Lindbergh Award Celebration

Lindbergh Foundation to Honor Dr. Fay, Cernan and Susanka at 2007 Lindbergh Award Celebration

Google to Receive Corporate Award for Balance

May 16, 2007

Minnesota History Center

345 Kellogg Blvd., W.

St. Paul, MN  55101

5 p.m. -- Registration, Silent Auction, Reception with Cash Bar

6:30 p.m.  Dinner, Program, Dessert Buffet

If you would like to attend this event, click here to register on-line, or call the Foundation office at 763/576-1596.

National Geographic Society Explorer in Residence and Wildlife Conservation Society Conservationist Dr. J. Michael Fay, will receive the honorary 2007 Lindbergh Award.  The honorary Lindbergh Award is presented to individuals who have made significant contributions over many years toward improving our quality of life by balancing technological advancements and the preservation of our environment. In 2004 Dr. Fay conducted a Megaflyover of Africa,  during which he traveled more than 60,000 miles in a specially designed airplane and captured high-resolution aerial images of the continent in an effort to change the way Africa and the rest of the world perceive and use our natural resources. On a previous mission Fay walked 2,000 miles from the northeastern corner of the Republic of the Congo to the southwestern coast of Gabon.  Using GPS recordings, video footage, still photography and numerical data, Dr. Fay documented every wildlife, plant, and human presence he encountered. He has spent two years compiling the information he collected into a database, which will be made available to conservationists, educators, students and the general public.

J. Michael Fay, 50, is an ecologist at the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society of New York and an Explorer-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society. He has spent his life as a naturalist — he roamed the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Maine woods as a boy, traveled through wilderness in Alaska and Central America in college, and has spent the past 15 years in the central African forest.

Fay received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1978 from the University of Arizona. He then spent six years in the Peace Corps as a botanist in national parks in Tunisia, and then worked in the savannas of the Central African Republic. In 1984 he went to work at the Missouri Botanical Garden. A floristic study of a mountain range on Sudan’s western border eventually led to a Ph.D. on the western lowland gorillas. It was at this time that he first entered the forests of central Africa. 

Fay’s doctoral work was curtailed several times while he surveyed large forest blocks and worked to create the Dzanga-Sangha and Nouabale-Ndoki parks in the Central African Republic and Congo--parks that he later managed. Fay’s published works over the last 20 years have covered a wide range of field research subjects, from exotic orchids to lowland gorillas to forest elephants.

In 1996 Fay flew a small airplane low over the forests of Congo and Gabon and observed a vast, intact forest corridor that spanned the two countries, from the Oubangui River to the Atlantic Ocean. From October 1999 through December 2000 he walked the entire corridor — more than 2,000 miles — systematically surveying trees, wildlife and human impacts on uninhabited forest areas.

Photographer Nick Nichol's coverage of Fay's walk was published in National Geographic magazine, and soon inspired President Omar Bongo of Gabon to create 13 national parks in his country comprising some 11,000 square miles (26,000 square kilometers) of land.

In honor of the 80th anniversary of Charles Lindbergh’s New York-to-Paris flight, the Foundation’s Spirit Award will be presented to Astronaut Eugene Cernan for his pioneering achievements in an aviation career and a spirit and character that represent the best of this nation. Previous recipients of the Spirit Award are: Gen. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., 1997, and Sen. John Glenn, 2002.  He flew on three separate space missions and was the second American to walk in space.  He is one of only two men to have flown to the moon twice.  He also has the distinction of being the last man on the moon.

Captain Eugene A. Cernan is President and Chief Executive Officer of The Cernan Corporation, a space-related technology and marketing consulting firm.  He is the former Chairman of Johnson Engineering Corporation, a NASA contractor, prior to its acquisition by SPACEHAB, Inc.

Captain Cernan has acted as Special Consultant with television networks in on-camera support of covering space and related documentary programming – most notable among which are ABC Television’s News and Special Events and ESPN’s documentary coverage of “EARTHWINDS HILTON.”  He has recently authored THE LAST MAN ON THE MOON.

