honored to be recognized by VSBN for our ongoing efforts to create a better environment for future generations.”

As part of CHP’s dedication to environmentally-responsible development, design, and construction, it launched its Down to Earth initiative in 2003, which focuses on expanding awareness of sustainable practices and developing ways of implementing CHP’s own Principles of Sustainability. Elements of this initiative included ensuring that our design-build team is educated and credentialed in the green building and energy efficiency arenas, the establishment of minimum green design and construction standards for all of our developments, and green educational outreach to residents and clients.

CHP Vice President of Architecture, Colin Arnold, AIA, LEED AP was also given special recognition at the awards ceremony for his Outstanding Support of VSBN. Arnold served on the board of VSBN for six years, during which time he lent his professional experience and expertise to the organization in addition to acting as an advocate for environmentally-responsible design and building practices.