Rhode Island State Director Wins EPA's 2008 Merit Award
When Sheila Dormody was nominated by her colleagues for the federal Environmental Protection Agency's 2008 Merit Award, they told the story of a passionate leader with remarkable successes in fighting mercury pollution and organizing Rhode Island activists.
And when the EPA made the Earth Day announcement that Dormody—Clean Water Action's Rhode Island Director—had won the prestigious award, the agency cited a long and impressive list of accomplishments. They included: leading the effort to ban the toxin mercury from Rhode Island's landfills, negotiating legislation to recycle mercury switches and remove them from old cars, introducing programs to remove mercury from schools, as well as chairing the state's Mercury Reduction Group and co-chairing the state Department of Environmental Management Roundtable on the Environment.
But it was also clear that Dormody has earned not just the respect of Rhode Island's environmental community, but also their affection. In nominating Dormody, Eugenia Marks, Senior Policy Director for the Audubon Society of Rhode Island and a past recipient of the award, talked about Dormody's positive spirit. The National Wildlife Federation's Donald Hooper, citing Dormody's remarkable success in leading the 62-member, all-volunteer Environmental Council of Rhode Island, said Dormody 'walked the talk' and inspired people with her passion.
"Sheila's success at getting people to do the right thing is not only unsurprising (because she does it so naturally), it's infectious," said Hooper. "Those around her don't shrink from Sheila in awe, we step up and say 'hey, great idea, let's go do it.' To me, that's leadership I can relate to."