Captain Cernan joined Digital Equipment in 1986 and served as an Executive Consultant, Aerospace and Government for the Government Systems Group organization until 1992.  From 1976 to 1981, Captain Cernan served as the Executive Vice President, International and Director of Coral Petroleum, Inc.  He was charged with the corporate development of a world-wide supply and marketing strategy.  During this period, Captain Cernan continued his education at the Wharton School of Finance and Northwestern University.

After serving twenty years as a Naval Aviator, Captain Cernan retired from the United States Navy in 1976.  The last thirteen of those years were dedicated to direct involvement with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) United States Space Program as an Astronaut.  During his years with NASA, Captain Cernan flew on three separate space missions.  He was the second American to walk in space as the pilot on Gemini IX, one of a crew of three to venture to the moon on Apollo X, and as Commander of Apollo XVII, Captain Cernan holds the distinction of being the last man to leave his footprints on the surface of the moon.  Captain Cernan also actively participated in the design, engineering, and development testing of spacecraft hardware and systems.  He was a member of the NASA senior management team and reviewed decisions which directly affected operations and mission planning.  From 1973 through 1975, Captain Cernan served as a Senior United States Negotiator during discussions with the USSR concerning the joint United States and Soviet Apollo/Soyuz project.

Captain Cernan received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana, in 1956.  He earned a Master of Science degree in Aeronautical Engineering in 1963 from the United States Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, California.  Captain Cernan was also awarded Honorary Doctorates of Engineering from Purdue, Drexel and Gonzaga Universities, and an Honorary Doctorate degree from Western State College of Law and Comenius University of the Slovak Republic.  His honors include the Navy Distinguished Flying Cross, the Distinguished Service Medal with Star, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, the FAI International Gold Medal for Space, the VFW Gold Space Award, the Daughters of the American Revolution Medal for Space, the Sons of the American Revolution George Washington Award, induction into the U.S. Space Hall of Fame, the Challenger Center’s “Salute to the U.S. Space Program” Honor, Slovak American World Recognition Award, Czech Republic Presidential Medal of Honor and a Television Emmy.  Captain Cernan was an Olympic Torch Bearer in May, 1996; was honored by the Illinois State Society as Outstanding Illinoisian during the 54th Presidential Inauguration in Washington, DC., was recipient of the national engineering award of the year, The Washington Award 2003; and in May, 2005, Captain Cernan was awarded NASA’s first Ambassador of Exploration Award.  Captain Cernan was enshrined into the National Aviation Hall of Fame, the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame, and most recently in May 2006 into Naval Aviation’s Hall of Honor. 

Bestselling Author Sarah Susanka, will receive the Foundation’s Anne Morrow Lindbergh Award for outstanding individual achievement, a spirit of initiative, and work that exemplifies great dedication toward making positive contributions to our world.  Dr. Sally Ride was the first recipient of this award in 2003. 

Bestselling author, architect and cultural visionary Sarah Susanka is leading a movement to redefine the American home and lifestyle.  Her “build better, not bigger” approach to residential architecture has been embraced across the country and her “Not So Big” philosophy is evolving beyond our physical habitations and into how we inhabit our lives.

In May 2007, Random House will publish The Not So Big Life: Making Room for What Really Matters in which Susanka reveals that quality-over-quantity serves not only architectural aims, but life goals as well.  She unveils a process for changing the way we live by fully inhabiting each moment of our lives and showing up completely in whatever it is we are doing.  Through this process, readers will discover more meaningfulness, vitality and that sense of being “at home” in life that so many people are searching for today.

Thought Leader, Speaker and Expert Resource

Susanka has shared her insights with “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “Charlie Rose” and HGTV.  She is regularly profiled in leading shelter and lifestyle magazines and featured in newspapers including The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. 

Fast Company named her to their debut list of “Fast 50” innovators whose achievements have helped to change society—an honor preceded by her selection as a “top newsmaker” for 2000 by Newsweek magazine and an “innovator in American culture” in 1998 by U.S. News & World Report.  Builder magazine consistently ranks her as one of the “50 most influential people in the building industry.”  Recently, Midwest Living magazine declared Susanka one of 20 style innovators, among such household names as Target and Crate & Barrel.  In May 2007, she will be the honored recipient of the Anne Morrow Lindbergh Award for outstanding individual achievement, demonstrating a spirit of initiative and exemplifying great dedication toward making positive contributions to our world.

