Sarasota Livin'

Leadership Sarasota Partners With
Sarasota Green Marketplace For Event

(Sarasota, FL – May 11, 2007) Leadership Sarasota Class of 2007 is partnering with Sarasota Green Marketplace located at 2864 Ringling Blvd., in Gold Tree Plaza, for an event on Thursday, May 17 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. The event is centered on this year’s Leadership Sarasota Class Project, a grassroots effort to increase the use of energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs).

The 2007 Leadership Sarasota class, a program of The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, Has been collecting pledges from Sarasota residents to change inefficient incandescent bulbs to compact florescent lamps (CFLs). Their goal is to collect pledges for more than 17,500 light bulbs, which will reduce energy costs by $612,500 and eliminate nearly 8 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions. The project wraps up at the end of this month.

At the event, Leadership Sarasota participants will be giving away CFLs and collecting pledges from attendees saying they will do their part to reduce greenhouse gases. There will also be food and displays of many environmentally-friendly products offered by the Sarasota Green Marketplace.

About Sarasota Green Marketplace

Mary Anne Bowie, FAICP opened Sarasota Green Marketplace on March 28,2007 serving Sarasota and Southwest Florida. One of only approximately 20 green building retail centers in the country, Sarasota Green Marketplace "Your Green Home and Green Building Center" is located at 2864 Ringling Blvd., in Gold Tree Plaza. Sarasota Green Marketplace is committed to bringing customers environmentally safe and people friendly products to enhance the home and our planet.

About Leadership Sarasota

Each year, approximately 35 people are accepted into the Leadership Sarasota County program. Participants are selected on their own merits through a highly competitive admissions process. Based on the premise that well-informed citizens make the best leaders, the program is designed to expose community leaders and potential leaders to the many different aspects of Sarasota County and educate them about the county's assets, opportunities, and challenges. Class members learn how they can get involved to help improve the community, and they are given opportunities to do so in the program.

The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce is a not-for-profit organization that exists to maximize our members’ success, the community’s competitiveness and the area’s economic strengths. For more information, call 941-556-4027 or visit online at www.sarasotachamber.com.