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Clean Cities 15th Anniversary

On March 4, 2009, coordinators, past and present program staff, and industry and government stakeholders and representatives gathered in Washington to celebrate Clean Cities' 15th anniversary. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) at DOE headquarters, this special event lauded the program's accomplishments since its 1993 inception, as well as the people who helped contribute to its success.

After a formal welcome by National Clean Cities Director Dennis Smith and Co-Director Linda Bluestein, MotorWeek host John Davis recognized the Clean Cities program for its contribution to alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles, as well as its cooperation with MotorWeek. Davis presented Dennis Smith and Linda Bluestein with the "MotorWeek Drivers' Choice" award. Although MotorWeek has traditionally given this award to an outstanding car, Davis explained that Clean Cities earned the award by being the "Best Eco-Friendly Initiative" in the vehicles sector. Following the presentation, a panel of current and former Clean Cities staff members discussed the program's progression. Panel members included:

• Dennis Smith, national Clean Cities director
• Linda Bluestein, national Clean Cities co-director
• Michael Scarpino, regional Clean Cities project manager for the Northeast region
• Ernie Oakes, regional Clean Cities project manager for the Northwest region, 1996-2008
• Tom Gross, deputy assistant secretary for EERE's Office of Transportation Technologies, 1992-2002
• Shelley Launey, Clean Cities director, 1993-1994, 1999-2005
• Tommy Foltz, Clean Cities co-director, 1994-1997
• Marcy Rood Werpy, Clean Cities deputy director, 1995-2008

* Jeff Hardy, former director, from 1994-1998, could not attend.

The two-hour event also included an awards ceremony that was hosted by Associate Under Secretary of Energy Richard Moorer, which recognized the following representatives from Clean Cities' first six coalitions:

• Atlanta: Dwight Ferrell of Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA); Clean Cities Atlanta (CCA) chairwoman Patsy Brownson of Cox Enterprises; and CCA's first coordinator Jeff Rader, county commissioner of Dekalb County, Georgia
• Denver: Natalia Swalnick of Denver Metro Clean Cities (DMCC) and DMCC chairman John Gonzales of Adams 12 Five-Star Schools
• Philadelphia: Dennis Winters of Greater Philadelphia Clean Cities (GPCC) and GPCC chairman William Flemming of PECO Energy Fleet Services
• Delaware: Emily Kuiken of the State of Delaware Governor's Office
• Las Vegas: Jim Brandmueller, first chairman for Las Vegas Regional Clean Cities and coordinator of the Eastern Sierra Regional coalition
• Washington, D.C.: George Nichols and Leah Boggs of Metropolitan Washington Alternative Fuels Clean Cities Partnership, Michael Carter and Ron Flowers (formerly) of the District of Columbia's Department of Public Works (DCPW), and George Hawkins and Sabrina Williams of the District of Columbia's Department of the Environment (DCDE)

Also during this segment, DCDE, MARTA, PECO, and DCPW received Lifetime Partnership Awards for being original Clean Cities stakeholders, and Jeff Rader received an Award of Recognition for his service as the first Clean Cities coordinator and for his leadership in helping to establish the Clean Cities program.

In addition, Dennis Smith presented the following awards to Clean Cities staff members.

• David Rodgers, currently EERE's Director for Strategic Planning and Analysis, received a Leadership Award for 15 years of outstanding vision, dedication, and exceptional leadership. When the Clean Cities Program was initially developed, he served as the Director of Technology Utilization in the former Office of Transportation Technologies. David Rodgers played a significant role in the development and growth of Clean Cities.
• Wendy Dafoe of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory received a Lifetime Achievement Award for 15 years of outstanding service to the Clean Cities program.
• Mike Scarpino of the National Energy Technology Laboratory received a Lifetime Achievement Award for 12 years of outstanding leadership, creative thinking, and devotion to the Clean Cities program.
• Barb. Wolfe of New West Technologies received a Lifetime Achievement Award for nine years of outstanding service to the Clean Cities program.