Green Challenge Volusia County has pledged to participate in two national competitions sponsored by the National Association of Counties (NACo). In these challenges, Volusia County is competing against other counties of the same size to determine who has the greatest citizen commitment to the environment.

The first challenge is an energy efficiency campaign. Counties are to collect pledges from employees and residents not only to change a light in their home to an energy-efficient one, but also take other actions to save energy. The Change the World campaign energy-saving actions could include power managing computers, choosing ENERGY STAR appliances, and properly programming home thermostats. Three winning counties will receive a $5,000 grant, courtesy of Wal-Mart. It is easy to participate; just go to greencounties.org/changetheworld to take the challenge. Pledge collections will be taken July 1 through Nov. 30.

The second challenge is the Drive $marter Challenge, a fuel-efficiency campaign launched in 2008 by The Wal-Mart Foundation, NACo, and more than a dozen partners to help consumers lower their costs by using less gasoline. The campaign offers money and gas-saving tips in English and Spanish, and is aimed at keeping more money in drivers’ pockets and reducing the number of costly trips to the pump. Volusia County will compete with other counties to see who can get the most residents and employees to take the Drive $marter Challenge. Three winning counties will receive a $3,500 grant courtesy of Auto Zone. Again, it is easy to participate; just go to www.drivesmarterchallenge.org. Pledge collections will be taken July 1 through Nov. 30.