Eco Students continues to push for reforms to local emissions policies by praising the economic and health benefits of “green” practices to the top dogs at Seminole County. The next stop on the Eco Students tour is an invited presentation at the Seminole County directors’ meeting which will be held next Friday morning, June 15, at 8:30 a.m.

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SEMINOLE COUNTY DIRECTORS TAKES ACTIVE INTEREST IN ECO STUDENTS’ IDEAS ON ENERGY CONSERVATION
Students and Seminole County to meet to discuss local emissions policies

Eco Students continues to push for reforms to local emissions policies by praising the economic and health benefits of “green” practices to the top dogs at Seminole County. The next stop on the Eco Students tour is an invited presentation at the Seminole County directors’ meeting which will be held next Friday morning, June 15, at 8:30 a.m. The students will be stressing that even while the federal government has been dithering on climate change and energy conservation for years, 522 local governments have taken a stand against emissions and global warming in their own communities. The Eco Students say Seminole County needs follow suit.

“We are thrilled to meet with Seminole County because we envision its dedication and enthusiasm towards the environment as something that can have a viral influence over the individual cities. Local government needs to take action to protect and enhance the lives of its constituents. Leaders will emerge to take on the rising challenges in climate change and eventually others will follow,” said Eco Students Chair Eddie Hollenbeck.

“We look forward to hearing the information that will be presented by the Eco Students from Seminole Community College. The County is very active in looking at ways to conserve energy,” said Steve Howard, Director, Seminole County Administrative Services Department. “Recent developments within Seminole County Government have included the formation of an Energy Conservation Committee to identify opportunities to reduce energy costs and improve efficiency, as well as study other cost-cutting strategies. This committee will help identify and consider ‘green’ ideas to benefit Seminole County Government. Conserving energy is the right thing to do for Seminole County and the environment,” Howard continued.

The Eco Students will present its primary message which outlines the economic benefits that come along with participating in ecological-friendly policies and national agreements, but also the fact that many of these solutions may need the county’s involvement and not lie in the cities’ hands entirely. The Eco Students will be pushing the need for local and national collaboration of cities and counties which includes the existing participants of the US Mayor Climate Protection Agreement. Under the agreement mayors join together and develop action plans on ways to eliminate the amount of greenhouse gases their cities are producing — methods which can come through public transportation improvements, equipment purchases, and even gas-alternatives for city fleets.

The Seminole County directors’ meeting will be held at the County Services Building (1101 E. First St., Sanford, FL 32771), Friday, June 15, at 8:30 a.m. Expected attendees include County Manager Cindy Coto, Deputy County Manager Don Fisher, Assistant County Manager April Boswell, and the directors of the 14 county departments. Also, County Attorney Robert McMillan and County Finance Director David Godwin may also be in attendance.

Last Monday, June 4, the Eco Students presented before the Oviedo City Council at the Oviedo City Hall. The presentation was followed with a dialogue with the council, City Manager Greg Seeber, and Mayor Tom Walters. Last Thursday, June 7, the group presented before the Lake Mary City Commission at Lake Mary City Hall.

The Ecological Student Citizens of Seminole County is a group of college, honors students enrolled in Seminole County focusing on educating Seminole County elected officials about the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement (authored by Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels — http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/climate/) and putting pressure on them to have their mayors sign it. The Sierra Club has a campaign that is championing the same agreement which they coin “Cool Cities” (http://www.coolcities.us/).

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Contact:

Eddie Hollenbeck
800-390-2029
813-476-3819 (direct)
eddie@ecostudents.org

This entry was posted on Friday, June 8th, 2007