Central Ohio Basking in After Earth Day Glow

Columbus, Ohio – April 26, 2010 – The organizers of Earth Day 2010: The Update, central Ohio’s region-wide Earth Day celebration aimed to be the biggest in the world (and universe), and all indications are that goal was achieved. In total, nearly 4,000 volunteers were involved with community service projects and the celebration at Franklin Park. These volunteers put in about 13,500 person-hours cleaning up neighborhoods, planting trees, preparing community gardens and otherwise caring for the natural and urban environment across central Ohio.

The bulk of the volunteering occurred the weekend before Earth Day when dozens of community organizations hosted 129 volunteer worksites across central Ohio. At these worksites 3,679 volunteers put in 12,943 person-hours:

• Planting 8,262 trees, and another 5,440 native plants

• Collecting 2,027 bags of trash

• Cleaning 23 miles of waterway

• Diverting 15,000 pounds of material that would have gone to the landfill

• Recycling 2.2 tons of tires

• Removing 100 graffiti tags

• Building 115 raised beds

• Preparing 47 community gardens

An additional 150 volunteers helped out at the celebration at Franklin Park on Thursday, April 22nd – the calendar Earth Day. Each worked 2 to 4 hour shifts, adding approximately 500 person-hours, bringing the total to about 13,500 total hours – the equivalent of more than 6.5 person-years.

At the celebration, the second annual Earth Day Challenge Cup awards were presented to the school, company and non-profit organization that sent out the most volunteers to Earth Day 2010: The Update worksites. The winners for 2010 were Dublin Coffman High School (school), The Ohio State University (company), and Simply Living (non-profit).

Pictures from the worksites, celebration and more are available at the event website – www.Update2010.org.

Earth Day Celebration Entertainment Line-up Announced

Columbus, Ohio – April 1, 2010 – Today the entertainment schedule for the Earth Day 2010: The Update celebration at Franklin Park was announced. The celebration, which will take place on the calendar Earth Day – April 22, will run from 3:00pm to 10:00pm and feature leading local bands, speakers, including Mayor Michael B. Coleman, cooking demonstrations, an upcycled fashion show and much more. Below are the tentative listings by venue. More information about the celebration and volunteer opportunities is available at www.Update2010.org.

Main stage, presented by Limited Brands Foundation, hosted by emcee Kurt Monier, 3:00pm to 10:00pm:

• Nova Madrugada with Roger Hines
• Mighty Troubadours
• Thrashers
• Eric Nassau n’ Friends
• Rumpke Mountain Boys
• Apocalypso
• Miss Molly Band
• Featured Speakers (Mayor Coleman, Governor Strickland*)
• Max Power Trio
• Dexter Wesley & The New Experience
• Seen Tru

Community stage, presented by Earth Share of Ohio, 3:00pm to 7:30pm:

• Shazzbots (Super Fun Kid’s Music)
• Improv Comedy
• International Folk Dancers
• Premiere of “The Adventures of Froglin and Bearford” by The Mascot Organization
• Upcycled Fashion Show

Kids’ Activity Area, presented by Battelle, 3:00pm to 7:30pm:

• Craft activities led by ProMusica and local artists
• Story time every 30 minutes featuring Jason K. Burke’s readings of his new book Recycled Again, and other books presented by members of Storytellers of Central Ohio
• Joanie Calem playing guitar and singing
• Mackee the Clown
• Face painting
• Eco games

Scotts-Miracle Gro Community Garden Campus and Education Pavilion, 3:00pm to 7:00pm

• Campus tours
• Cooking demonstration by Local Matters
• Green Smoothies by Purely Simple Raw
• Reducing and Reusing with Food by Devon Morgan
• Kid Tested Recipes using Local Seasonal Greens with Rachel Tayse
• Live fire cooking demonstrations
• Compost demonstrations

Other entertainment at Franklin Park

• Mitch Epstein’s What is American Power?
• Earth Day 2010: The Update Video & Photo Contest Winners
• Cocktails at the Conservatory

About Green Columbus

Green Columbus exists to promote sustainable living in Central Ohio and globally by 1) providing forums for environmental groups, citizens and others to interact. 2) raising awareness about environmental issues and what can be done to address them, and 3) encouraging participation in action oriented green events.  More information is available at www.greencbus.org.

