When Edward Mazria discovered the building sector gobbles nearly half of all energy production, creating about half of all greenhouse gas emissions, he went to work. The Santa Fe-based architect created Architecture 2030, a program for transitioning to carbon neutral development. For his work, Mazria has a $100,000 Purpose Prize.
Architect Edward Mazria has won The Purpose Prize, a $100,000 prize affectionately known as the “genius award for retirees.” Long committed to sustainable design, Mazria committed himself full time to advocating for a more sustainable future through Architecture 2030, a nonprofit organization that he founded.
Our sputtering economy needs more workers with entrepreneurial spirit. Civic Ventures suggests they might come from an unexpected demographic: workers who are approaching middle age or their retirement years. The group found that one in four Americans between 44 and 70 want to build an enterprise, and nearly half of them want it to be a business with a strong social impact. (This article also appeared on Dowser.)
 |
| Gerald L. Hill , Indigenous Language Institute |
| Visit Indigenous Language Institute's website |
| Contact Gerald L. Hill |
Indigenous Language Institute
Purpose Prize Fellow 2011
The doors of the Los Angeles County prison closed behind Gerald Hill in 1972 when as a college senior he was sentenced to 90 days following a protest against an art museum exhibit of the scalp of a Cheyenne Indian and a burial display using actual human skeletons. Hill’s first — and last — criminal conviction convinced him that Native Americans can be most effective from the right side of the justice system.
Architect Edward Mazria has been recognized for his work to move the building sector to a more sustainable path. He has done this by setting voluntary targets via his nonprofit Architecture 2030. Now he has won a 2011 Purpose Prize, an award given by Civic Ventures to social entrepreneurs over 60.
Civic Ventures has awarded one of five 2011 Purpose Prizes and $100,000 to newly retired TechTown Executive Director Randal Charlton. Civic Ventures is recognizing Charlton for his work revitalizing Detroit's economy at TechTown and for his newest venture: a leadership role at Boom! The New Economy, a TechTown-affiliated program that provides training, one-on-one mentoring and internships to people over 50 who are exploring second careers.
Nancy Sanford Hughes, the founder of StoveTeam International, has received a $100,000 national prize for her work. Hughes was one of five winners of the 2011 Purpose Prize, awarded to social entrepreneurs who are older than 60. The prizes are awarded by Civic Ventures.
Civic Ventures is a nonprofit dedicated to helping people find meaningful, purpose-filled work in the second half of life. Each year the organization selects five people over who have made extraordinary contributions in their encore careers focusing on solving critical problems in education, health care, the environment and more. The organization has announced its 2011 Purpose Prize $100,000 winners.
The winners of the 2011 Purpose Prize were unveiled today by the Encore Careers campaign, and it’s an inspiring group – as usual. The annual award recognizes older career trailblazers who have demonstrated creative and effective work tackling social problems. Now in its sixth year, the prize was created to promote and encourage civic engagement among boomers.
Life stages are artificial, argues Marc Freedman, the 53-year-old social entrepreneur dubbed “the voice of aging baby boomers” by The New York Times. “There was no adolescence before 1904,” Freedman points out before launching into an explanation of his nonprofit’s mission: creating institutions and public policies geared toward boomers who may be past retirement age but are by no means elderly.
