Green Seal President and CEO Arthur Weissman, Green Seal Chair Gary Petersen and co-hosts Rachelle Carson-Begley and Bill Nye, The Science Guy, gather on the “green carpet” at a gala event celebrating the 25th anniversary of Green Seal.
Green Seal, the nation’s first independent nonprofit certifier for sustainable products and services celebrated 25 years of environmental leadership at a gala event on October 8th in Washington, D.C. The event also honored the 400 companies that have achieved product or service certification in a broad range of industries since Green Seal’s founding.
Green Seal was created to help purchasers readily and confidently identify environmentally-preferable products and services – proven through a rigorous and transparent review process. Since 1989, Green Seal has provided certification to companies in numerous industries as part of its mission to create a more sustainable world.
At the celebration in recognition of its quarter-century anniversary, Green Seal honored some of the pioneering companies who have maintained Green Seal-certified products and services for a decade or more. Honorees included Mohawk Fine Papers, Inc. – for 20 years of continuous Green Seal-certified fine papers, Andersen Corporation, A.V. Olsson Trading Company, Inc., and Trane for their 15 years, and 29 other companies for their more than ten years with Green Seal certifications.
Green Seal also recognized three organizations as Outstanding Partners that have been vital in advancing the organization’s mission:
• The Building Wellness Institute – Established in 2005, BWI helps businesses, long-term care facilities, schools and other institutions protect the health and comfort of their building occupants through comprehensive training, consulting and assessment programs. BWI provides training on green cleaning and prepares institutions and services to meet Green Seal’s GS-42 certification.
• The Green Chicago Restaurant Coalition – GCRC promotes environmentally responsible food service in the Chicago area through certification of green restaurants and supplying green products, food and services. Green Seal worked with GCRC in piloting a standard for restaurants in Chicago and encouraging restaurant certification.
• Healthy Schools Network – Founded in 1995, the Healthy Schools Network is the leading national voice for children’s environmental health at school. It launched the national healthy schools movement with a model coalition and comprehensive state policies requiring the use of green products such as those with Green Seal certifications.