National Drive Electric Week 2017

INTRODUCTION

National Drive Electric Week is an annual celebration and outreach effort that consists of EV activities staged in cities coast to coast and internationally. The goal is to share the experience of electric vehicle owners and bring information about the many reasons to adopt electric vehicles to consumers, policymakers, the media, and the general public.

Plug In America, the Sierra Club, and the Electric Auto Association have organized National Drive Electric Week since its debut in 2011 as National Plug In Day.

While the national organizers will help as they can, it is up to each city captain to ensure the overall success of the local events based on good planning, publicity, and outreach. We hope this page will help event organizers and volunteers achieve success.

GETTING STARTED

We call each local lead organizer a city captain. Each city captain leads the organizing effort and ideally assembles a team of volunteers to ensure the success of a National Drive Electric Week event. This section describes what we have found to be the best practices for effective events. This section provides a basic overview of a city captain's role. A city captain can be anyone from a Plug In America, Sierra Club, or Electric Auto Assocation member to an enthusiastic EV driver. City captains have made all of the numerous events held for National Drive Electric Week possible.

Who Can Be a City Captain

A city captain can be a member of Plug In America, Sierra Club, Electric Auto Association or other non-profit or government organization with a mission to promote plug-in electric vehicles. An individual EV advocate with strong community ties can also be a city captain. In order to retain the independent, grassroots flavor that makes NDEW a success, companies or corporate representatives may not take the lead in organizing local NDEW events. If individuals who are part of specific companies do want to play a key role in organizing an event, we encourage them to partner with a community group that will take the lead.

Establish a Planning Committee

A team can accomplish more than an army of one! While it's important to have one city captain (or two city co-captains) in charge of overseeing the entire local Drive Electric Week effort, it's equally important to have a group or committee involved in the planning process. More people involved in organizing your event will allow you to generate more ideas for a successful event and evenly spread the work (securing permits, recruiting partner organizations, finding sponsors and/or determining how to cover costs, conducting publicity and media outreach, organizing an award ceremony, etc.). Given that each person involved has his/her own personal and professional networks, a planning committee will also ensure that you will have a better-attended event.

This web site will help you manage your event and recruit participants and volunteers. If you are looking for volunteers to help organize your event, let us know; we can email supporters in your area and have them sign up via the web site.

Find a Location

Come to the People. It's much easier to get good attendance at events when we organize Drive Electric Week events in conjunction with existing events or in places where lots of people will likely already be congregating. Examples include farmers' markets, eco-fairs, work-site employee fairs, auto shows, and parking lots of popular stores or libraries open on the day of your event. Permission or permits may be necessary.

Seek to Reach the Uninitiated. There's nothing more fun than a rally with fellow plug-in advocates. But in order to help the plug-in movement thrive and grow, we must reach out to people who know little, or even nothing, about electric transportation. A big parade can help attract media and politicians who might otherwise skip your event, but try to find a densely populated street or path so that most of those observing are new to EVs. Likewise, let's try to stage events in new places and with, or for, people who aren't the "choir." Parks, farmers' markets and traditional auto rallies or shows, noted above, are good ideas.

Choose Event Activities

Local groups are best able to determine the type of events that will be effective, popular, and feasible in their own communities. You'll want to plan an event that builds upon existing community events, is accessible by public transit when possible, will maximize crowds, and will be appealing to the media. Here are some event activity ideas. Details on planning these kinds of events are below in the Planning Activities section.

Electric Tailgate Party
Gather electric vehicles in a parking lot or other convenient location suited to the expected number of vehicles and guests. Show off the cars and provide information. Consider offering test-rides to the public, the media, and policymakers.

EV Showcase
Include a few EVs and charging units at an eco-fair, farmers' market, auto show, or other existing event. Set up tables with information about EVs.

Electric Vehicle Parade
Gather as many electric vehicles as possible to drive along a planned parade route. This would be a terrific media opportunity.

Ride-and-Drives
We have seen that when people drive or take rides in EVs, they are much more likely to appreciate that these vehicles are real, plausible, fun, and exciting – and to make a purchase or lease. We understand that test drives or test rides may not be possible for all events, but we encourage all city captains to think about how they might make ride-and-drives a component of their events.

Award Ceremony/Press Conference
We want to emphasize a celebration of EVs at these events, and awards are a great way to celebrate. Present an award to a local company, public official, agency, or community organization that has done a lot to promote EV-readiness in your community. Examples include installation of EV charging stations, public education about EVs, a new utility program with discount rates for EV charging or off-peak charging, or launch of a new EV-related business or product. Consider asking a local official or celebrity to present the award. Invite elected officials, such as state or national senators and representatives. Remember that if they accept your invitation you'll likely need to give them an opportunity to speak. Also, consider asking your Mayor or City Council to issue a proclamation, such as "Saturday, September 9 through 17, 2017, is declared Drive Electric Week in [your city]." (See the Files section below for sample declarations.)

