By Melissa Corkhill
26th October 2016
These awards celebrate People Environment and Achievement and I met lots of inspiring people taking positive action to make the world a better place. Covering sectors from music to food, art to energy, there was a diverse selection of nominees, or ‘green heroes’. I met The Greenest Family in Britain. Justin and Chanel Cornelius from the 918 Coffee Company, ‘have addressed the coffee eco-system as a family business, and come up with the complete ‘end-of-life’ coffee solution!’ The family business designed and built a roaster powered by the energy in used coffee grounds, turning a waste product into an asset.
The Food Award had two winners. Snact buy fruit that’s too big, small, ugly or too abundant directly from British farmers at fair prices and make it into a delicious and healthy snack. The Suma Wholefoods team promotes the benefits of a healthy vegetarian lifestyle and gives short-dated and damaged stock to local food banks or pay-as-you-feel kitchens.
The Resources Award went to Brighton & Hove Wood Recycling Project team, the UK’s first wood recycling initiative. This not-for-profit social enterprise saves around 600 tonnes of timber from the waste stream each year.
Jarvis Smith, founder of the P.E.A. Awards commented, “Our award categories represent the pillars required by a functional society. When they’re done well, we won’t just survive – we’ll thrive. We used four criteria: Innovation, Inspiration, Success and Scalability.”
The awards ceremony was held at the newly opened i360 on Brighton seafront. Caroline Lucas gave a rousing speech to open and Oliver Heath announced the winners and handed out super cool awards, created by a local graffiti artist.
To find out more about next year’s event and get information on how to enter check out peaawards.com