February 3, 2010

Keep Columbus Beautiful and Green Columbus Announce Earth Day Partnership

Keep Columbus Beautiful and Green Columbus announced a partnership for the 40^th anniversary Earth Day. Both organizations will work together to engage 10,000 volunteers in community service projects on April 17^th and 18^th as part of Earth Day 2010: The Update, the citywide Earth Day celebration organized by Green Columbus.

The City of Columbus award-winning Keep Columbus Beautiful (KCB) program, which is housed in the City’s Department of Public Service, plays a key role in Mayor Michael B. Coleman’s Get Green Columbus initiative. KCB is encouraging volunteerism and hosting of worksites through its network of organizations with the ultimate goal of engaging 10,000 volunteers at worksites across central Ohio. The KCB Visitor and Supply Center located at 1265 Marion Rd. on Columbus south side will serve as a location for Earth Day worksite host trainings and supply distribution.

“Earth Day is a great opportunity for the citizens of central Ohio to make a difference in their communities,” stated KCB program manager Sherri Palmer adding “.There are so many easy things each person can do to make Columbus a greener city, and KCB is proud to be a partner with Green Columbus to help make Earth Day 2010 the best in the event’s 40-year history.”

The 28 year old KCB program implements comprehensive litter prevention, public education, voluntary recycling, and beautification initiatives throughout the city.  In 2009, the program completed 507 projects using 11,165 volunteers at a total volunteer value of $736,673.22.

The Columbus Earth Day events occur during the Great American Cleanup (GAC), a national community improvement program sponsored by Keep America Beautiful. GAC takes place annually from March 1 through May 31. Mayor Michael B. Coleman will kickoff the local GAC on Saturday March 27^th with KickButt Columbus! a litter cleanup of area highway exit and entry ramps. Coleman will also join in the Earth Day 2010: The Update celebration on April 22 at the Franklin Park Conservatory.

Green Columbus will support the KCB worksites, and those organized by other organizations, by conducting a coordinated campaign to encourage central Ohioans to volunteer, and organizing a celebration on April 22 to recognize accomplishments from the previous weekend and raise awareness about environmental issues. Green Columbus will also help market ongoing KCB events including Kick Butt Columbus.

More information about registering volunteer worksites and other aspects of the central Ohio Earth Day event can be found at www.Update2010.org.

About Keep Columbus Beautiful

Keep Columbus Beautiful (KCB) is part of the City of Columbus, Department of Public Service. KCB provides education and encouragement about fighting litter; recycling; and preventing and removing graffiti. KCB promotes and coordinates litter cleanups and beautification projects. For more information visitwww.keepcolumbusbeautiful.org.

January 6, 2010

Earth Day Celebration Moves to Franklin Park for 2010

After three years at Goodale Park, the citywide Earth Day celebration is moving to Franklin Park. The 2010 event, named ‘The Update’, consists of two parts - a large-scale coordinated volunteer effort, and a festival celebrating our accomplishments. The dates for the event are Saturday and Sunday, April 17^th and 18^th for volunteer worksites, and Thursday, April 22^nd for the celebration in Franklin Park. The goal for 2010 is to get 10,000 volunteers engaged in environmentally related activities, which will make Columbus and central Ohio the largest celebration of its kind.

Both Green Columbus, the organization behind Earth Day in central Ohio, and Franklin Park Conservatory are excited about collaborating for the 40^th anniversary observance of Earth Day in central Ohio. The celebration, which falls on the calendar Earth Day – April 22, will cap the three day event that also includes volunteer opportunities throughout central Ohio. The celebration will feature speakers, including Mayor Michael B. Coleman, live music, local and organic food, informational booths, kids’ activities and much more. Tentatively, the celebration will run from 3:00 PM to 10:00 PM.

