The Stone Soup Leadership Institute (SSLI), a nonprofit educational organization founded on Martha’s Vineyard in 1997, will hold its fourth annual Walter Cronkite Awards ceremony from 5 to 6 pm, Thursday, August 8, at the Old Whaling Church in Edgartown.
The SSLI develops educational tools, programs, and youth summits for young adults in order to promote leadership and sustainability, according to a press release. The awards are presented to those who use the power of the media to create positive social change in the world. This year’s theme is the environment.
The 2013 awards will honor the team of Elizabeth Witham and Ken Wentworth, Island-based filmmakers, and documentarian Robert Nixon, a Chilmark seasonal resident.
Ms. Witham and Mr. Wentworth started Film-Truth Productions, a company dedicated to making documentary films that inspire dialogue and address social issues primarily on the Vineyard.
Their documentary, “Island Grown Schools – Planting a Seed for the Next Generation,” helped raise awareness and funding for Island Grown Schools, a which helps schools incorporate locally grown food into their menus.
For their current project, “The Greening of Eden,” they are traveling the world to explore humanity’s relationship with the Earth.
Mr. Nixon, who owns the Home Port Restaurant, The Beach Plum Inn, and the Menemsha Inn, has spent his life working on environmental and social causes, through film and direct action. An Academy Award nominee and Emmy Award winner, he has been involved in the production of more than 50 documentary films.
In 1992 he launched the Earth Conservation Corps on the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C., that gives urban youth a chance to develop life skills while working to clean up the environment. He recently produced “American Heroes Fishing Challenge,” a National Geographic film that documents the annual participation of injured soldiers in the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby.
A reception at The Harbor View Hotel will follow the awards ceremony, which is free of charge. A suggested donation of $150 for the reception will benefit the MVYLI. There is limited seating. For more information go to www.mvyli.org/wca-rsvp.
