The 8th annual Green Source DFW Sustainable Leadership Awards will be held Nov. 14 at the Dallas Arboretum.

Oct. 24, 2019

Every year, Green Source DFW and our parent nonprofit the Memnosyne Institute host what we like to refer to as the North Texas "Green Oscars."

The annual event, the Green Source DFW Sustainable Leadership Awards, celebrates the dedicated individuals, businesses and groups who are advancing the green movement in North Texas.

How do we pick our winners? In September, readers nominate their favorite local green heroes for the awards. (See the amazing list of candidates below.)

Then a panel of judges from the North Texas green community have the daunting task of selecting the final winners from among these outstanding candidates.

This year's results will be announced at the 8th annual GSDFW awards dinner at the Dallas Arboretum on Nov. 14.

Other specialty awards will also be given at the event including awards for Environmental Justice and Environmental Reporting.

Following the ceremony, Montopolis, an Austin-based music ensemble, will perform The Legend of Big Bend. 

Tickets are now on sale for $35 online and $45 at the door. The evening includes buffet dining with vegan options.

This year’s nominees include:

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE INNOVATION

Don Ferrier

Don Ferrier is a Fort Worth-based custom home builder and remodeler with an emphasis on energy efficiency and sustainability. Don has spearheaded eco-friendly construction here in North Texas and broken new ground with his innovative ideas, energy saving construction techniques and nearly zero waste build sites. 

Restorative Farms’ Hatcher Station Training and Community Farm

Restorative Farms and partners are engaged with industry experts and local community members to establish the Hatcher Station Training and Community Farm. The HSTCF campus will establish a food access point for fresh food options in the low income, under-served community of South Dallas. HSTCF will also provide for employment training and job creation specific to urban agriculture for South Dallas residents. The project is expected to be completed in 18 months.

Sustainable Structures of Texas

Sustainable Structures of Texas’ has hired a team of trained and experienced LEED accredited professionals to build to U.S. Green Building Standards using recyclables, green building materials and the latest sustainable processes. They also employ proven construction science, advanced framing techniques, solar orientation and lean construction methods that promote durability, efficiency, indoor environmental quality, sound building practices and focused customer satisfaction delivery.

Texas Nameplate Company

Texas Nameplate Company makes nameplates for numerous companies worldwide. For many years, Texas Nameplate Company was on the environmental "bad guy" list. They were cited repeatedly by the City of Dallas for violations related to polluted water discharge. At one point, the City threatened to turn off TNC's water. That's when TNC began changing their practices. TNC overhauled its processing to capture waste and recycle materials where possible. This metamorphosis transformed the business, drastically reduced toxic byproducts and resulted in a green process that they promote to other companies.

Trinity River Turtle Survey

The Trinity River Turtle Survey led by Paschal High School teacher Andrew Brinker is a mark-recapture study near downtown Fort Worth conducted by students and faculty at Paschal High School. The 3-year project is funded by a grant from TCU and permitted by Texas Parks and Wildlife, the city of Fort Worth and the Tarrant Regional Water District. 

For the past two years, students have met monthly to measure, mark and release turtles. To date they have captured over 1,150 turtles of 7 different species. 

The results of this survey will provide baseline data for future studies to assess how native Texas turtle species are faring in the region, especially in view of urban sprawl in both Dallas and Fort Worth. In addition, the survey is determining how many species of turtles live in the Trinity and what their range is. The project is also giving students a unique opportunity to conduct advanced level studies rather than simply reading a textbook inside a classroom.

CONSERVATION ACTIVIST

Anne Marie Bristow

Austria-born Anne Marie Bristow is a 5’ 2” fireball who has logged 1,800 North Texas Master Naturalist volunteer hours since 2011 at Twelve Hills Nature Center and John Bunker Sands Wetland Center. She shares her knowledge with great charm and intelligence as a guided hike leader. In addition she has dug up literally tons of invasive Johnson grass at Twelve Hills and helped restore its native prairie by rescuing, planting and caring for native prairie plants.

Richard Freiheit

Richard Freiheit, LLELA Restoration Manager, leads restoration activities at the 2,600-acre Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Area. He has created and oversees a large nursery operation, raising thousands of native plants for onsite restoration projects. Over the last 15 years he has helped coordinate volunteers engaging in all aspects of restoration and land management on the LLELA property with tens of thousands of volunteer hours being logged. Recently he has helped to develop and participates in a UNT program to encourage student environmental volunteerism. Richard is a great teacher and is always willing to share his knowledge with everyone from naturalists to schoolchildren. His passion for the land is infectious and serves him well in creating the next generation of land stewards.

Sam Kieschnick

Sam is currently an Urban Wildlife Biologist with Texas Parks & Wildlife in DFW. Sam was an early and enthusiastic force behind the local iNaturalist movement, teaching hundreds of people, including many young people, how to get involved in this vital endeavor. He has been the driving force behind many local bioblitz projects. In particular, he has been the DFW leader of the international iNaturalist City Nature Challenge. In 2017, DFW area won first place, beating out 14 other Metropolitan areas, due in large part to Sam's cheerleading.  

In his love of nature he has made clear that all things, great and small are of importance and interconnected. His work in documenting species in the DFW region, alone, provides and essential baseline for future scientists. He has documented more than 50,000 plant, insects and animal species on iNaturalist in the North Texas area.

Clint Wolfe

Clint Wolfe is the founder, creative genius and program manager for Texas AgriLife's Water University in Dallas.

