2010 Arbor Day Awards

Promise to the Earth Award

The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies

The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies and T-Mobile USA received the 2010 Promise to the Earth Award, which recognizes sustained commitment and leadership by a corporation that partners with the Arbor Day Foundation on special projects.

Progressive has teamed up with the Arbor Day Foundation since 2007 to plant trees in our nation's forests. To raise awareness of its paperless program, Progressive offered to plant a tree for every customer who opted to receive policy information electronically. Progressive contributed $1 to the Foundation to plant a tree in the customer's honor. The results were tremendous, with 1.5 million customers making the switch resulting in 1.5 million trees being planted in forests that were in urgent need of replanting. While Progressive's tree planting campaign has wrapped up, it continues to offer discounts where available to customers who choose to go paperless. In addition, Progressive celebrated its 70th anniversary by planting 70 trees in each of the six cities that serve as home to one of the company's call centers. Progressive employees took part in the tree-planting events, which were held in city parks.

T-Mobile USA

In 2009, T-Mobile raised its commitment to the Earth to a new level by planting more than 1 million trees through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation. Through the company's "T-Mobile Plant-A-Tree Project, T-Mobile has encouraged customers to switch to electronic statements. For each customer who made the switch, T-Mobile made a donation to the Foundation to plant a tree. During the last year, T-Mobile funded more than 1 million trees, which were distributed to residents in areas that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina and planted in Tiger Bay and John M. Bethea State Forests in Florida, Hiawatha National Forest in Michigan and the San Bernardino National Forest in California.

This year’s winners are:

• Lifetime Stewardship Award

  • David Nowak

• Good Steward Award

  • Education at Big K of Macon, GA

• Public Awareness of Trees Award

  • Mayor John Hickenlooper of Denver, CO
  • Mile High Million Tree Initiative of Denver, CO

• Frederick Law Olmsted Award

  • Dave Mooter of Kennard, NE

• Excellence in Urban Forest Leadership Award

  • David Bragdon of Portland, OR

• Forest Lands Leadership Award

  • Jim Schmitt of Gering, NE

• Award for Excellence in Volunteer Management

  • Casey Trees of Washington, D.C.
  • Green City Partnerships Program of the Seattle area

• Champion of Trees Award

  • Steve Koehn of Annapolis, MD
  • The Kirkwood Junior TreeKeepers of Kirkwood, MO

• Lawrence Enersen Award

  • Robert Sympson of Lynbrook, NY

• Rachel Carson Award

  • Mary Kay Inc. of Dallas, TX

• Education Award

  • The Tree Commission Academy of Columbus, OH

• Excellence in Partnership Award

  • Perkins County Conservation District of Bison, S.D.

• Celebration Award

  • Sheila Flint of Sherwood Park, Alberta
  • Strathcona County Recreation Department of Sherwood Park, Alberta

• Legacy Award

  • Laurence Wiseman of Potomac, MD

• 2010 Promise to the Earth Award

  • The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies
  • T-Mobile USA