Ribbon Cutting/Initiative Launch
Is there an EV-related initiative in your community that could be first announced or launched at your event? Consider the installation of new public charging units, a new EV-readiness or public education or permitting program, or a new EV-related product that was developed or will be developed in your community. Promote the event as "the first-ever..." to enhance the drama.

EVENT PLANNING

This section provides details on various aspects of planning and running a Drive Electric Week event.

Sponsorship and Corporate/Municipal Participation

It may be advantageous to invite corporations and municipalities involved in the EV space to participate in the event. Participation may involve donating money, food, or materials to offset the costs of the event; providing vehicles for showcase/test-rides; setting up a table or booth with information; providing a speaker; publicizing the event to their customers/constituents; etc. City captains are encouraged to ask their cities to officially sponsor the event and perhaps even pass a city council resolution naming September 9-17, 2017, as "[your city] Drive Electric Week." (See the Filessection below for sample declarations.)

A template for a letter to a local business or municipality to request involvement is available (.doc, 30 KB).

General Suggestions for Corporate Involvement

• Provide event space at a parking lot or elsewhere.
• Promote Drive Electric Week by issuing a press release, sending an email or mailing to customers, and/or trumpeting Drive Electric Week on social media.
• Donate food or other items to help offset the costs of local events.
• Contribute funds to offset the costs of local events.
• Provide information at a booth or table at local event(s).
• Provide vehicles or charging units to showcase.
• Provide charging units for event participants to use to charge their vehicles.
• Provide vehicles for test-drives or test-rides.

Sponsorship Recognition

• The names and logos of sponsoring companies may, and should, be included on promotional and press materials. However, if the sponsor is an auto company that manufactures EVs and gas-powered vehicles, any reference to that company in event promotional materials should, whenever possible, be in conjunction with the name of the electric vehicle not just the automaker name. For example, "The Nissan Leaf" is preferred over just "Nissan").
• All promotional materials (press releases, posters, flyers, etc.) must include "Drive Electric Week is presented by Plug In America, Sierra Club, and Electric Auto Association" or a similar, substantially equivalent, statement. Web links and logos of the three presenting organizations should be included when appropriate.
• The names of sponsoring companies may be included on local press releases in the form of quotes and factual information (like "General Motors participated in the event by providing test-rides of its Chevy Volts...").
• Corporate engagement cannot be described as a "partnership," as that word has other implications for our organizations.

Accepting Gifts

City captains are obviously free to accept support in any appropriate form from sponsors. In some cases sponsors may want to donate to a 501(c)3 organization for tax purposes. Setting up a 501(c)3 corporation to run a single event may be impractical, so events may wish to do fundraising under a sponsoring umbrella organization. These arrangements must be made in advance. In cases where the city captain has a relationship with Sierra Club or Electric Auto Association, one of these organizations may be able to play this role. Below are some guidelines from each of the organizations.

Sierra Club

The Sierra Club has strict requirements for corporate donations and gifts, which include the following:

• Gifts of all sizes are encouraged.
• Gifts to Sierra Club entities greater than $5,000 need to be approved by Sierra Club’s Corp Gifts Committee.
• No gifts of any amount are allowed from automakers that manufacture gasoline-powered vehicles or from utilities.
• Before accepting any corporate donations or sponsorships on behalf of a Sierra Club chapter, please review the Corporate Gift Acceptance Policy

Electric Auto Association

Normal EAA chapter rules and guidelines apply. Contact EAA chairman Ron Freund for more information.

Getting Electric Vehicles for the Event

Ask local community members who drive EVs or plug-in hybrids.
Many are more than willing to take people for drives and show off their proud set of wheels. This is also a way for us to recognize people who may be interested in getting involved in EV advocacy. Electric Auto Association chapters are a good place to start looking for EV owners. Online forums such as those for the Nissan LEAF, Chevy Volt, and Tesla vehicles may also be helpful. There are even some Facebook groups for electric vehicle owners in different cities (e.g. Seattle Nissan Leaf Owners).

Ask your local dealerships.
If they have a car available, dealerships may jump at the chance to show off their product to a friendly audience. Having a salesperson present may be beneficial so he or she can help answer questions. But keep in mind that we want this to be a community-organized event that does not appear to be organized by a particular company or that is promoting one product over another. We want to create an environment free of sales pressure for all who attend our events.

Collaborate with corporate offices.
Our national organizations are reaching out to certain EV-related companies to determine opportunities for companies to provide EVs for publicity events. We will inform you of any of these types of opportunities if we find them in your local area. We also encourage you to make these local connections.

