Sustainia Award Names Ten Finalists

Sep 20, 2012 3:45 PM ET

(3BL Media) Copenhagen - 20 September 2012 – The Sustainia initiative has just named the ten finalists for this year’s inaugural Sustainia Award, a new, global prize recognizing tangible and available sustainability solutions across sectors and markets.

The ten nominees will be present at a gala event in Copenhagen on 11 October, when former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Chair of the Award Committee, will announce the winner of the 2012 Sustainia Award.

In selecting the winning initiative, Governor Schwarzenegger will be joined by former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, IPCC Chair Dr. Rajendra K.Pachauri and EU Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard. All four judges will be speaking at the Copenhagen event.

“As a founding partner of the Sustainia initiative, we are delighted to see such a strong field of contestants,” said Georg Kell, the Executive Director of the UN Global Compact. “They demonstrate that many of the solutions needed to tackle serious sustainability challenges exist and work in practice.”

The finalists were chosen following extensive research among 100 nominees announced earlier this summer. Each finalist represents one of ten key sectors: health, resources, energy, education, IT, fashion, food, cities, transportation and buildings.

You Pick the Winner

In addition to theSustainia Award, all finalists are also nominated for the Sustainia Community Award, which is judged entirely by the public.

View the nominees and decide which solution you think deserve to be best sustainable solution of the year.

Cast your vote on the Sustainia Community Award Facebook site here.

This year’s Sustainia Award finalists:

Best Energy Solution:
Indigo pay-as-you-go solar: Solar home systems - www.eight19.com

Best Education Solution:
American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment: Turning the US educational system Sustainable. - www.secondnature.org

Best IT Solution:
EcoGrid EU: Integrating renewable energy to the grid - www.eu-ecogrid.net

Best Fashion Solution:
‘Shwopping’: Recycle old clothes when shopping for new - www.social.marksandspencer.com

Best Food Solution:
Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves: Clean cooking technologies - www.cleancookstoves.org

Best City Solution:
Chicago Lakeside: Building cities for people - www.chicagolakesidedevelopment.com

Best Transportation Solution:
Triple E: A green containership - www.worldslargestship.com

Best Building Solution:
REWE: Sustainable supermarkets - www.rewe-group.com/en

Best Resource Solution:
Subaru of Indiana Automotive Plant: Zero landfill manufacturing - www.subaru-sia.com

Best Health Solution:
UV Waterworks: Purifying water using sunlight - www.waterhealth.com

About the Sustainia Award
The Sustainia Award was launched by the global Sustainia ALLIANCE and Scandinavia’s leading independent think tank, Monday Morning, in collaboration with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Award aims to raise awareness of the many tangible, sustainable solutions available across sectors and markets.