Press Release
MTC’s Renewable Energy Trust Provides $700,000 Grant
for MASS Moca
New solar array, energy efficiency and educational displays planned for site
WESTBOROUGH, MA (July 5, 2006) – State Representative Daniel E. Bosley, MASS MoCA Director Joseph Thompson and Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) Executive Director Mitchell Adams today announced a major commitment to clean energy at the museum. The MTC Board of Directors unanimously approved a $700,000 grant from the Renewable Energy Trust for a new 50 kilowatt solar installation, energy efficiency equipment and an interactive display to educate visitors about the benefits of clean energy.
“I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Joe Thompson and MASS MoCA for this ground-breaking initiative to introduce energy efficiency and renewable energy projects to the museum,” said Daniel E. Bosley (D-North Adams), House chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies. “I’m grateful that the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative has selected MASS MoCA as one of the recipients of its Green Buildings and Infrastructure Grants. They recognize that MASS MoCA serves as a center of innovation in the Northern Berkshire community and the introduction of solar photovoltaic cells at the museum will serve as a demonstration project for the entire Commonwealth on the uses and cost savings that energy efficiency and renewable energy resources can provide to residents, businesses and non-profit organizations.”
“We are working with Chairman Bosley and other state leaders to bring clean energy solutions to communities throughout the Commonwealth,” said Mitchell Adams. “This grant will lead to new clean energy generation at MASS MoCA, and it will help us spread the message that clean energy is working in Massachusetts. The Renewable Energy Trust has made major commitments to hundreds of solar, wind, hydroelectric and other clean energy projects that are creating new jobs, while leading to a healthier environment and a more secure energy future.”
“MASS MoCA’s energy costs – always staggering – have tripled in the last three years. And it’s no exaggeration to say that the sustainability of this institution is linked to our success in finding radical cost savings in our utility bills,” said Joseph C. Thompson, MASS MoCA Director. “This is a first and dramatic step, and we are really thankful to Dan Bosley, Andrea Nuciforo, and our friends at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative for their leadership and assistance. Everybody instinctually understands that energy efficiency is a huge issue in drafty old buildings like ours. We look forward to showing the public that even buildings like these can be made energy efficient with new technology and sustainable energies.”
MASS MoCA previously received $59,000 in Trust funding for educational wind energy art activities at its “Kidspace” contemporary art gallery and for an energy site analysis. Art by schoolchildren who visited the gallery was featured in the 2005 Windspirations calendar.
MTC administers the Renewable Energy Trust, which was established to generate the maximum economic and environmental benefits from clean energy resources for the Commonwealth. The Trust has funded more than 500 clean energy projects across Massachusetts. Please visit the agency’s website www.masstech.org for more information.
MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art) exhibits some of the liveliest, most evocative – and provocative – art being made today in a beautifully restored 19th century mill in North Adams, Massachusetts. Critics have awarded MASS MoCA the nation's most coveted architectural and historic preservation honors for the spectacular renovation of its factory campus. MASS MoCA’s thought-provoking and visually stunning exhibitions are a “must-see” for art lovers from around the world. The widely varied year-round performing arts offerings have reshaped New England’s cultural landscape. MASS MoCA showcases art that charts new territory, featuring installations and performances that are immersive in feeling and truly vast in scale. More than a museum, MASS MoCA is a theme park for thinking adults (and children). For more information, visit www.massmoca.org.