As a leading advocate for the re-popularization of residential architecture, Susanka has improved the quality of home design while countering the elitist image of architects so commonly held by the public.  She is regularly tapped for her dynamic presentations by Fortune 500 companies, homebuilders, nonprofits and trade organizations.

Acclaimed Author, Six Best-Selling Books

In her groundbreaking book, The Not So Big House (Taunton, 1998), Susanka encourages homeowners and professionals to focus on quality over quantity—on what makes us feel comfortable rather than what impresses the neighbors.  Her second book, Creating the Not So Big House, released in 2000, features 25 examples of “Not So Big” homes and remodels.  This was followed by Not So Big Solutions for Your Home in 2002, a small but densely packed volume that’s full of fixes and ideas for common house problems.  In 2004, Susanka launched Home By Design, a companion to her “Not So Big House” series.  One year later, Susanka partnered with Marc Vassallo to write Inside the Not So Big House.  In 2006, Susanka collaborated with acclaimed landscape designer Julie Moir Messervy, and released Outside the Not So Big House.

Susanka is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects and a Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council.  She was born in Kent, England, and lives in North Carolina.  Join her online community at www.NotSoBig.com.

2007 Lindbergh Corporate Award for Balance

Google has been selected to receive the Lindbergh Foundation Corporate Award for Balance.  This award was established last year to recognize corporations or organizations whose concern for and dedication to improving our quality of life by using technological solutions to improve our environment, is demonstrated through their business practices.  At Google, the environment and sustainability is inbred in their corporate culture.  Co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have developed worker incentives for efficiency and are big supporters of alternative energy.   

Recently, Google announced plans to convert its headquarters to solar power.  In addition, Google engineers have been working to encourage computer manufacturers to use energy saving power supplies.  The company has taken their commitment to sustainability even further by purchasing locally grown organic food for their employee cafeterias.  “Through its initiatives, Google has demonstrated that it is a visionary business leader in the critical area of balance between technological advancement and preservation of the environment,” said Erik Lindbergh.

Google announced it has installed more than 9,200 solar panels at its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters, which they expect will supply about 30 percent of the power needed at the one million-square-foot complex.  The panels should produce about 1.6 megawatts of electricity, which is the equivalent of powering about 1,000 homes.  This project will be the largest solar installation on any corporate campus in the U.S., and one of the largest in the world. Company executives state that this investment, although costly, should be recovered from energy savings within five to 10 years.

Also last fall, Google engineers presented a white paper in which they outlined an energy-saving technology that would reduce waste from standard PC power supplies from 30-40 percent to just 10 percent.  For a company that runs 500,000 servers, this kind of savings could really add up.  The company is willing to share this technology with computer makers and has teamed up with Intel and other partners to propose a new power supply standard for  home and business computers.

As explained in their white paper, current power supplies to computers are still using original 1981 technology.  The wasted energy comes from the conversion of high-voltage alternating current to low-voltage direct current, and because four separate voltages are produced, when only a single-12-volt current is needed.  The company estimates that if this new technology were used in 100 million desktop computers that run eight hours a day, 40 billion kilowatt-hours of power could be saved over three years, representing a savings of more than $5 billion at California’s energy rates.

Although even the company’s offices are designed to save on heating costs, Google’s commitment to the environment is not limited to energy efficiency initiatives.

The company provides locally and organically grown food to its employees through their cafeterias.  The company purchases food grown not more than 150 miles from its headquarters. With an estimated 4,000 people at its headquarters, Google’s business is likely large enough to keep several local farmers in business.

A foundation has been established with an incredible $90 million endowment.  According to BusinessWeek, Page and Brin, have “promised shareholders they will make a social impact that will eventually ‘eclipse Google itself’ by tackling the world’s problems.”  Among the causes on Google’s list are global poverty, energy, and the environment.  Google employees do a lot of volunteer work, and a grants program has been established that  has donated $33 million in on-line advertising to more than 850 nonprofit organizations.

If you would like to attend this event, click here to register on-line, or call the Foundation office at 763/576-1596.