Ride-and-Drives

If you're planning to offer test drives or test rides at your event, plan a route ahead of time: something that is not too long so participants can get back to other guests, but varied enough to get a good feel for the car. A good route should have:

• Little traffic, and no children playing nearby
• Plenty of room to legally accelerate
• A few twists
• A place for a complete stop/start
• Mostly right turns, to avoid waiting for traffic or signals

Here is information that you can send to participants who are considering doing test rides/drives:

It is your decision what you want to let guests do with your vehicle: look at it, sit in it, ride in it, or drive it. If you'd like to specify any rules or limits, you might want to put a note on the car indicating so. The more you let test-drivers do, the more likely they are to be enthusiastic, but it's important to balance that with your comfort level with having others in your car.

Check your insurance policy beforehand or check with your agent to inquire about coverage when someone else is driving your car. You can probably let others drive the car for quick trips, but check first, as a few policies will not cover even that.

Note that you can't accept money for rides or drives, as that would count as commercial use.

Ask for a valid driver license from anyone wishing to drive.

While on a test ride, here are some things that you might point out:

• Quietness
• Lack of vibration
• No jerking or shifting while accelerating
• Immediate throttle response – no need to wait for downshifting, rpms, or a turbo
• Power regeneration, rather than wasting energy in braking

Planning Activities

Here are some details on planning specific activities at your event.

Electric Tailgate Party
Organize the provision of music and food. Provide drivers one or more charging units to use.

EV Showcase
Inquire about whether tables and tents are included. Permission or permits are likely necessary.

Electric Vehicle Parade
Check with your city to see if you need a permit for the parade, and keep in mind that there could be significant logistical, financial, and time-related costs associated with a permit. You could also bring the cars together in one location and have an informal parade that does not require a permit. Media tip: Getting your city to officially participate in your parade will help draw media. You could also stage a press conference before the parade, inviting the mayor and other local dignitaries or EV "stars" to speak. Also, create some exciting visuals to attract TV news cameras, like decorated cars with streamers and posters, and have kids/families, bikers, and dancers join the parade between EVs. Media bonus points if people dance "The Electric Slide"!

Ambassador Schools

To raise awareness of EV benefits among our youth, National Drive Electric Week has an initiative to involve high schools and colleges nationwide. It's simple: Each local event partners with a school or college near that event. That Ambassador School invites its faculty, staff, students and parents to the event and hosts an EV lecture, if desired. In turn, the local event adds the Ambassador School's name to it press releases.

How it Works:

• Ask a high school or college near your event if they’d like to be a National Drive Electric Week Ambassador School. sample school invitation
• Add the name of your Ambassador School to your press release. sample press release
• Ask the school to invite its faculty, staff, students and parents to your event. sample staff invitation
• Ask the school if they’d like to host a brief class lecture/discussion about EVs the week before your event, identify a speaker for this, and coordinate the lecture with the school.

As an Ambassador School, all the school needs to do is:

• Invite its faculty, staff, students and parents to attend your National Drive Electric Week event.
• Consider hosting a brief class lecture/discussion about EVs by your City Captain, or another volunteer.
• Of course, if your school wants to do even more, such as displaying an EV it has converted at your event, by all means!

As an Ambassador School, the school receives:

• Name recognition in your media alerts and on the National Drive Electric Week website.
• A free class lecture about EVs.

Ambassador Schools will help you and National Drive Electric Week by:

• Helping us spread the EV message beyond the “choir.”
• Adding a newsworthy focus on youth education to National Drive Electric Week, which has the potential to help every City Captain and National Drive Electric Week garner more and broader media coverage.
• Helping kids learn about the cleanest, most fun and efficient vehicles on the road at a time when they may be obtaining their first one!

Sample Documents:

• Sample Invitation to Send to Schools
• Sample Press Release
• Sample Invitation for School to Send to Staff and Students

PUBLICITY

The Files section below contains logos that you can use on your Drive Electric Week promotional materials. That section also contains sample documents and templates for media correspondence.

Getting the Word Out

Recruit people to attend your event through your own personal and professional networks, and reach out to allied organizations, such as environmental and transportation-focused groups in your area. Some churches and religious organizations may be interested. Provide allied organizations with a sample recruitment email to their members and/or a sample blurb they can use for their newsletters or web sites. Refer potential attendees to your event page on this site to provide more information about your event.

We recommend city captains encourage participants to register on their event page on the National Drive Electric Week web site. We'll collect and organize information about the participants and the cars they plan to bring, and facilitate sending out event information and reminders. Expect some no-shows anyway, and also people to attend without registering.

There are a number of regional car event calendars that can be useful for promoting our events to our target audience: people who are not specifically aware of electric vehicles. Some examples are listed below.

• North East USA Wheels Events
• South East USA Wheels Events
• Northwest Car Events Calendar

Publicize the event on web sites and through social media, such as blogs, Facebook, and Twitter. Create a Facebook event or Evite, and invite people online.

Put up flyers at local businesses.

Chris Paine Video

Chris Paine, director of "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and "Revenge of the Electric Car" talks about National Drive Electric Week 2014 and how you can get involved in your town to spread the word about the joys of driving on electricity.