Fifth Third Bank Makes BLINK Attractions Carbon Neutral with Help from Duke Energy

Fifth Third Bank, National Association, a recognized leader in environmental sustainability, announced that it is partnering with the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber and Duke Energy to measure the carbon impact and provide the verified carbon offsets for the lighting installations at BLINK, Illuminated by ArtsWave, in Cincinnati. The event is one of the nation’s largest outdoor light and art festivals known for its immersive exhibits and experiences and will return to Cincinnati Oct. 13-16, 2022.

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Cincinnati-based Fifth Third has been focused on reducing its environmental footprint for over a decade and became carbon neutral for its own operations in 2020. The Bank has been an active participant in BLINK since 2019. For its own BLINK installation, Fifth Third will retire renewable energy certificates (RECs) from the Bank’s virtual power purchase agreement with an 80MW solar project, which came online in 2019. For other lighting installations, Fifth Third will provide verified carbon offsets through a registered emission removal project for an Ohio-based company, which has been verified by a third-party.

“Our purpose-driven culture and commitment to transition to a sustainable future is reflected in our involvement with BLINK,” said Tim Spence, president and CEO Fifth Third Bank. “It is a privilege to be able to put our expertise and resources toward making BLINK carbon neutral and to transforming our front porch on Cincinnati’s iconic Fountain Square into an immersive and interactive art display that demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and celebrates our headquarters city.”

At BLINK, the Bank is using Fountain Square as its stage for an experience called ElectriFi. The main attraction is “The ARRAY,” a massive installation offering an abstract, mixed media depiction of a solar powered ecosystem, which drew inspiration from Fifth Third’s commitment to 100% renewable power and its bold operational sustainability goals to be achieved through 2030. All offsets related to BLINK are third-party validated and retired in accordance with industry best practices.

The Bank is working with Duke Energy to understand BLINK’s 2019 energy footprint on which it will base its initial offsets. Duke Energy is also looking to measure the actual footprint in 2022 to allow Fifth Third to true-up the offsets post-event. Duke Energy is a recognized authority on energy and a trusted partner for the Bank in devising the approach to carbon neutrality for the BLINK installations.

“Duke Energy has been a long-standing supporter of BLINK, and we are pleased to be a part of this important effort to offset the carbon emissions from energy use during the festival. Our partnership with Fifth Third highlights the strides Cincinnati is making toward a sustainable future,” said Amy Spiller, president, Duke Energy Ohio and Kentucky.

Justin Brookhart, executive director of BLINK, applauds this collaboration and push toward sustainability.

“BLINK and the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber are proud to announce that the nation’s biggest immersive art event is now a more sustainable event,” Brookhart said. “BLINK is known for its incredible collaborations with artists and creatives from here in the Cincinnati region and all over the globe. This is a new type of collaboration for us, and we thank our friends at Fifth Third Bank and Duke Energy.”

About Fifth Third

Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the indirect parent company of Fifth Third Bank, National Association, a federally chartered institution. As of June 30, 2022, the Company had $207 billion in assets and operates 1,080 full-service Banking Centers, and 2,153 Fifth Third branded ATMs in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. In total, Fifth Third provides its customers with access to approximately 56,000 fee-free ATMs across the United States. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending, and Wealth & Asset Management. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of June 30, 2022, had $512 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $54 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations through its Trust and Registered Investment Advisory businesses. Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Fifth Third’s common stock is traded on the NASDAQ^® Global Select Market under the symbol "FITB."

Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky

Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, provides electric service to 880,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in a 3,000-square-mile service area, and natural gas service to 550,000 customers in a 2,650-square-mile service area, in Ohio and Kentucky.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America’s largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 28,000 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business and at least a 50% carbon reduction from electric generation by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The 2050 net-zero goals also include Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 emissions. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune’s 2022 “World’s Most Admired Companies” list and Forbes’ “America’s Best Employers” list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy’s illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

About BLINK

Last experienced by over 1.3M people in 2019, BLINK, Illuminated by ArtsWave, welcomes all to Cincinnati, Ohio October 13-16, 2022. The four-day, 30 city block, outdoor art experience is sure to be unforgettable, uniting street art, projection mapping and light-based installations.

Not only does the event speak to the dynamic evolution of the Cincinnati art community, it calls upon the city’s deep roots in supporting the arts. BLINK is illuminated by ArtsWave, the first and largest community campaign in the nation and the primary way that Cincinnati funds its arts. When tens of thousands of people and hundreds of companies give to ArtsWave, they support 150 cultural organizations and projects each year like BLINK that make our region vibrant. Donations to BLINK and other arts projects and organizations can be made at artswave.org/give.

BLINK is produced and curated by its Executive Partners - the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, AGAR, and the Haile Foundation, and produced in conjunction with its Partners ArtWorks, Cincy Nice, and ish - to provide opportunities for regional artists and bring in global creators all in the pursuit of a stronger community.

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