Plans for the celebration incorporate the new Scotts-Miracle Gro Community Garden campus at Franklin Park Conservatory. This 7-acre, state-of-the-art “living classroom”, which opened in September of 2009, provides a platform for horticulture and environmental education, as well as community gardening best practices.

Earth Day 2010: The Update is a follow-up to Earth Day 2009: Picture This. In 2009, Columbus had the largest volunteer turnout for Earth Day of any city in the U.S.; over 2,600 central Ohioans donated their time and labor at 70 area worksites.  The goal for Earth Day 2010: The Update is to increase participation to 10,000 volunteers.

Information about the planned central Ohio Earth Day event, sponsorship opportunities, hosting a worksite, and other ways to get involved can be found at www.Update2010.org.

November 12, 2009

OSU Team Wins Fourth Annual Get Green Business Case Competition

Teams of students from Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University won first, and second, place awards at the fourth annual Get Green Business Case Competition sponsored by Nationwide. The most innovative award went to a team from the University of Phoenix. The competition pitted teams of master level business students from area schools against one another to come up with the best approach to greening Nationwide’s investment portfolio. The first place team won $3,000, the second place team got $1,500, and $500 went to the most innovative.

The competition concluded yesterday, Tuesday, November 10 at an awards ceremony held at Nationwide’s headquarters in downtown Columbus. At the ceremony Gail Snyder, Chief Investments Officer at Nationwide, welcomed the teams and attendees, Erin Miller, Environmental Steward for the City of Columbus, spoke about Mayor Coleman’s Get Green initiative, and recycled glass plaques were presented to the winning teams. The first place team from Fisher consisted of Malika de Silva, Laura Christman, Nate Landry and Claus Eckert. The second place team had George Fels, Mittal Haria, David Wilson and Rajkrishana Jaasthi. Winners of the most innovative award from University of Phoenix were Michelle Horsley, Anthony Schmitt, Parag Pagel and Lucas Oso.

Ms. Snyder highlighted the timeliness of the green theme and relevance the competition had to the way Nationwide approaches its investment decisions. “Students were asked to make environmentally-friendly recommendations that also pass the tests of return on investment, risk profile, due diligence and regulatory scrutiny. We were extremely impressed with the depth of the content and the overall caliber of the presentations. Green investing is a vast field and finding recommendations that can also hold up to real-life scrutiny is critical. We congratulate all participants on a job well done.”

Tad Dritz, Director of Green Columbus, acted as emcee for the awards ceremony and added “The Get Green Business Case Competition is just one facet of Mayor Coleman’s efforts to make Columbus a leading environmental city, and a great educational opportunity for all the master-level business programs in central Ohio”

The contest spanned five days, starting at noon Thursday, November 5 when the teams received the case study describing Nationwide’s investment philosophy and guidelines, as well as their desire to invest in sustainability. The competition ended on Tuesday, November 10 after the teams presented their findings and recommendations to a panel of judges, which included two representatives from Nationwide’s investment group, Tom Powers and Dan Magestro, and Matt Carbonara, from Reservoir Venture Partners.

Green Columbus organizes the case competition for the Green Business Committee or Mayor Coleman’s Green Team to promote green business practices in and around Columbus. The competition was opened to all the master level business programs in Central Ohio.

About Nationwide

Nationwide, based in Columbus, Ohio, is one of the largest and strongest diversified insurance and financial services organizations in the U.S. and is rated A+ by A.M. Best. The company provides a full range of personalized insurance and financial services, including auto insurance, motorcycle, boat, homeowners, life insurance, farm, commercial insurance, administrative services, annuities, mortgages, mutual funds, pensions, long-term savings plans and health and productivity services. For more information, visitwww.nationwide.com.

