Santa Barbara Earth Day Honors Kenny Loggins and CEC’s UC Climate Stewards Graduates with 2022 Environmental Hero Award

Community Environmental Council’s annual award recognizes community leaders for their outstanding service to the environment 

March 28, 2022 SANTA BARBARA, CA – Community Environmental Council (CEC) proudly announces the recipients of its 2022 Santa Barbara Earth Day Environmental Hero Award. CEC will honor Kenny Loggins, award-winning singer-songwriter and humanitarian, along with certified graduates of CEC’s UC Climate Stewards program. The awards ceremony will take place at this year’s Santa Barbara Earth Day celebration on Saturday, April 23 at 2:30 p.m. at the Arlington Theatre.

The awards ceremony will feature a video acceptance speech from Kenny Loggins and live appearances from several UC Climate Stewards alumni. More info on CEC’s Earth Day event is available at SBEarthDay.org.

Loggins’ song Conviction of the Heart was dubbed “the unofficial anthem of the environmental movement” by Vice President Al Gore; in 1995, Loggins performed the song on Earth Day at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. for a crowd of 500,000. A Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter with over 25 million albums sold worldwide, Loggins is a deeply committed environmentalist with a long history of advocating for the planet. He has been outspoken on the importance of taking care of the earth and combating climate change for decades. Loggins regularly lends his musical talent to support projects focused on environmental activism, education, and outreach.

“I’m honored to receive this year’s Environmental Hero award from CEC,” said Loggins. “I believe that supporting efforts toward renewable energy, sustainable farming, and environmental equity are critical to our future. I believe that each of us must step up and work together to create the change needed not only to survive, but to thrive.” 

Loggins’ generous support of countless local organizations has made a lasting impact on the causes that are close to his heart, including his work with Santa Barbara’s Toys for Tots, which helped launch Unity Shoppe in 1988 as an organization where individuals could volunteer their services to help low-income families, children, the elderly, sick and disabled in Santa Barbara County. 

"We are thrilled to honor Kenny Loggins for his lifetime commitment to the environment and his tremendous support for the Santa Barbara community,” said Sigrid Wright, CEO and Executive Director of CEC. “For the past several years, he has been a bright light at our Earth Day events, inspiring people of all ages to connect through music and through their hearts to the great privilege we have of living on this planet.”

In 2021, CEC became the only Central Coast nonprofit to offer a UC Climate Stewards course. The 40-hour certification course includes climate curriculum and discussion, field trips, and a Capstone project, giving participants a deeper understanding of the psychology and science behind climate change while providing skills necessary for climate action. The more than 40 certified Stewards to date are being honored this year for their shared commitment to engage in transformative local solutions to promote community and ecosystem resilience in a changing climate.

"CEC is proud to showcase these exceptional individuals who have made climate literacy and activism a priority in their busy lives. They are enriching communities with lessons learned from their Capstone projects. Local businesses, nonprofits, and retirement communities are benefitting from these meaningful new ventures that put sustainability front and center." said Kathi King, Director of Climate Education and Leadership.

The awards ceremony will honor UC Climate Steward graduates from three courses held to date, and will highlight how they are putting their new-found climate knowledge to work within Central Coast communities. For more information about CEC’s UC Climate Stewards Program, visit climatestewards.cecsb.org.

Camille Dupuis will be one of the graduates attending the Earth Day awards ceremony. “The UC Climate Stewards course helped me become a stronger communicator about climate science and a more active member of the community. The skills I gained will also help me build and strengthen the business model for my own local small business,” said Dupuis, Cofounder, Chief Sustainability Officer of Seminalia Truffles. 

This year’s awardees join an esteemed list of previous Environmental Heroes, including: Executive Director of Greenpeace USA Annie Leonard; “Drawdown” author and environmental pioneer Paul Hawken; U.S. Congress members Lois Capps and Salud Carbajal; "The OMD Plan: Swap One Meal a Day to Save your Health and Save the Planet" author Suzy Amis Cameron and director James Cameron; Marcus Eriksen of 5 Gyres; 350.org founder Bill McKibben; science educator Bill Nye; and activist/actress Daryl Hannah.

See full 2022 Earth Day Program Schedule for April 23: sbearthday.org/schedule

2022 Earth Day Partners:

California Fuel Cell Partnership, Carp Events, Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition (C5), LOACOM, Lucidity, Oniracom, Pharos Creative, SB Metropolitan Transit District, Santa Barbara City College Environmental Studies, Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, The Arlington Theatre, UCSB Environmental Studies and Write Kinda Girl.

2022 Earth Day Sponsors:

Advanced Veterinary Specialists, Bunnin Chevrolet, Bye Bye Mattress, Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition (C5), City of Santa Barbara, County of Santa Barbara’s One Climate Initiative, Edhat, Fisker, Flying Embers, Islay Events, KJEE, K-LITE, KTYD, Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator, MarBorg Industries, Matilija Pure Water Systems, Noozhawk, Santa Barbara Independent, Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District, Santa Barbara Clean Energy, Santa Barbara Independent, Santa Barbara Nissan, Story Bikes, Toad & Co., and Water With Life.

About CEC's Santa Barbara Earth Day

Widely acknowledged as the birthplace of Earth Day, Santa Barbara’s involvement began with the devastating 1969 oil spill off its coast. This led a local group of concerned citizens to begin discussing a different way of looking at environmental systems. During that time, Senator Gaylord Nelson visited Santa Barbara to view the oil spill damage. When he returned to Washington, D.C., he introduced a bill designating April 22 as a national day to celebrate the earth. Over the next few years, the environmental movement was born across the country – including CEC. Led by a group of forward-thinking youth and elders, CEC incorporated in the spring of 1970 and its first act as a new nonprofit was to hold an Earth Day celebration – a one block long teach-in between State St. and Chapala St along Anapamu. Around the country, 20 million concerned citizens attended similar events. We recognize that “every day is earth day” and that special events like this are a way to bring diverse voices from our community together as a reminder to tread lightly on the planet.

For up-to-the-minute information on CEC's Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival:

Find Earth Day on the web at SBEarthDay.org

About the Community Environmental Council (CEC)

Recognized as a 2020 California Nonprofit of the Year and 2020 City of Santa Barbara Climate Hero, CEC has worked since 1970 to incubate and innovate real life environmental solutions that directly affect the California Central Coast. Our current work advances rapid and equitable solutions to the climate crisis – including ambitious zero carbon goals, drawdown of excess carbon, and protection against the impacts of climate change. Our programs lead to clean vehicles, solar energy, resilient food systems and reduction of single-use plastic. Learn more about why CEC is one of only five nonprofits in Santa Barbara County to have the highest possible ratings on Charity Navigator and Guidestar at CECSB.org/impact. Find CEC on the web at CECSB.org and on Facebook.com/CECSB, Instagram.com/CEC_SB, Twitter.com/CECSB, and LinkedIn.com/CECSB.