The Consumer Technology Association (CTA)™ – formerly the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® – today announced its continued support of the Las Vegas community through a new partnership with education technology company EverFi, and donations for sustainability projects in Las Vegas and the surrounding community. This marks the eighth consecutive year that CTA – owner and producer of CES®, the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technologies – has given sustainability grants to the greater Las Vegas community.

“Las Vegas has been an amazing and gracious host to CES for nearly four decades. In turn, our commitment to the local community remains strong,” said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, Consumer Technology Association. “In addition to our grants that help advance clean energy and greener living in the area, our exciting new partnership with EverFi will build an educational platform on which we can further invest in the home city of CES and hopefully inspire and support the community’s future innovators and entrepreneurs.”

“The city’s partnership with CES continues to be an amazing benefit to the community,” said Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn G. Goodman. “The annual CES show is so exciting and having it in fabulous Las Vegas only heightens that excitement. We look forward to many more years of working together to build the Las Vegas community and to put on the world’s top electronics show.”

CTA announced the following grants to benefit Las Vegas area organizations, schools and students:

  • EverFi’s “Future Innovators” program in Clark County schools ($76,000): The program teaches high school students important business skills and inspires their entrepreneurial spirits. Students develop their own personalized plans for business, along with a roadmap for academic and career success.
  • Green Our Planet’s Outdoor Garden Classroom ($14,000): This signature program integrates school gardens into the education curriculum and helps students raise test scores, learn about healthy eating and lifestyles, combat obesity and foster a greater respect for nature and the environment. CTA’s 2015 grant to Green Our Planet led to the installation of 14 outdoor garden classrooms, reaching over 10,000 local students.
  • Touro University Nevada's electric vehicle (EV) charging system ($10,000): This grant will help fund one EV charging station for the school’s Las Vegas campus. Last year, CTA provided Touro University with a grant to upgrade the exterior lighting fixtures on campus from fluorescent bulbs to energy-saving LED lights.

EverFi is an education technology company that helps students develop critical career skills through an on-the-ground education network in over 12,000 K-12 schools. CTA’s newly announced “Future Innovators” program, powered by EverFi’s digital learning course Venture – Entrepreneurial ExpeditionTM, provides an interactive learning experience to help guide Clark County school district students through their personal journey to become entrepreneurs. The course is designed to inspire the next generation of business leaders and expose students to important entrepreneurial skills that encourage future success in any career.

“Now more than ever, students need to be exposed to important entrepreneurial skills like innovative thinking, problem solving and real-world experiences that can encourage success in any career,” said Tom Davidson, CEO and co-founder, EverFi. “We are thrilled to partner with CTA to help build the next generation of business leaders in Las Vegas and beyond.”

“Touro University Nevada is pleased to receive support again this year from CTA,” said former Nevada Congresswoman and Touro CEO and Senior Provost Shelley Berkley. “Touro is committed to green initiatives that improve our services to students while also positively lowering our carbon footprint. The support from CTA will enable us to further this commitment to our students, faculty, staff and the community through the installation of an EV charging station on campus.”

“We are both honored and delighted to be the recipient for the second time of a CTA sustainability grant,” said Kim MacQuarrie, Co-CEO of Green Our Planet. “CTA has been a real force in helping us carry out our mission of building Outdoor Garden Classrooms in K-12 schools so that students can learn about STEM, conservation, and nutrition subjects more effectively.”

CTA has for years supported sustainability efforts in the Las Vegas community through various green grants. Previous fund recipients have included the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, for their DesertSol project, Green Chips for installing a solar energy system at Opportunity Village’s Magical Forest and the Las Vegas Convention Center for an electric vehicle charging station. Also, CTA helped fund a solar power system for the famous “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign.

In addition to financial donations, the Consumer Technology Association works with the show’s general contractor and vendors to make the production of CES more sustainable. In 2015, CES general contractor Freeman recycled nearly half a million square feet of carpet while reusing the rest, and over 20,000 square feet of magnetic banners were recycled to produce new magnetic materials. Additionally, all CES Press Rooms operate with paperless press kits, saving an estimated 2.5 million pages of printed paper.

CES represents the entire technology ecosystem, bringing together all major industries from around the globe and providing an opportunity to conduct business under one roof. CES attendees travel from 150 countries, and collectively avoid more than 3.5 million miles in business trips that they otherwise would have to take if not for the show. In 2015, CES attendees participated in an average of 33 meetings while at the show. On average, 80 percent of those meetings would not have occurred otherwise.

For more information on CES’s sustainability practices and programs supportive to the Las Vegas community please visit CESweb.org/green.

About Consumer Technology Association:

Consumer Technology Association (CTA)TM, formerly Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, is the trade association representing the $287 billion U.S. consumer technology industry. More than 2,200 companies – 80 percent are small businesses and startups; others are among the world’s best known brands – enjoy the benefits of CTA membership including policy advocacy, market research, technical education, industry promotion, standards development and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CTA also owns and produces CES® – the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technology. Profits from CES are reinvested into CTA’s industry services.

About CES:

CES is the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technology. It has served as the proving ground for innovators and breakthrough technologies for almost 50 years—the global stage where next-generation innovations are introduced to the marketplace. As the largest hands-on event of its kind, CES features all aspects of the industry. And because it is owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)TM – formerly the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® – the technology trade association representing the $285 billion U.S. consumer technology industry, it attracts the world’s business leaders and pioneering thinkers to a forum where the industry’s most relevant issues are addressed. Check out CES video highlights. Follow CES online at www.CESweb.org and on social.

UPCOMING EVENTS

  • CES 2016 – Register
    January 6-9, Las Vegas, NV
  • Winter Break
    March 21-24, Park City, UT
  • Technology & Standards Spring Forum
    April 4-8, San Diego, CA
  • CES on the Hill
    April 19, Washington, DC
  • Digital Patriots Dinner
    April 20, Washington, DC
  • CES Asia 2016
    May 11-13, Shanghai, China
  • CEO Summit
    June 21-24, Tel Aviv, Israel
  • Innovate!
    September 20-22, San Jose, CA
  • CES 2017
    January 5-8, Las Vegas, NV