news.com.au announces green award finalists

 News.com.au annouces Green Award Finalists 

 National news website, news.com.au has announced the finalists of its 2008 Green Awards.

Chosen by senior news.com.au editors, the 36 finalists were selected from over 500 nominations across 10 categories.

The winners will be determined with the help of news.com.au reader votes and a panel of experts.

 David Higgins, editor, news.com.au applauded the nominees and congratulated each of the finalists.

 "One particularly exciting result of the ‘news.com.au Greenies' has been uncovering environmental innovation among ordinary everyday Australians, as shown in categories such as our "Household" and "Green Hero" finalists.

“It was truly inspirational reading through each of the nominees’ stories. We were definitely successful in identifying the quiet Greenies working behind the scenes to improve the environment.

 “It was an incredibly difficult task selecting who would make the shortlist in each of the categories, but I am confident that we have chosen very well-deserving finalists.

 “We hope you get will involved again and make your voice count in selecting the winners which will be announced next week by our panel of celebrity environmental supporters.”

Some of the Sydney finalists include:

Junior Hero category: Parrys Raines. A WWF Youth Ambassador, Parrys produced a DCD titled ‘A Kids’ Guide to Climate Change’ and has been seeking funding for a full release. She was a strong Earth Hour supporter writing to the CEO’s of fast food chains, encouraging them to take part in the initiative.

Junior Hero category: Alastair, Freya and Imogen Wadlow. The Wadlow children run the “Planet Patrol” website to help inform other young Australians about environmental issues, and encourage environmental protection – http://www.planetpatrol.info

Green Hero category: Anna Rose. Founder and co-director of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, Anna has been a leading organiser of environmental activism nationally and locally for over 10 years.

Green Hero category Dr. Bill Holland: Bill managed to convert his local school to solar power through community fundraising after discovering how effective it was on his home. Other Sydney based finalists include Ilum-a-Lite Pty Ltd – Light Eco Plus in the Green invention category and Goget.com.au andUnity4 in the Green business category. S

Some of the Queensland finalists include:

Green Hero category: Alison James. Alison’s organisation ‘Australian Eco-Generations’ aims to “inspire eco-heroes today to safeguard tomorrow” and makes education on environmental issues accessible and fun for children.

 Green invention category: Cane-It Golf Trees. This company creates sun-dried biodegradable golf tees made from plantation grown bamboo cane that shred when mowed, releasing nutrients into the ground – rather than becoming a projectile hazard when struck and contributing to broken tee litter on the course.

Green invention category: Les Iggulden – Aerochamber. The Aerochamber is a unit to compost organic matter using greater air flow to reduce greenhouse gas emissions produced in the usual process. The Aerochamber promises not to create bad odours or flies and make it easier to compost at home.

Greenest town category: Whitsunday Regional Council, QLD. A massive community drive to clean up key tourist spot Airlie Beach is the centrepiece of this council’s achievements, but a simple lightbulb exchange is another example of its commitment to green ideals.

Some of the Victorian finalists include: Junior Hero category: Kate Charters and Millicent Burggraf. Best known for their UN-recognised campaign to cut down use of plastic bags by suburban shoppers in Melbourne, Kate and Millicent are engaging other young Australians on environmental solutions.

Greenest Town category: Hurstbridge Village, VIC. Traders here have been reducing plastic bag use and are aiming to make the town completely plastic-bag free by the end of the year.

Environment 2.0 category: aToMik Green. This is one of the most up-to-date, comprehensive sources of information around on products and services that help people make more environmentally friendly decisions as consumers. http://www.atomikgreen.com.au

Some of the South Australian finalists include:

Green Hero category: Richard Owen. Habitat for native species has been restored and carbon mitigation increased thanks to Richard’s campaign to revegetate South Australia’s Hindmarsh Island. Scientific Breakthrough category: Intex Holdings. Technology developed by Intex to reduce the fuel burn of a standard domestic internal combustion engine improves fuel economy and lessens the carbon footprint of vehicles.

Green household category: Mos Howard. The lights, computer, and TV in Mos’s home all run off wind turbines he has installed. He heats water off solar panels and a wood fire, making his home an example of some of the changes Australians could make in their homes.

South Australian finalists also dominated the Australian Solution category with three of the four finalists being South Australian based – Trees for Life (http://www.treesforlife.org.au); Great Murray Lakes Cleanup Project and Windesal (http://windesal.com).

Western Australian towns nominated for the Greenest town category are: Armadale, WA – From research on the impact of cats on the local ecosystem to wetlands protection and engagement in international projects, Armadale is a leading example of how a community can take a range of steps to protect and enhance the local environment.

Belmont, WA – Belmont’s commitment to the environment is seen in its restoration and protection projects, but it has impressively reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 24 per cent from 1998 levels. Armadale and Belmont will be competing against Hurstbridge Village in Victoria and Whitsunday Regional Council in Queensland. Western Australian Peter Hutchison’s SmartBurn device was also named a finalist in the Scientific breakthrough category. Peter invented a device that reduces smoke haze and particule emissions by up to 50 per cent. SmartBurnn improves the conbustion process by burning up to 17 per cent hotter for this environmentally sustainablle, carbon neutral biofuel.

Tasmanian Gabby Forward was also named a finalist in the Junior Green Hero category awarding a young Australian (aged 18 or under) who has shown extraordinary awareness or leadership in addressing the challenges posed by climate change and our environmental impact. Gabby is a well-known activist and has been at the forefront of campaigns against the Gunns Pulp Mill, global warming and other environmental concerns. news.com.au readers have until Monday 15 September to vote on which ‘Greenies’ deserve to win.

 To view a full list of the finalists in each of the categories, visit: http://news.com.au/greenawards