Demonstrating the Corporate Flexibility of the Scottsdale Area: Sustainability-Focused Company Making the Area Their Hub

Photo Credit: AZ Big Media

Scottsdale as a hub of sustainability? Nearly no reasonable people would think that those words should go together, but one firm sees the value of setting up shop here and making us a base of operations.

The Greater Phoenix Economic Council recently announced that the United Cities North America, a sustainable energy company, will be setting up a base of operations in the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Reservation, right next door to Scottsdale. The site will serve as a research and development hub, allowing them a space to test out tactics for reducing carbon emissions. In the words of the head of United Cities Jason Lohe, “We selected the greater Phoenix Area because it is one of the fastest growing markets in the U.S. and we believe it is well positioned to be a driver of the Net Zero and sustainability goals going forward”.

While Arizona may seem like an odd choice for a sustainability company to set up shop due to our right-of-center politics, United Cities is not alone on that front. Arizona State’s world renowned Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation allow for a solid talent pool for sustainability-focused companies to choose from. Also, our frequent sunlight and high proliferation of solar energy production allow for a pre-set infrastructure of sorts.

The timing is also relatively favorable for sustainability in Arizona. The Arizona Corporation Commission, the governing body that oversees electricity production, had long been resistant to more rigorous clean energy standards at the request of APS, the energy provider that often bankrolled preferred candidates.. However APS has announced that it will no longer get involved in Corporation Commission campaigns, leaving a vacuum which has been filled with initiatives to get 100% of our energy from renewable sources.

We certainly appreciate sustainability-focused companies seeing the value of relocating to our beautiful area, and we welcome them. What we really hope however is that they find a way to achieve those goals without doing significant economic harm. While sustainability is a noble goal, the real achievement would be doing so in a way that is also economically sustainable.