27 April 2010

Bill Ford Jr: Let Our Technology Build a Greener World

The Detroit Free Press

Technological breakthroughs hold the promise to create a cleaner, greener future for Michigan and the world, automaker and civic leader Bill Ford told the first annual Free Press Michigan Green Leaders awards ceremony this morning.

“More than a hundred years ago, our city became the global center of excellence for an emerging industry that went on to change the world. The time has come for us to do that again,” the Ford Motor executive chairman told 300 people gathered for the sold-out awards breakfast at the Detroit Yacht Club on Belle Isle.

Listing solar panels, green roofs, wind energy and other technologies, Ford, who himself was one of the 16 winners of the inaugural Free Press-sponsored Michigan Green Leaders awards, said, “As these technologies mature, and they will, I think they offer incredible promise to clean up our planet.”

The Michigan Green Leaders awards, given for the first time today, honored a range of people and individuals for their contributions to a more sustainable future for the state. The winners ranged from the Herman Miller furniture company and Lawrence Technological University to small local efforts like the Mind Body & Spirits restaurant in Rochester.

Reflecting the diversity of the award winners, Ford told the audience, “No one industry or organization can solve these challenges. It’s going to take all of us working individually and collectively to keep our state growing, green and great. But these awards are proof that it’s happening…. Keep it going.”

Free Press Editor and Publisher Paul Anger made clear that this first Michigan Green Leaders awards ceremony will be followed by many more.

“This will be an annual event far into the future,” Anger told the audience.

No comments: