LADWP honors students and teachers for artwork at Green LA contest awards event

LOS ANGELES, April 29, 2003 -- A total of 50 student winners, from kindergartners to high school seniors, were honored recently during an awards ceremony for the Fifth Annual Green LA Student Poster and Multi-Media Contest sponsored by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

More than 500 students, representing 50 public, private, and parochial schools in the city of Los Angeles submitted artwork depicting the Green LA programs for the chance to win U.S. Savings Bonds ranging from $200 to $2,000. Teachers of winning students also received up to $500 for the purchase of instructional materials. Green LA Programs include Energy Efficiency, Trees for a Green LA, Solar Power, Water Conservation, Green Power, Electric Transportation, and Recycling.

"It is very exciting to have students, teachers, parents and administrators from throughout the city participate in this awards event that marks the formal opening of this wonderful student art exhibition," said Ruth Galanter, chair of the Los Angeles City Council Energy, Commerce and Natural Resources Committee.

"This artwork demonstrates that students, as a result of their teachers' instructional program and the contest outreach efforts, understand the need for and importance of a sustainable city," said Annie Cho, member, Board of Water and Power Commissioners.

The public is invited to view the 45 winning artworks, essays and more than 300 poster entries that are on exhibit weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through the end of May on the A-Level foyer of the John Ferraro Building, 111 N. Hope Street. Winning posters will be displayed until the end of June. Selected entries will also be incorporated into future Green LA ads, exhibits, calendars and other collateral materials.

Lillian Kawasaki, LADWP assistant general manager of Environmental Affairs and Economic Development, said, "The Green LA Student Poster and Multimedia Contest is essential because it helps the Department and the City communicate messages and creative designs about the Green LA programs and the importance of environmental involvement among city residents and businesses."

Angelina Galiteva, LADWP director of Green LA, said, "The students' artworks are exceptionally creative, colorful and exciting. The posters very powerfully capture and illustrate numerous examples of conservation and clean, environmentally friendly energy sources and also showcase positive water conservation practices."

In preparation for the contest, teachers were able to attend one of five workshops in the fall. During these sessions teachers received instruction and classroom lesson material about graphic design and the Green LA subjects. The contest is classroom based. Entries are required to be submitted through local schools in the LADWP service area (the city of Los Angeles including most of the San Fernando Valley).

The artwork displayed is largely the result of teachers' instructional programs and students' classroom work. While individual students developed many of the posters, some groups of students designed, completed and submitted artwork to the contest as classroom projects.

The artwork displayed involves more than 500 students. But, many more students participated in classroom instructional activities and contest entries. Schools were generally limited to 10 entries each. Schools selected the best posters to submit to the contest.

About Education Programs, Green LA and LADWP

The Green LA Poster and Multi-Media Contest is one in a series of education programs sponsored by the LADWP that also includes the Youth Services Academy, LADWP Science Bowl, Teacher Workshops, Adopt-A-Schools, Green LA Reading Gardens, Green Power Hero Assembly Program and Times in Education.

The contest and resulting posters assist LADWP to communicate about its Green LA environmental initiatives that include Trees for a Green LA, Cool Schools Tree Planting, Reading for a Green LA, Green Power, Solar Power, Energy Efficiency, Electric Transportation, Cool Schools, New Technologies and Recycling efforts. Further information about the Green LA programs can be obtained by calling 1-800-GREEN-LA or clicking onto www.GreenLA.com.

Posters from the Green LA Contest in the previous four years are also displayed on the website. This year's posters will be added to the website within a few weeks.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the nation's largest city-owned utility, serves more than 3.8 million people. LADWP was established more than 100 years ago to provide reliable water and electric services to the city's businesses and residents.