LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Project Warm has selected two individuals and two businesses to receive 2010 Green Spark Awards at a luncheon on October 7.
The Green Spark Awards were created to honor members of the community who have made a significant difference in reducing household and commercial energy use through innovation, community service, and public education.
Spark Award Selection Committee Chair Dr. Robert Kingsolver, who is also Dean and Director Center for Regional Environmental Studies at Bellarmine University, said, "Making our final selections was quite difficult as there were so many outstanding nominations from which to choose. I am grateful for the support from the other committee members." An independent panel of judges selected recipients in four categories:
The Green Spark Award for Leadership will go to Russell Barnett, Director of the Kentucky Institute for the Environment and Sustainable Development at the University of Louisville. In this capacity, Barnett helped start the Partnership for a Green City, a collaborative effort to improve environmental education, environmental health, and environmental management by Louisville Metro Government, the University of Louisville (via KIESD), and the Jefferson County Public Schools.
Barnett works with the U of L Sustainability Committee, and the student energy audit program which has focused on energy conservation, using renewable energy and to behavioral changes in how energy is used. In addition, Barnett teaches undergraduate classes on energy efficiency, auditing and research and is a board member of the Kentucky Conservation Committee that generates energy-related legislation for the Kentucky State Legislature's consideration.
The Green Spark Award for Education will go to YouthBuild, a non-profit development program that works with Louisville's low-income youth between the ages of 16-24 to help participants learn job skills and and serve their communities by building affordable housing as part of their high school education. The program incorporates energy conservation and "green" fieldtrips into the curriculum.
YouthBuild Louisville constructs energy-efficient weatherized homes, primarily in the Smoketown neighborhood, using green products and landscape techniques to help moderate temperatures inside the homes. Recently, the organization developed a crew dedicated to installing weatherization retrofits for low-income families and seniors. In addition to rehabilitating homes, the program complements its efforts with E-Corp where students plant trees and urban gardens to learn about invasive species control and maintenance. The second initiative is E-Corp, which involves the youth in environmental initiatives such as invasive species control, tree planting and the installations and maintenance of urban gardens.
The Green Spark Award for Community Service will go to Clifton Universalist-Unitarian Church, which holds an annual sustainability fair. This year more than 50 organizations and businesses educated visitors on simple and effective ways to live environmentally cleaner lives, eat healthier and consume less energy.
The Church also collaborates with community partners in the Clifton neighborhood to organize the mapping and planting of fruit and berries called Community Orchard Project. The church holds classes about planting, pruning, canning, and even making apple cider. It also helps with care and harvesting of neighborhood plants in an effort to turn the neighborhood into a model of sustainability.
The Green Spark Award for Business Leadership will go to Louisville native David Brown Kinloch, President and CEO of Lock 7 Hydro Partners and co-owner of the Mother Ann Lee Hydroelectric Station on the Kentucky River near Harrodsburg, Kentucky. Kinloch is a Louisville native who has worked in the renewable energy industry since the 1980s.
Working in the renewable energy industry since the 1980s, Kinloch purchased Mother Ann Lee, a former retired hydroelectric plant, in 2005. Today, power produced by the Mother Ann Lee plant is sold to Salt River Electric, and Renewable Energy Credits produced by the plant are sold through the Green Energy Program created by Kentucky Utilities Company and Louisville Gas and Electric Company. On a more personal note, Kinloch's refurbished Phoenix Hill home has been self-producing its own energy for more than a decade.
Selection committee members included: Amber Garvey, Communications Coordinator at The Green Building; Jamie Gilkison, Senior Manager of Education and Experience at the Louisville Science Center; David Wicks, Director of Kentucky School Garden Network, Adjunct Professor at U of L and Retired JCPS Environmental Education Director; Carol Wolak, owner of The Green List; and Aly Goldberg, President Project Warm Board of Directors.
2010 Spark Award Event Information
The Green Spark Awards ceremony will be held October 7, 2010 at 11:30 a.m. at the Henry Clay. A trade show of local green businesses will be held in conjunction with the event.
The Master of Ceremonies will be Bob Hill, co-host of WFPL's Homegrown. Kentucky's Secretary of the Finance and Administration Cabinet, Jonathan Miller, will speak about federal and state dollars and programs available to help fuel energy saving initiatives. A special honor will be presented to Walter Lay, retired Executive Director of Project Warm, who gave more than 25 years of service to Project Warm and the Louisville community.
To reserve tickets call (502) 636-9276 or visit www.projectwarm.org to print out a reservation form.
Project Warm was founded in 1982 to provide free weatherization education and services for low-income households struggling to pay high utility bills. Their hope is to inspire others to do their part to conserve energy and help individuals in our community save money.
Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company, part of the PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL) family of companies, are regulated utilities that serve a total of 1.2 million customers and have consistently ranked among the best companies for customer service in the United States. LG&E serves 321,000 natural gas and 397,000 electric customers in Louisville and 16 surrounding counties. KU serves 543,000 customers in 77 Kentucky counties and five counties in Virginia. More information is available at www.lge-ku.com and www.pplweb.com.
