Letter from the CVSC Board Chair

On behalf of the Board of Directors and staff of Conservation Voters of South Carolina, I welcome you to the 2021 Green Tie Awards. The men and women we honor this evening are champions of our environment and have each demonstrated the progress that can be made when our leaders and communities come together in support of a common goal – protecting South Carolina’s air, land, and water. Their efforts have helped bridge political, economic, racial, and geographic divides to help build a safer, healthier, and more prosperous Palmetto State. We are thankful for their work, their leadership, and their vision. We know that their commitment to protecting South Carolina’s most precious natural resources will inspire not only those of us here virtually tonight, but also future generations of leaders who will work to protect the South Carolina we love. CVSC is a political and uncommonly bipartisan conservation organization. We educate candidates and the voters who elect them; we hold our elected leaders accountable; and we help unify the voices for conservation across the state, all toward protecting clean water, clean air, abundant wildlife, family farms and forests, and promoting efficient and clean energy. In 2021, CVSC’s work was guided by our organization’s core values: being an influential voice in the South Carolina Statehouse; bipartisanship; environmental justice and equity; and the advancement of climate solutions. We drove bold, forward-looking policy conversations about conservation. We helped pass landmark legislation with the Santee Cooper reform bill and were once again able to push back against risky industries trying to avoid environmental oversight. Our successes in 2021 are a testament to conservation’s bipartisan appeal and approach that CVSC and our partners were able to make progress on big conservation issues during a legislative session overshadowed by the impacts of COVID-19. Advancing pro-conservation policy in the General Assembly can be done only with a strong conservation network across the state. Despite the challenges of the past year and the political turmoil facing our state and nation, South Carolina’s conservation community stands together, stronger than ever. Thank you for standing with us.

As you enjoy tonight’s virtual awards program and celebrate the achievements of our 2021 Green Tie Award winners, I encourage you to make a commitment to the future of conservation in South Carolina by making a gift to CVSC. Just as your voices and influence create results, your financial contributions to CVSC also make a difference. I call on each person viewing tonight to help CVSC pursue the vision for a South Carolina that values and protects our waterways, pristine landscapes, iconic shorelines, and the clean air we breathe. Help us empower every South Carolinian to have a voice in the decisions which impact their future. Please step out in generosity to make our state a place that we continue to be proud to call home. I know you will enjoy this evening’s awards program! As for me, a lifelong South Carolinian, I am proud that in our state, no matter our religion, education, race, political affiliation, gender, or net worth, we understand that what we have here in the Palmetto State is priceless -- and that is, some of the most beautiful places on our Planet Earth. Please be proud to remember tonight that each of you, personally, makes the victories, progress, and celebrations possible.

Cynthia Powell Chair, Board of Directors Conservation Voters of South Carolina