Honda Motor Company Honored With 2nd Annual EARTH ANGEL Award as Most Earth Friendly Automaker
In response to the growing concern for global warming and the fluctuation of gas prices, the International Car of the Year Awards (ICOTY) jury recently polled automakers about the progress they were making in addressing environmental issues and global warming.
The ICOTY jury, a group of respected automotive journalists from a variety of automotive publications, awarded Honda Motor Company with the second annual EARTH ANGEL Award as the automaker demonstrating the most significant progress with environmental initiatives and partnerships on a worldwide basis. The five major automakers that participated in the 2009 competition were Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, Honda Motor Company, Hyundai and Volkswagen.
"At Honda, we are working to reduce the environmental footprint of our operations with the same passion and purpose as our commitment to develop new technologies that reduce the environmental footprint of our products," said Tetsuo Iwamura, president and CEO of American Honda Motor Co., Inc.
Michigan Congressman Gary Peters provided opening remarks for the award citing the importance of recognizing the auto industry for the remarkable strides being taken within the environmental arena.
Sponsored by Bridgestone, the award was presented at the 13th Annual ICOTY Awards event on January 10, 2009 at the MGM Grand Detroit. Road & Travel Magazine Editor-in-Chief Courtney Caldwell and Michael Martini, President Consumer OE, Bridgestone Americas, co-presented the award.
“Automakers are too often chastised for being the main contributor to global warming when the reality is that they are making enormous strides on a global level to help improve the earth’s environment,” said Courtney Caldwell, ICOTY producer and creator. “Our goal is to shed light on these many positive accomplishments, especially those not known to the general public or media, thereby inviting a more balanced distribution of awareness and responsibility.”
Through its “Green Factory” initiative, Honda is working to reduce the environmental impact of its manufacturing activities, including ongoing efforts to reduce energy use, water use, generation of waste materials, CO2 and air emissions. Through its “Green Purchasing” program, the company is also encouraging its more than 600 North American original-equipment suppliers to adopt similar practices.
"We are accelerating our efforts to improve energy efficiency in our products and the facilities that produce them, with a strong focus on the reduction of CO2 emissions that contribute to global climate change," Mr. Iwamura said.
In addition to reducing the environmental impact of its own operations, Honda is always looking for ways to make positive contributions to the communities where it does business. Many of these efforts focus on community-based environmental education, preservation and restoration efforts, in the form of corporate charitable foundation giving, in-kind contributions and company support of volunteer efforts by Honda employees who want to take an active role in their communities.
To review all EARTH ANGEL responses from participating automakers visit the EARTH ANGEL Award page at www.icotyawards.com.
Warren Brown, veteran automotive journalist for The Washington Post, was presented with the sixth annual Lifetime Legend Award, which was sponsored by Ford Motor Company.
Sponsors for the 2009, black-tie VIP & Media Reception that preceded the show were: Chrysler LLC, General Motors Corporation, State Farm, Subaru of America, American Honda, Audi of America, Hyundai of America, Mazda NA Operations, BorgWarner Inc., Continental, Mercedes-Benz USA and U-Haul International.
2009 media partners include Edmunds.com, MSN Autos, Yahoo! Autos, Consumer Guide Automotive, Autobytel/MyRide.com, ROAD & TRAVEL Magazine, AOL Autos, and Earth, Wind & Power Blogazine all of which will provide post event coverage of the winners.
About ICOTY
The ICOTY Awards were founded in 1996 by Courtney Caldwell, editor-in-chief of RTM. Coined the “Academy Awards of Cars,” ICOTY has become the largest auto awards show production in the United States. Its unique theme was created to celebrate the emotional connection between car and consumer and recognize the automakers that most successfully accomplish that goal through the design and marketing of their vehicles. Today, many automakers use the ‘emotional connection’ theme in their marketing and advertising campaigns.
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Email: icotyawards@gmail.com
