2009 EMA Awards Presenters and Honorees
By Melissa Hunter
The Environmental Media Association's awards recognize the entertainment industry's contributions to environmental efforts. This year, a score of celebrities are coming out to the green carpet (yes, it's actually green) to celebrate the environmental movement and its relationship with entertainment. Wonderwall has the privilege of being the exclusive online destination for this year's awards, so check back Monday Oct. 26th for full coverage of the event.
The ultimate box-office dominator, Harrison Ford will be a presenter at the show. An active conservationist, he's the vice chair of Conservation International among other environmental efforts. And he made archaeology cool, so he gets points for that, too.
Olivia Wilde, otherwise known as the Bona Fide Hot Girl of 2009, will be a presenter at the awards. When she's not busy filming "House" or posing for Maxim, she maintains a vegan diet, is active with Moveon.org and was an active campaigner for Barack Obama. She also serves on the Young Hollywood board for the EMA.
Amy Smart will present at the awards. An active member of the Young Hollywood Board of the EMAs, she also was the subject of a video of ours in which she was caught red-handed planting a garden for a school in need!! Scandalous, we know.
You may know Jason Mraz as a chart-topping, head-bopping song generator, but what you may not know is his dedication to environmental causes. He is one of the select celebrity honorees this year for his contributions.
This year he published the photo book "A Thousand Things," which contains pages of Polaroids he has taken from all around the world. The book was printed with soy-based inks and on wood-free paper. He also follows a vegan raw food diet. Basically, he's flawless and you can't hate him for it. Kudos, Jason!
John Cusack has been an advocate for the environment for years, and he's recently brought it into his work as well. He's starring in the upcoming apocalyptic movie "2012," which he explains as not meant to exploit disasters but to highlight how people can rise above their "normal capabilities" in difficult situations.
"Big Love" star Ginnifer Goodwin has been known for her dedication to veganism, and the fashionista has proven that one can be stylish without the aid of animal skin. She's been urging people to commit to the "Adopt-a-Turkey" campaign this Thanksgiving by adopting rather than, ahem, digesting a bird at dinner.
Sir Richard Branson will be honored at this year's awards. Branson has proved that one can abide by the idiom "With great power comes great responsibility" as his colossal company Virgin has become one of the leaders in green technology and major environmental efforts.
He pledged a $3 billion investment back in 2006 in developing clean fuels, renewable energy, and environmental technologies. Not only has he stood by his promises in spite of critics, he's proved that a business can use these technologies and alternative energies to save money and turn profits, which was a revelatory idea for many massive companies that are following his lead.
Calista Flockhart will be joining her fiance Harrison Ford as a presenter at the event. The ex-"Ally McBeal" star has been active in environmental causes and she and her husband-to-be are planning a green wedding.
"Bones" actress Emily Deschanel will be onstage presenting at the show. She starred in a PETA campaign called "Meat's Not Green" to show how eating meat harms the environment. In case you were wondering, she too is an active vegan.
Daryl Hannah has been an environmentalist for years, and has been an actively involved board member with EMA for quite some time. She has her own eco video blog on sustainable solutions and her home runs exclusively with solar power. She's been so committed to her green causes that she's been arrested on two occasions while protesting.
Veteran actor and environmentalist Ed Begley Jr. has been an active contributor to environmental causes since even BEFORE it was cool! Among but a few of his stats, he was an early adopter of the once-extinct, now revitalized electric car initiative; his home uses solar power and wind power exclusively; he has a home cleaner that is environmentally sound. He's so green that he even spoofed himself on "The Simpsons." Keep it up, Ed.
Blythe Danner has been an active environmentalist for a long time and her daughter Gwyneth Paltrow has attributed her environmentalism to her mother's passion for the cause. She also serves on the board of directors for the Environmental Media Association.
Famed director Roland Emmerich will be honored this year at the awards. He has used his medium to create such epic movies as "The Day After Tomorrow," "10,000 BC" and the upcoming "2012," all of which address the conflict between earth and man. The German director tells stories of natural disasters through film and allows us to see our potential future if we don't act accordingly.
Fresh face Katie Cassidy, who stars in the "Melrose Place" revamp, will be a presenter at the awards show. She is one of many actors in the "hot'n'young" category attending the awards.
Emily VanCamp, who has starred in "Everwood" and now on the hit show "Brothers & Sisters" will be a presenter at the awards. She serves on the Young Hollywood board for the EMA.
Dana Delany, star of "Desperate Housewives," will be presenting at the awards this year.
One of the young stars of the smash-hit TV show "Glee," Amber Riley will be presenting at the awards show. Hopefully there will be an impromptu song as well, but only time will tell.
Dianna Agron, who also stars in "Glee," will also represent the youth green movement by presenting at the awards show.
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