Sustainable Florida Announces Award Finalists
TALLAHASSEE, Fla., May 23, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Sustainable Florida – Collins Center is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2011 Best Practice Awards. This statewide program recognizes and honors businesses, organizations and individuals whose work demonstrates that a healthy environment and a healthy economy are mutually supportive.
"I continue to be impressed by all our applicants' ingenuity and commitment to improving their community and the state of Florida," said Vice President of Sustainability Initiatives Tim Center. "The caliber of the efforts around the state to include environmental sensitivity in business and governmental planning is amazing and we hope other organizations will learn from their success."
Twenty-one finalists were chosen from 83 applicants. The list of finalists and a brief description are shown below. For complete finalist details, visit www.SustainableFlorida.org.
GOVERNMENT |
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City of Tallahassee – Get There Green |
In an 18-square-mile area of Tallahassee, pedestrians, bicyclists and mass transit riders rule the road. That's because of Tallahassee's "Get There Green" initiative, a holistic transportation program that addresses multi-modal transportation and efficient/convenient transit services while reducing greenhouse gases. |
Tallahassee |
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Darren E. Fancher, P.E., |
Darren Fancher has gone above and beyond in transforming statute into policy. An engineer with the state's Department of Management Services, Mr. Fancher is an established leader in reducing the state's energy consumption. He authored administrative rules and state energy management plans, both of which aim to reduce energy consumption and energy costs in state-owned buildings across Florida. |
Tallahassee |
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Leon County and Leon County Extension |
When it comes to Extension facilities, this one gets its green from the plants and the building. In Leon County, the Extension service building is being transformed into a Green Demonstration Center. Currently, a 40,000-gallon rain water cistern captures rainwater from the roof and stores it until needed by the demonstration gardens. The cistern is projected to reduce the use of potable water for irrigation on site by at least 80 percent or 400,000 gallons annually. |
Tallahassee |
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GREEN BUILDING |
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Carlson Studio: New Facility for the Cancer Support Community |
Carlson Studio Architecture designed a cancer-support center in Sarasota that is environmentally healthy and friendly for those with a compromised immune system. The 11,000-square-foot building is constructed of eco-friendly materials – there are no harmful chemicals in the paint, wood, concrete, adhesives, or flooring. |
Sarasota |
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On Top of the World Communities |
Years ago, Kenneth Colen, an Ocala-based builder and developer, made a commitment to build only energy-efficient homes. Since 2000, his company has built and sold more than 975 Energy Star Homes in a development called On Top of the World Communities. |
Ocala |
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Steve Sadler and Michaela Miller |
In August 2008, Tropical Storm Fay ripped through Jacksonville and destroyed the home of Steve Sadler and Michaela Miller. The couple rebuilt – but not in an ordinary way. Their home is now one of the most energy-efficient in Florida and is a popular stop for environmental tour groups and building professionals. |
Jacksonville |
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LARGE BUSINESS |
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ClosetMaid, an Emerson Company |
In 2007, the city of Ocala met with ClosetMaid, a local company that builds wire, laminate and wood storage systems for homes across the globe. Today, the company has become a model of water conservation. It recycles waste, uses recycled content in its manufacturing process and offers customers LEED credit options for their buildings. |
Ocala |
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Rosen Hotels & Resorts |
This Orlando-based hotel chain went "green" before it became trendy. A leader in green initiatives, founder Harris Rosen hopes his hotels become an example for other businesses. Since 2006, the following projects were implemented: re-lamping hotel rooms and public areas, installing water-saving devices, recycling used cooking oil, implementing an energy management system and requiring property-wide recycling. All associates are trained in energy-saving practices. |
Orlando |
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Universal Orlando |
Universal Orlando is dedicated to creating a more sustainable company, community and state. Its "Green is Universal" campaign focuses on water, energy, waste, horticulture and fuels. The theme park saves about 35 million gallons of water annually by using low-flow urinals; saves energy by reducing wattage in parking garage lamps; uses a wood chipper to chip landscape waste to reuse as mulch; has 2,000 recycling bins throughout the resort; reuses coffee grounds in its planting soil; uses natural pesticides like peanut, wintergreen, thyme and fish oils; and landscaping teams drive electric carts. |
Orlando |
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LEADERSHIP |
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Clean the World, Inc., |
Clean the World recycles soap and saves lives. The Orlando-based non-profit collects gently used bar soap and bottled amenity products that are routinely thrown away by hotels and resorts. These products are sanitized and packaged for distribution to those in need in more than 40 countries. |
Orlando |
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Michael Madfis |
Michael Madfis, an architect for 30 years and now an urban farmer, is slowly losing his eyesight to a retinal degenerative disease. But his work to help the community continues. Mr. Madfis helps establish organic community gardens that cultivate fresh, local food sources, create jobs and educate others about the benefits of urban farming. |
