Winners of the 2014 Sustainability Leadership Awards

All photos by John Harrison Events

On Friday, January 31, Seattle community members gathered to celebrate all the innovation and commitments to sustainability in our region at the annual Sustainability Leadership Awards.  Over 230 guests attended the ceremony at MOHAI to recognize six businesses and organizations, and one individual that won a Sustainability Leadership Award for their excellent accomplishments in sustainability leadership.

Seattle Councilmember Mike O’Brien welcomed guests and delivered a motivating speech.  He started the night off with a toast, because everyone in that room does work worth celebrating!  It was a great moment, reminding all of the great leadership coming directly from our community.  

O'Brien also challenged the crowd, taking advantage of larger than average gathering of Seattle's prominent environmental advocates.  He encouraged guests to meet with communities that might not think about ways they live sustainable lifestyles.  And to work with them to help create more change.  He said we can make big strides for the environmental movement when we reach out and listen to others.

Other speakers included Edward Hill, lead partner at Creative4Culture who was the evening's master of ceremony; Diana Vergis Vinh, the 2012 Sustainable Hero recipient; and Glifford Pinchot III, cofounder of Bainbridge Graduate Institute. 

It was an inspiring evening for everyone in attendance!  Relive the evening by viewing the event on our Facebook photo album or Flickr.  Below are a few photos that captured the night, along with the full list of winners, and more information about the Sustainability Leadership Awards. Again, thank you to all who made this event a wonderful success. The commitment to sustainability in our region is inspiring, and we hope to celebrate this commitment for years to come!

The 2014 Sustainability Leadership Awards winners:

Individual Award

Sustainable Hero: Bill Thorness, author, editor and freelance writer, A Cool Season Gardener, for his significant and inspiring contribution to the local sustainability movement.

Business Awards

Significant Newcomer: Landis+Gyr, for their recent incorporation of sustainability into their business practices

Creative Solution: Seattle Steam, for their innovative approaches to a sustainability challenge.

Setting An Example: Theo Chocolate for modeling leadership through emphasizing education and transparency.

Community Awards

Transportation Changer: PATH, for their achievements in impacting transportation systems and accessibility.

Resource Impact: Farm to Table Partnership, for their positive impacts on local food networks.

Transforming Spaces: National Wildlife Federation and their Garden for Wildlife Program for their projects that revive and transform urban spaces.

More about the Sustainability Leadership Awards

Winners were selected from an esteemed group of judges with expertise in multiple areas, including green built environment, sustainable business and biotechnology, amongst others. See the complete list of nominees and their bios here. 

Sustainable Seattle initiated the annual award celebration in 2001, formerly known as the Sustainable Community Outstanding Leadership and Innovation Awards, to recognize those making the Puget Sound a more sustainable and livable place. To see the full program, visit our events page (insert link).

Who do you think should win a Sustainability Leadership Award? 

If you know an individual, business, or organization that practices sustainable innovation and commitment, nominate them for next year's Sustainability Leadership Award! Nominations will take place this August.  We hope you can all make it for next year’s event!