Green Champions Awards

The Green Champions Awards 2009 were held in February 2010 at the Pestana Chelsea Bridge Hotel and hosted by BBC's Urban Chef, Oliver Rowe.  

Green champion

Lucy Neal (Transition Town Tooting and Trashcatchers carnival organiser) began Transition Town Tooting (TTT) movement over two years ago. TTT members believe in a life beyond our dependency on oil. Lucy (pictured) has worked tirelessly to promote environmental projects involving the Wandsworth community, promoting the problems we face over climate change at 'foodivals', talks and film events, discussion evenings and the Trashcatchers Carnival. 

Runner Up: Dan O'Neil (Transition Town Wandsworth organiser)  

Green household 

Adam Dannreuther and family throw out less than one black sack of rubbish each week and recycle most of the waste their household produces. They make use of food leftovers rather than throwing them away, mend clothes and broken items rather than replacing them, grow fruit and vegetables, take reusable bags when shopping, and walk, cycle or take public transport almost all the time.  

Green project or group

Pedal4Health (organised by Fred Ellis) provides cycle training for children and adults in Wandsworth. They taught hundreds in the previous year of winning, including people who couldn't cycle at all or those wanting to improve their safety on the road. They particularly help families who have weight problems and receive referrals from the NHS. Pedal 4 Health run a weekly family cycling project called Wheel Thing for Wandsworth NHS PCT,  shortlisted for the 2009 London Cycling Awards

Runner up: Teams Fly, Plan B, Dezinermites and Impact from Graveney School.  

Green concept

Hermoine Taylor's JustSaving http://justsaving.org/ scheme is based on environmental sponsorship. Instead of donating money to sponsor marathons and cycling challenges, friends and family pledge to undertake carbon-saving activities such as reducing meat consumption, leaving the car at home, or making draft-excluding snakes. Each action has a carbon saving so the sponsors will know the contribution their action will have towards sponsorship. 

Runner up: Hailey Clonts (generating electricity from playground equipment and associated educational benefit)  

Green building 

Holroyd Road property (Nick Bradshaw) Non-renewable energy use (and therefore CO2 emissions) has been reduced as far as possible in this typical 20th century semi-detached house. It has been done by maximising roof insulation, draughtstripping, installing a wood burner and solar thermal panel, installing interlinked solar panels and buying 100% renewable electricity. They now put approximately 60% less CO2 into the atmosphere than three years ago.   

Green school primary/junior

Sellincourt Primary school has its own Eco-Code to encourage environmental-awareness, and posters designed by the students to promote it. Students are encouraged to walk to school and members of the gardening club grow vegetables and flowers. Nursery pupils grow, cook and eat their own organic fruit and vegetables, compost the peelings and conserve rainwater in a water butt. The reception classes also look after the school wormery. In class students have conducted a litter survey and are studying the conservation of the River Wandle. 

Runner up: Swaffield Primary

Green school- secondary/6th form college

Burntwood School Year 9 Eco-ambassadors participate annually in the Ambassadors for Change conference and have carried out a number of projects with Waste Watch including a litter audit and energy survey. Eco-ambassadors have a pivotal role in helping the school achieve Green Flag status and are working hard to raise environmental awareness amongst other students. Burntwood School has signed up to 10:10 campaign so every student is trying to reduce their own carbon footprint by 10 percent.  

Recycling and waste minimisation champion (Wandsworth only award)

June Stamper recycles all she can using the orange-lidded recycling banks and throws out very little black-bag rubbish. She takes reusable fabric bags when she goes shopping, and if she does use plastic bags, takes them back to the supermarket for recycling. Old clothing goes to charity shops or clothing banks, and all old or broken electrical and household items are taken to the Cringle Street recycling facility.