The Energy Coalition has been named by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as one of the 2010 winners of the Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award (GEELA) for its PEAK Student Energy Actions Program. “In a world where energy is a precious commodity, smart energy management is critical for the economic success of California,” says PEAK Program Manager Nikole Reaksecker. “PEAK creates a generation of individuals capable of controlling their energy future. The program recognizes that to effectively manage energy use, students must understand the entire energy equation from the science of how energy is created to the environmental ramifications of electrical generation and the financial impact of energy use on household budgets.”
PEAK is a statewide, standards-based educational program designed to empower elementary and middle school students with the knowledge and skills to manage energy use in their homes, schools and communities. The Energy Coalition has been developing energy initiatives with partners in the United States and Sweden for almost thirty years.
The organization’s purpose is to mobilize, educate, inform and empower individuals to change the way they think about and use energy. The Energy Coalition, which won the award for the best children’s environmental education program, is one of only 13 award recipients recognized at the Governor’s Global Climate Summit in Davis. Award recipients were chosen in ten categories based on their programs’ results, transferability, environmental impact, resource conservation, economic progress, innovation and uniqueness, pollution prevention and environmental justice.