Fort Lauderdale |
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Peace River Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority |
The Peace River, once spring-fed, now loses water to underground caverns. In its pursuit of an environmentally sustainable regional water supply, the Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority harvests flood waters off its prized river and stores it for time of drought. It has undertaken environmental restoration at a scale not previously seen. |
Bradenton |
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NON-PROFIT |
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Allison Samowitz and Jillian Samowitz |
Twins Allison and Jillian Samowitz looked around their small town of Golden Beach in South Florida and worried about its future. They decided to do something to preserve its beauty. The sisters started a non-profit called Proseed2Green to drum up enthusiasm for taking care of their community. |
Golden Beach |
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Baptist Health South Florida |
Baptist Health South Florida, the largest not-for-profit health care system and the largest private employer in South Florida, opened its first LEED-certified acute-care hospital in Miami-Dade County this past April. West Kendall Baptist Hospital embraces six environmentally friendly initiatives: waste management and recycling, energy, communications and education, information technology, procurement and construction. |
Coral Gables |
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The Mustard Seed of Central Florida |
About 30 million mattresses are discarded in the United States each year. Most end up in landfills, where it can take nearly 100 years for them to decompose. However, about 85 percent of a mattress or box spring can be broken down and recycled – if someone is willing to do it. To date, The Mustard Seed of Central Florida, a non-profit charity based in Orlando, has recycled more than 3,500 mattresses, saved 80,500 cubic feet of landfill space and created jobs. |
Orlando |
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PARTNERSHIP |
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Leon County and Leon County Extension |
When it comes to Extension facilities, this one gets its green from the plants and the building. In Leon County, the Extension service building is being transformed into a Green Demonstration Center. Currently, a 40,000-gallon rain water cistern captures rainwater from the roof and stores it until needed by the demonstration gardens. |
Tallahassee |
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Miami Corporation, Volusia County, and Brevard County |
In southeast Volusia and northern Brevard counties sits a 59,000-acre tract called Farmton Tree Farm. It includes a critical regional wildlife corridor with environmentally significant habitat. The Miami Corporation, which has owned the parcel for more than 80 years, partnered with Volusia and Brevard counties to create a vision for this area. With nearly 80 percent of the land permanently preserved as conservation, a 50-year plan for the Farmton Tree Farm includes a sustainable, low-impact, mixed-use, green community. |
Chicago, Illinois; DeLand, Florida; and Viera, Florida |
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Palm Beach County and Florida Power & Light Company |
Every flush in Palm Beach County might be helping to power someone's air conditioning. That's because Palm Beach County and Florida Power & Light teamed up on an innovative project billed as the state's largest single use of reclaimed water that incorporates sustainable development principles. The project saves more than 8 billion gallons of groundwater annually that would have been be used to generate electricity. |
West Palm Beach and Juno Beach |
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SMALL BUSINESS |
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LocalShops1.com |
Whenever Ester Venouziou's parents visited from out of town, they often dined at chain restaurants and shopped at department stores around her Tampa Bay area home. As a way to support local businesses, Ms. Venouziou put together a list of locally owned shops for them to patronize. By August 2008, the list had evolved into LocalShops1.com, a grassroots movement to promote local, independent businesses in the Tampa Bay area. |
Gulfport |
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Michael Madfis |
Michael Madfis, an architect for 30 years and now an urban farmer, is slowly losing his eyesight to a retinal degenerative disease. But his work to help the community continues. Mr. Madfis helps establish organic community gardens that cultivate fresh, local food sources, create jobs and educate others about the benefits of urban farming. |
Fort Lauderdale |
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TEAM BG – BG Dealer Services "Go Green Programs" |
TEAM BG – BG Dealer Services of Tallahassee helps maximize vehicle performance through a line of products that promote cleaner air, reduce oil consumption and shrink the carbon footprint. The company has been a distributor of BG products for two decades, specializing in fuel, lubricants and engine performance. |
Tallahassee |
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The awards program is being held June 2, 2011, at the Plaza Resort & Spa in Daytona Beach. The awards dinner program will be held in conjunction with Green Trends – an annual conference sponsored by the Florida Green Building Coalition. Please register for the Best Practices Awards luncheon.
Sustainable Florida – Collins Center is an alliance of business, government and civic leaders and organizations committed to defining excellence for Florida's economic, environmental and social future. Sustainable Florida promotes the adoption of sustainable development principles through collaboration and education.
CONTACT
Tim Center
850-219-0082 x 1411; 850-212-2684
SOURCE Sustainable Florida - Collins Center
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