SOURCE: Brighter Planet

October 21, 2008 09:00 ET

User-Generated Video Contest Sends Message to Congress and Next President: "Take Action on Climate Change"

Brighter Planet and 1Sky Name 4 National Winners From Over 100 Submissions; 60 Second Videos to Be Broadcast Nationally

MIDDLEBURY, VT and WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwire - October 21, 2008) - The winners of a user-generated video contest meant to inspire our next President to take bold action on climate change were announced this morning at www.vimeo.com/climatematters. The contest was conceived of and sponsored by Brighter Planet and 1Sky, in partnership with Vimeo.com which hosted the contest on its web platform. Organizers are now asking people to extend the impact of this initiative by sharing these powerful videos with their online communities. More information on how to embed and share the videos can be found here.

The top four winning entries (there was a tie for third place) take on the issue of climate change in a variety of ways. First and second place entries look at the problem through the eyes of children, while the third place entries employ stop-motion photography and animation to tell different stories. The winning videos are:

-- First - Climate Matters, by Steve Dempsey of Sammamish, WA

-- Second - Ask the Children by Barbara Lucas of Northville, MI

-- Third - Green to Blue by Elizabeth Klein of Cincinnati, OH

-- Third - This Lawn is Your Lawn by Roger Doiron of Scarborough, ME

Brighter Planet and 1Sky are asking people across the county to take a stand on the climate change issue by promoting the videos -- and the message about climate change -- online and in local communities. The videos are set up so that anyone can easily embed them on their own blogs, homepages or social networks. In addition to extending the impact online, people are encouraged to take action in their own communities by sharing the videos with local leaders. Additional ideas for taking action can be found at http://brighterplanet.com and www.1sky.org.

The winning submissions from the Climate Matters video contest will be distributed to all presidential nominees and each member of Congress. In addition, the videos will be broadcast to a potential audience of more than 50 million viewers around the nation via Link TV, FSTV, and online at venues including: www.vimeo.com, www.think.mtv.com, www.joost.com, www.huffingtonpost.com and www.quarterlife.com. The winning videos will be showcased at the Green Expo in San Francisco next month. And finally, the first-place winner will receive a $3,000 Brighter Planet™ Visa® Gift Card; the second and third place winners will receive $1,000 and $250 Brighter Planet Visa Gift Cards respectively.

Judges for the contest include Maggie Gyllenhaal, actress; Rory Kennedy, Emmy award-winning documentary producer; Tia Lessin, the supervising producer of "Fahrenheit 9/11" and "Bowling for Columbine"; Leila and Nadia Conners, the producers/directors of "11th Hour"; author Anya Kamenetz; David Jenkins, Government Affairs Director of Republicans for Environmental Protection; Bill Stetson, Producer and Environmental Consultant; Gillian Caldwell, Campaign Director of 1Sky; and Patti Prairie, CEO of Brighter Planet. Full bios for the judges can be found here.

Sixteen video finalists were selected from over 100 submissions based on the greatest number of viewer hits. From the narrowed pool of 16 videos, judges made their winning selections based primarily on the following criteria: 1) creativity, 2) coherence of message, 3) potential impact of message on political leaders and 4) potential to inspire.

Maggie Gyllenhaal, actress and Climate Matters video contest judge:

"The winning video entries make a compelling case for why bold action must be taken on the climate change issue. We were overwhelmed by the passion and commitment of their creators and are proud to offer them a platform for national exposure."

Patti Prairie, CEO of Brighter Planet:

"The damage we are inflicting upon the environment is unsustainable and we're approaching the point of no return. The next President of the United States will have an opportunity to make policy that will affect our climate for generations to come. These videos effectively convey that message and build the case for doing so in a way that words simply could not."

Gillian Caldwell, Campaign Director for 1Sky:

"Our nation's energy and economic crises have moved climate change squarely into the Presidential campaigns. It is clear that our climate challenge is also a 21st century opportunity to reinvent our economy for a cleaner, greener future. Our leadership must hear America's call for bold action on climate loud and clear, and we can't think of a more impactful way of ensuring that they do than by sharing these powerful video messages with Congress and our country's next President."

About Brighter Planet

Brighter Planet (www.brighterplanet.com) helps people take smarter steps for a healthy environment. With practical, carbon emission reducing solutions for consumers and businesses, Brighter Planet is committed to demonstrating that small, day-to-day actions can make a huge difference for the environment. To date, Brighter Planet members have offset almost 50 million pounds of CO2. The renewable energy projects they help build in communities across the United States decrease our national dependence on carbon emitting energy sources.

About 1Sky

1Sky (www.1sky.org) is a highly collaborative new national campaign in the United States catalyzing a society-wide movement in support of bold federal action to tackle global warming. The 1Sky policy solutions represent the scientific bottom line -- policies we must implement immediately to avert catastrophic climate change and transition to the opportunity of a clean, green economy. The 1Sky strategy combines the force of more than 200 organizations, 90,000 advocates, and 3,200 businesses nationwide. The 1Sky campaign is driven by powerful field and organizing in over 50 Congressional districts and 20 states, voter education, and state of the art Internet strategies to communicate a highly visible public demand for Congress and the President to implement the 1Sky solutions as quickly as possible.