Earth Day Initiative will host their annual awards ceremony at Earth Day 2019 in Union Square on Tuesday, April 23. This year United States Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bill Nye, and TerraCycle will be honored.
The Earth Day 2019 Public Official of the Year Award will go to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in recognition of her efforts to push for bold climate action and starting a global conversation around the urgency of addressing climate change and possible climate solutions. The Earth Day 2019 Advocate of the Year Award will be given to Bill Nye for all of the work he has done to advance the role of science in assessing our environmental challenges and for advancing the awareness of the rising risk of climate change.
“By drawing the attention of millions of Americans to the idea that we need to move quickly on climate change and by not allowing the conversation to rest in the realm of doom and gloom but instead channeling that conversation into a positive view of the future, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bill Nye have helped people give voice to people’s hopes for the future,” says John Oppermann, Executive Director of the Earth Day Initiative.
The Earth Day 2019 Business Leader of the Year Award will be presented to TerraCycle in recognition of the launch of a new circular shopping platform called Loop that replaces single-use disposable packaging with durable containers. The program helps form a new paradigm for solving global waste issues. For many years, the company has been known for turning hard-to-recycle waste into raw materials that can be used to make new products.
“If the practices TerraCycle is putting in place were to become widespread across industry, it would be revolutionary,” says Oppermann. “They are leading by example and we hope that businesses everywhere take notice.”
The Earth Day 2019 Awards presentation will take place on Tuesday, April 23rd at 3:00 pm during the Earth Day 2019 event in New York City’s Union Square.
About Earth Day Initiative
Earth Day Initiative is a non-profit organization, which aims to make Earth Day more than a one-day event or annual environmental wake-up call by engaging people in important sustainability work and initiatives throughout the year. The organization’s mission is to carry the enthusiasm and spirit of Earth Day into the 21st Century to meet today’s environmental challenges. It does so through year-round sustainability programs, annual large-scale Earth Day events, and partnerships with schools, community organizations, businesses, and governments. Its programs include high-profile environmental campaigns, corporate sustainability initiatives, a sustainable food guide, a school gardens program, and a green building publication. For more information, visit www.earthdayinitiative.org