Clint facilitates a team of water resources professional to assist with research and outreach programming in the areas of water quality, water use efficiency and watershed planning. 

Clint has established partnerships with more than 40 cities in DFW to conduct educational programs targeting homeowners in the fight to reduce landscape water usage, the largest single use of potable water in North Texas. His team conducts on average 240 programs a year with municipalities reaching over 20,000 homeowners. If each of those participants saved just 100 gallons a month that would equate to a savings of 20 million gallons per year.

Clint’s Urban Water Team won the Green Source DFW Large Business or Nonprofit Program Award in 2015.

GREEN PROJECT OR PROGRAM

Amy King

LEED Green Associate Amy King launched GoodWork coworking in 2018. The premier green coworking space is housed in a LEED renovated building in Dallas and features a plethora of thoughtful features including natural lighting, a garden courtyard, a fitness studio, sit/stand desks and organic snacks to enhance worker morale. The venue was named “the Superfood of CoWorking” by D Magazine. Powered by solar panels, funded through a Downwinders at Risk grant, GoodWork aims to model and grow a responsible business culture that has a net positive impact on the world. Amy’s mission in life is to innovate to sustain people, communities and our ecosystem. She was an early leader in corporate social responsibility, believing in the power of business to solve the climate crisis. 

Amy has been a finalist for the awards every year over the last three years.

Betsy Marsh 

Betsy Marsh is the Environmental Education Coordinator for the City of Grapevine Parks and Recreation Department. Since being hired two years ago, she developed and implemented the "Go Wild" program. She has assisted with at least three area schools to install demonstration gardens and outdoor learning activities. She has developed a midnight mothing event and iNaturalist events to teach residents to identify wildlife and plants with scientific equipment. She started a Texas Stream Team with school students. She developed a "Habitat Builders" program for residents to volunteer time to help rebuild prairie and other habitat at local parks.

Roger Sanderson

Roger recently retired as Director of Horticulture for the Texas Discovery Gardens after 7 years. Before that he was the Director of  Botanical Gardens/Wildlife Biologist at the Heard Natural Science Museum for 11 years. During his tenure at Texas Discovery Gardens, Roger expanded the twice-annual pollinator plant sales as well the inventory and focus on pollinator plants. He created pre-plant sale workshops for newbies to learn about native plants. He greatly expanded the butterfly atrium’s plants and thus the variety of butterflies that could be raised. He also penned a weekly column for several years in the Dallas Morning News on plants and gardening. He is a regular instructor for Texas Master Naturalist classes.

The Coke Buchanan Volunteer of the Year

DFW Solar Tour

The DFW Solar Tour, hosted by the North Texas Renewable Energy Group is the largest solar and renewable energy tour in Texas. Now in its 10th year, the all volunteer event draws hundreds of North Texas to explore solar power through the self-guided tour. 

The free annual grassroots event has grown from a few sites with some of the first solar installations in North Texas to dozens of sites spread out over six North Texas counties, making it highly accessible to North Texans across the region. As many as 150 volunteers are enlisted each year to fan out at homes, schools, colleges, businesses and municipal sites across North Texas.

The DFW Solar Tour has kept the momentum going on this grassroots tour for 10 years with great enthusiasm, creativity and outstanding volunteer participation. They’ve grown the tour to the largest solar tour in Texas. They deserve recognition for a decade of persistent, consumer-friendly advocacy.

The DFW Solar Tour has been a finalist twice before.

Laura Kimberly

Laura Kimberly serves as New Class Director and the Education Committee for the North Texas Master Naturalists. She also volunteers with outreach and grant writing. For LLELA, she is an integral part of volunteer workdays, from habitat rehab work in the preserve to greenhouse operations. 

John MacFarlane

John MacFarlane is the president of the Greater Fort Worth Chapter of the Sierra Club and a Texas Master Naturalist. He works tirelessly to promote environmental awareness and advocacy. John has spearheaded the Sierra Club’s campaigns to increase awareness about Trinity Vision and Palo Pinto State Park. He manages to make the Sierra Club meetings fun, informative and engaging. He volunteers as a Master Naturalist with classes for children at the Panther Island and the Molly Hollar Wildscape in Arlington. He serves as the Environmental Protection Specialist for the Texas Airports District Office of the Federal Aviation Administration.

Bruce Stewart

As outgoing president of North Texas Master Naturalists for the past four years, Bruce Stewart has transformed North Texas by helping turn the group into a powerhouse organization with a wide-reaching impact. The state Texas Master Naturalist organization’s confidence in him, is a good part of why they chose North Texas for the annual conference this year.

 

GSDFW AwardGreen Source DFW Sustainable Leadership Awards

About: A celebration of individuals, businesses and groups who are advancing the green movement in North Texas.

Hosted by: Green Source DFW and its parent nonprofit the Memnosyne Institute

When: Nov. 14, 2019, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Where: Dallas Arboretum, 8525 Garland Rd, Dallas.

The Legend of Big BendSpecial Entertainment: The Austin-based performance group Montopolis will headline the event with a multi-media work entitled The Legend of Big Bend

Tickets: $35 online. $45 at the door.

Contact:Julie Thibodeaux, Julie@GreenSourceDFW.org, 817-732-0722

Website

RELATED ARTICLES

Austin-based group to bring Big Bend to Big D


Stay up to date on everything green in North Texas, including the latest news and events! Sign up for the weekly Green Source DFW Newsletter! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Also check out our new podcast The Texas Green Report, available on your favorite podcast app.