GEED 2009 - Unsung Heroes Awards

Attendees, panelists and keynote speakers took a moment to honor two individuals whose contributions to energy efficiency have made the road to its full realization that much easier for all of us.

Alexandra Teitz, Senior Counsel for Environment and Energy for the House Energy and Commerce Committee

An economic slump, a planet in peril, a dangerous dependency on foreign oil – in speaking of the need to overcome these challenges Representative Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) stated that the "least expensive way of addressing these is energy efficiency."

The Senator presented the Unsung Hero Award to a longtime member of his team, Alexandra Teitz, Senior Counsel for Environment and Energy for the House Energy and Commerce Committee, for her critical work over the past decade to advance clean energy within the nation's policy framework. Teitz accepted the award, noting that the Alliance had been "an invaluable source of expertise as we worked on the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007."

David Greene, Corporate Fellow of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Visiting Researcher, University of California at Davis Institute for Transportation Studies

Before issuing the second Unsung Hero Award, Alliance Honorary Vice Chair Representative Zach Wamp (R-Tenn.) greeted GEED attendees with praise: "You have worked and prepared yourselves and your time has come."

Rep. Wamp presented the award to David Greene, corporate fellow of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and visiting researcher at the University of California at Davis Institute for Transportation Studies, for his critical work on the Alliance's Drive $marter Challenge campaign. Greene designed the campaign's online fuel calculator that helped hundreds of thousands of people calculate potential fuel savings accrued by following six simple fuel efficiency tips. Upon accepting the award, Greene emphasized that the key to achieving sustainable economies throughout the world is energy efficiency.