ANE’s Environmental Studies present Environmental Excellence Awards and Scholarship
Posted on Tuesday, May 12th, 2009
Keene, NH – The Antioch University New England Department of Environmental Studies will present two Environmental Excellence Awards today at 5 p.m. in the school’s community room. The department presents Environmental Excellence Awards each year to alumni and to an individual in ANE’s wider community that has made significant contributions to sustainability and environmental protection through their work or personal actions.
The environmental studies department will also honor the 2009 William R. Ginsberg and Thomas K. Wessels Environmental Studies Scholarship recipient at the ceremony. The department will presents all of these honors at its end-of-year ceremony for finishing students and their families.
The 2009 Environmental Excellence Alumni Award
This year’s 2009 Environmental Excellence Alumni recipients are Amanda Costello, Bonnie Hudspeth, and Jen Risley. Amanda, Bonnie, and Jen serve on the steering committee of the Cheshire County Conservation District’s Monadnock Farm and Community Connection (MFCC) program. This program promotes Keene’s farmers’ market, connects local farmers with area restaurants, and started planning the launch of a local food co-op that will focus a large percentage of its merchandise on local foods. All three of these Antioch New England alumni serve on the MFCC’s Food Co-op Committee and have built an advisory board of local leaders as well as successfully lobbied the Keene City Council for $5000 towards a feasibility study on starting a local co-op. In their spare time, Amanda, Bonnie, and Jen have also been active in the Monadnock Sustainability Network to bring together key community leaders in the area who promote sustainable practices through direct advocacy, education, and outreach. They are young movers and shakers who have already demonstrated deep commitment to sustainability and to effective community action in their years since graduation.
The 2009 Community Member Environmental Excellence Award
This year’s 2009 Environmental Excellence Community Member recipient is Meade Cadot. Meade has been a fixture in New Hampshire’s conservation community since the early 1970s, as an educator, pioneer in land protection, and communicator about the importance of protecting our state’s rich natural heritage. His influence has been statewide and national, but his greatest success has been in the Monadnock region, where he has lived and worked for over thirty years. His land protection leadership has resulted in a protected supersanctuary of more than twenty thousand acres in cooperation with private land owners and conservation organizations in New Hampshire. Meade has taught at Antioch New England and long been the director of the Harris Center for Conservation Education.
The William R. Ginsberg and Thomas K. Wessels Environmental Studies Scholarship
The 2009 William R. Ginsberg and Thomas K. Wessels Environmental Studies Scholarship recipient is Christina Oliva. The merit-based scholarship honors a second-year, environmental studies master’s degree student who has displayed excellence in academic achievement and demonstrated leadership. Christina, ANE’s first recipient of this scholarship, is completing her masters degree–a MS in Environmental Studies with teacher certification in elementary education. She now serves as ANE’s student government outreach/research coordinator. Earlier, she was the 2008 Keene, New Hampshire Earth-Day coordinator, and in 2007, a CTEC Symposium volunteer.
Chistina comes to ANE from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York. At Skidmore, she was president of the Environmental Action Club and coordinated the Skidmore Earth Day celebration. She received the 2002 Skidmore President’s Award for her work towards establishing a rape crisis center and a 2002 Skidmore Women in Leadership Award for her counseling work in the dormitories. For her thesis, Christina created the Saratoga Springs Downtown Food Waste Initiative. The initiative, part of the city’s carbon-reduction program, is a food-waste composting plan for Skidmore and downtown Saratoga Springs restaurants. Christina’s hometown is Southampton, New York.
