Eleanor Godwin Receives Award
For Activities Supporting Protection of the Pensacola Bay Watershed

Retired West Florida Regional Planning Council Planner Eleanor Godwin received a Community Steward Award for her many planning, environmental, and educational accomplishments aimed at protecting the Pensacola Bay Watershed. The award was presented by 1000 Friends of Florida on Monday, June 18, 2007, at an Open House sponsored by the West Florida Regional Planning Council.

WFRPC Director Terry Joseph nominated Godwin for the award, noting that "her dedication and leadership have brought about positive and lasting change in our region." As Regional Planner with the WFRPC, for six years Godwin served as Coordinator of the Bay Area Resource Council, which applies smart growth principles to improving the quality of life in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties. "We were particularly impressed with the way Eleanor worked tirelessly to engage citizens in the process," said 1000 Friends President Charles Pattison.

Among other accomplishments, Eleanor oversaw updating the Pensacola Bay Watershed Management Plan, adopted in 2005. This plan incorporates smart growth principles to direct population growth away from coastal and estuarine areas, and promotes adoption of environmentally friendly requirements for future development in coastal areas. Called "a model" by The Nature Conservancy's Vernon Compton, the plan focuses on land use and land management as tools to assist in the formation of a sustainable community. The guide is directed to local governments, community organizations, environmental groups and state and federal agencies within the watershed system, all of which participated in the creation of the plan.

Eleanor also led the Resource Rangers, an environmental club in area schools that promotes responsible attitudes towards the environment, particularly coastal resources. She made classroom visits and organized field trips, as well as producing a series of videos. Each video episode identifies what the responsible viewer can do to make a difference, and the series continues to run weekly on TV, reaching 400,000 homes from Florida to Massachusetts. The Resource Rangers series has won seven state and national awards, including one from Coastal Living in January 2007.

Another educational outreach effort, which Eleanor organized, was the 2006 "Bay Day," described as a two-day "environmental extravaganza." More than 1,000 sixth graders were bussed to the grounds of Gulf Power Company for hands-on environmental activities. Local governments, extension services, regulatory agencies and private industry sponsored 25 booths that featured child-friendly displays on everything from the use of bacteria for wastewater treatment to sea turtle protection and dune restoration.

"Not only has Eleanor helped develop a smart growth plan for Pensacola Bay," said Pattison, "but she is helping to train the next generation of leaders to be responsible stewards for the environment."

1000 Friends' Community Steward Award is presented annually to individuals, organizations, local governments, agencies, and public/private partnerships that have brought about positive and lasting change in the way their community manages growth.