Press Releases
11/13/2023
Avangrid Foundation, Don Hanson Charitable Foundation and Roots & Shoots USA Launch Hanson Box Project in United States to Send Free Educational Resources to Schools
Avangrid Foundation, Don Hanson Charitable Foundation and Roots & Shoots USA Launch Hanson Box Project in United States to Send Free Educational Resources to Schools
Tens of thousands of students will benefit from free resource boxes sent to elementary and middle schools across Avangrid’s service areas
ORANGE, Conn. — November 13, 2023 — The Avangrid Foundation, the philanthropic arm of leading sustainable energy company Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), is partnering with the Don Hanson Charitable Foundation and Jane Goodall Institute’s youth action program Roots & Shoots USA to launch the Hanson Box project in the United States to deliver free first-class educational resources to thousands of schools across the country. As part of the initiative, more than 2,500 elementary and middle schools across Avangrid’s service areas in New York, Maine, Massachusetts, and Connecticut will receive free resource boxes full of unique educational books, lesson plans, and activity kits designed to help teachers inspire their students.
“Quality education has the power to transform lives,” said Pedro Azagra, Avangrid CEO. “We’re very proud that the Avangrid Foundation has been fundamental to the launch of the U.S. phase of the Hanson Box project and that schools in the communities we serve will be the first to receive their boxes. This initiative will create a lasting impact and educators will be able to use these one-of-a-kind resources for many years.”
“We want to help our communities thrive by supporting initiatives that increase access to educational resources,” said Pablo Colón, Director of Corporate Citizenship and Executive Director, Avangrid Foundation. “This Hanson Box initiative will achieve this by ensuring schools throughout our service areas have quality educational resources to supplement their lesson plans. As a parent. I’m looking forward to hearing stories from my own children about the inspiration that comes from these boxes.”
The Hanson Box project, named after British philanthropist Don Hanson, aims to enhance learning and help educators empower children across the world. The project started in the United Kingdom in 2019 and has since expanded to Australia and now the United States. To date, more than 30,000 Hanson Boxes have been shipped, representing more than 290 tons of resources.
The 2023 USA Hanson Box contains four specially designed resources that cover a broad range of subjects in the national curriculum, including biology, English, art, geography, history, ecology, environmental sciences, and natural history. Learn more about each resource here. In addition to the resources in the box, the Hanson Box project has free competitions and online activities for schools to participate in. Competition winners receive grants to expand educational resources for students.
"Our planet is at a crucial moment in history – if we don’t protect the natural world we shall lose all species, including our own,” said Jane Goodall, Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute. “My biggest reason for hope is the passion and commitment of young people when empowered to take action. The Hanson Boxes will do just that. Filled with really beautiful books and exciting lessons - about animals, people, and our environment - they will inspire the next generation of young environmentalists to go out there, create change, and make this world a better place. "
One school district receiving Hanson Boxes is Hartford Public Schools in Connecticut, which is within the service area of Avangrid subsidiary Connecticut Natural Gas (CNG). The Avangrid and CNG teams recently handed out boxes for the district’s 60 elementary and middle schools.
“We are grateful and deeply appreciative of Avangrid Foundation, Don Hanson Charitable Foundation, and Roots & Shoots USA for making such a meaningful investment in Hartford Public Schools and our students,” said Paul Foster, Deputy Superintendent of Administration, Strategy, and Performance Accountability at Hartford Public Schools. “At HPS, our mission is to provide all our students with the learning and support they need to succeed in school and life. With the Hanson Boxes, our students will have access to fun, interesting, and high-quality resources that will foster a love for learning, literacy, and exploration.”
In New York, New York State Electric & Gas visited Broome-Tioga BOCES to officially donate a box of books to the library and raise awareness about the initiative. BOCES operates as an extension of the local school districts and was established to help public schools provide quality programs by sharing services.
"School libraries are the places where our students' curiosity and love of learning are fostered," said Melinda Russell, executive director of Schools-to-Career program at Broome-Tioga BOCES. "Working with local companies like NYSEG to make educational resources like Hanson Box available to all children is what Broome-Tioga BOCES is all about."
In Maine, Central Maine Power revived a long-standing book donation program this fall called “President’s Pick.” As part of this effort to distribute books to hundreds of school libraries across its service territory, Hanson Boxes are being donated as well.
About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $44 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, Avangrid has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 as one of the JUST 100 companies – a ranking of America’s best corporate citizens. In 2024, Avangrid ranked first among utilities and 12 overall. The company supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.
About Iberdrola: Iberdrola is one of the world's biggest energy companies and a leader in renewables, spearheading the energy transition to a low carbon economy. The group supplies energy to almost 100 million people in dozens of countries. With a focus on renewable energy, smart networks and smart solutions for customers, Iberdrola’s main markets include Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. The company is also present in growth markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others.
With a workforce of nearly 40,000 and assets in excess of €141.7 billion, across the world, Iberdrola helps to support 400,000 jobs across its supply chain, with annual procurement of €12.2 billion. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has invested more than €130 billion over the past two decades to help build a sustainable energy model, based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.