The Song Remains Sustain

CITYPAPER.NET EXCLUSIVE: Will Dean reports from Philadelphia's First Sustainability Awards.

by Will Dean

Sustainability has finally reached that paragon of mainstream acceptance: the award ceremony. On April 26 the Academy of Natural Sciences hosted Philadelphia's First Sustainability Awards � complete with a "green carpet ceremony" � to honor local groups and individuals making the Philadelphia area livable for the future.

"The goal of the awards is to recognize sustainable projects to make them less novelties and more mainstream," says Jessica Anderson of the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, one of the organizers of the event.

Among the 10 award winners, out of 53 nominees, were green architectural firms like Re:Vision, farmer's market pioneers The Food Trust, and RecycleBank, a program that pays people to recycle. (For a full list of winners and nominees, visit www.philadelphiasustainabilityawards.org.)

PhillyCarShare was the only group to net two awards: a jury award and the people's choice award. No doubt they were helped by their recent rapid growth � 1,500 new drivers signed up in the past month, taking 800 cars off the road.

One of the most exciting events of the night was a presentation by Joseph P. Riley, mayor of Charleston, SC. Riley energetically outlined the ways Charleston has promoted sustainability by turning abandoned and condemned buildings into beautiful, affordable public housing instead of just tearing them down. He spoke at length about the importance of fostering public space and building public housing that is an architectural match for its surrounding area, earning a standing ovation from the crowd.

In contrast, our own mayor skipped his scheduled appearance, sending Janice Woodcock of the City Planning Commission to show a few dispiriting slides. Perhaps Street recognized that Charleston's successfully implemented plans were the opposite of his own vaunted Neighborhood Transformation Initiative, which has merely torn down old abandoned buildings and very occasionally built jarringly out-of-place fake-suburban looking housing.

Not that the NTI has succeeded at that, either. As the Inky's Monica Yant Kinney pointed out on April 25th, pointed out, Philadelphia still boasts 22,000 abandoned buildings, 30,000 abandoned lots and most neighborhoods have not felt the touch of Street's NTI.

Otherwise, the award ceremony was refreshing, not least for its lack of competitiveness. Nominees and winners showcased their ability to work together. The Engineering and Design Institute at Philadelphia University helped out Re:Vision when they were just getting started. In turn, the architectural firm designed Jackie O'Neil's Zero Energy House, which won an award for actually producing more energy than it uses.

If groups like the ones honored here continue to push for sustainability, and the next mayor shows some vision, even us cynics might have to admit that humanity has a chance to survive after all.

(w_dean@citypaper.net)