Electric and Natural Gas Members, it’s getting to be that time of year: Time for Public Power Week and Public Natural Gas Week.

These two national observances both take place Oct. 6 - 12. This is a time when you can bring awareness to what electric and natural gas utilities do for your communities. Both the American Public Power Association and the American Public Gas Association make customer-outreach materials available for use.

Public Power Week

• For more information and materials, click here.

Public Natural Gas Week

• For more information and materials, click here.

IAMU will share electric and natural gas posts on social media throughout the week of Oct. 6 – 12. If you don’t already follow our social media accounts, consider doing so and then feel free to share any of our posts on your social media.

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IAMUpage/

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/IAMUTweets

• LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/company/iamu
  

Public Power Week, celebrated the first full week in October every year (Oct. 1-7, 2017), is an opportunity for public power utilities to remind customers and stakeholders about the distinct advantages that public power offers. The American Public Power Association (APPA) has an entire electronic toolkit of resources available to members to get the word out about the value of public power in their communities. To access the toolkit, click here (You will need to be a registered user to access the page).

IAMU will be posting Public Power Week messages daily on our Facebook page (@iamupage) from Oct. 2-6. Feel free to share these messages on your own Facebook pages.

If you need any help with your Public Power Week efforts, contact Jen Cronin at jcronin@iamu.org or at 515-289-1999.

by Joe Nipper, Senior Vice President, Regulatory Affairs & Communications, APPA

Public Power Week is coming up, Oct 4–10. Please join 2,000 small and large municipal utilities across the country in telling your customers about the benefits of public power.

You'll find many tools and templates from the American Public Power Association at www.PublicPower.org/PublicPowerWeek. Simply use your APPA member login to download any or all of these resources, adapt as you see fit, and use them to tell your story. In addition to sample fact sheets, press releases, op-eds, and letters to public officials, we have a host of brand-new digital resources for you this year. Do check out the Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram images, info-graphics, comic strips; and videos that we developed specially for you.

We even have special giveaways — bookmarks and temporary tattoos — that you can order from the APPA website and use all year long.

Check out our brand-new animated video on the benefits of public power. Feel free to download and use the video on your website, social media, etc. It's great for Public Power Week but you can also use this video year round. We have 15, 30, and 90-second versions for you. Hope Public Power Week is going well.

You may already be planning special community events and promotions for your utility, and we'd love to hear how it all goes — email your pictures and reports to us at PublicPowerWeek@PublicPower.org. Or post them on social media and use #PublicPowerWeek and tag us @PublicPowerOrg on Twitter and Instagram.

If you haven't made plans, it's not too late. Here are five simple things you can do now:

1. Download and use pictures of the superhero mascot, Captain Public Power, on your website and social media, and other materials.
2. Take a mounted picture of Captain Public Power around town for "selfies" at community landmarks, with your customers, staff, and city officials. Post your photos to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram with #PublicPowerWeek and @PublicPowerOrg.
3. Send a press release (see our sample) to your local newspaper, TV, and radio stations and offer up your executives for interviews or to answer people's questions about their electricity.
4. Educate your customers with infographics on community solar and home batteries.
5. Engage your audiences by sharing fun and informational comic strips (one for every business day of Public Power Week) on energy efficiency, safety, new technologies, community solar, and careers in public power.

Good luck and happy Public Power Week. If you have questions or want more information, please email us at PublicPowerWeek@PublicPower.org and a member of my communications team will get back to you right away.