November 5, 2009

Nationwide Hosts Fourth Annual Get Green Business Case Competition

Nationwide is sponsoring and hosting the fourth annual Get Green Business Case competition, being held from November 5th through 10th.  The awards for winning strategies developed by teams of MBA students from area programs will be presented at 8:00 PM on Tuesday, November 10th at One Nationwide Plaza in downtown Columbus.  Representatives from Nationwide and Mayor Michael B. Coleman office will present awards to the student teams with the best solution to green Nationwide’s investment portfolio.  The first place team will win $3,000, second place receives $1,500, and a third prize of $500 will be given to the team with the most innovative solution.  In addition to the presentation of awards, the ceremony will feature a summary of the winning team’s recommendations.

The Green Business Committee of Mayor Coleman’s Green Team organized the case competition to promote green business practices in and around Columbus.  The competition was opened to all the master level business programs in central Ohio.  Invited institutions include The Fisher College of Business (The Ohio State University), Keller School of Management (DeVry), Ashland University, Franklin University, Capital University, and University of Phoenix.  The contest spans five days, starting at noon Thursday, November 5th when the teams receive the case study explaining the environmental-business challenges face by Nationwide’s Investments.  It ends on Tuesday, November 10th after the teams have presented their recommendations to a panel of judges, winners are selected, and awards distributed.  Judging the event will be Dan Magestro and Tom Powers of Nationwide, and Matt Carbonara, Managing Director at TeleSoft Partners and General Partner at Reservoir Venture Partners.

As with the past competitions, sponsored by Boeringer-Ingelheim, Limited Brands and NetJets, this year’s case competition is being put on by Mayor Coleman’s Green Team.  Coordination is provided by local not-for-profit, Green Columbus.  The purpose of the event is multifaceted.  The primary goals are to raise awareness about solutions to environmental challenges faced by businesses in central Ohio and to provide an educational opportunity for the student participants.  The company involved also learns a great deal, including how many solutions are available today which benefit not just the environment, but also the bottom-line.

September 9, 2009

‘The Update’ Theme Selected for Columbus Earth Day 2010

Earth Day 2010 marks the fortieth anniversary of the national observance of the natural environment, and the fourth organized by local non-profit, Green Columbus.  The theme selected for 2010’s event is ‘The Update,’ which commemorates the accomplishments of the environmental movement and highlighting the challenges that lie ahead.  As with past Earth Day events organized by Green Columbus, Earth Day 2010: The Update will have two parts – a large-scale coordinated volunteer effort, and a festival celebrating our accomplishments. The dates for the event are Saturday and Sunday, April 17^th and 18^th for volunteer worksites, and Thursday, April 22^nd for the celebration.  The goal for 2010 is to get 10,000 volunteers engaged in environmentally related activities.

When asked about the theme, Tad Dritz, director of Green Columbus explained “forty years ago, pioneering activists launched a movement to fight for clean air and water.  Their actions led to Congress passing tough regulations forcing industry to reduce emissions.  We owe a lot to these foremothers and forefathers of the environmental movement, but now it is time for The Update.  Environmentalism today is working together to improve the health of our families and planet, volunteering with neighbors to plant community gardens, building structures that enhance the environment, creating green collar jobs to enrich our cities –  making every day Earth Day.  Everyone has a role to play.”

The idea of combining a large-scale volunteer initiative and a celebration into a single integrated Earth Day event originated in 2007 in Columbus with ‘A Year in a Day’.  The goal was to gather as many people together as possible to accomplish a year’s worth of environmental volunteerism in one day.  This model has since been copied in other cities, including New York and San Francisco.  Despite the imitators, in 2009, Columbus had the largest volunteer turnout for Earth Day of any city in the U.S.: over 2,600 central Ohioans donating their labor at 70 area worksites.  The goal for Earth Day 2010: The Update is to increase participation to 10,000 volunteers.

Information about the planned Columbus Earth Day event, sponsorship opportunities, hosting a worksite, and other ways to get involved is available by contacting Earth Day Director, Alice Walker at (614) 327-8931 or alice@greencbus.org.