6th Annual African American Environmental Pioneer Awards, February 24th, 2025
In recognition of Black History Month, the African American Environmental Pioneer Awards 6th annual event is honoring those in Milwaukee’s African American community working for a better environment. Nominees are chosen by previous honorees and event organizers. Awardees this year consist of community leaders ranging in scope from neighborhood to county-wide impact. The ceremony is held during Black History Month to honor the rich cultural history of the African Diaspora, while celebrating our living generations of all ages for their efforts to make the world a better place through environmental stewardship. Awards are given in two categories, to recognize the intergenerational nature of community work, “Pioneers” as well as younger “Rising Stars”.
This year the awards will be held at the new Washington Park Urban Ecology Center at 1859 N. 40th Street. Doors will open at 5:00 for networking and refreshments, and the program will begin at 6:30 pm. Performers will include Ko-Thi African Dance Company, and Drummer Ojumire Charleston of Drums up Guns Down 414. The program will have a libation ceremony performed by Supreme Moore Omokunde and the Black National Anthem sung by Adekola Adedepo. A special addition this year will be a tribute to Black Arts and the environment. The program will be broadcast as a live stream. Both online and in-person attendees are asked to RSVP for the event at this link: www.bit.ly/green_pioneers_2025
Awards will be presented to six individuals. The 2024 honorees are:
PIONEER AWARD
RISING STAR AWARDEES
- LaDonna Green – Victory Gardens
- Erin Moore – DNR Havenwoods
- Kevin Patterson – Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
- Julien Phifer – County Parks Community Engagement
- Olivia Raasch – Urban Ecology Center
The event has adopted the Ashanti Adinkra symbol “Asase Ye Duru” meaning “The Earth has Weight”, symbolizing the providence and divinity of Mother Earth.
This event is free and open to the public. Participants must register in advance at www.bit.ly/green_pioneers_2025
The inaugural event in 2020, was held at the Wisconsin Black Historical Society/Museum. It featured a call to ceremony by drummers from Ko-Thi African Dance Company. Brenda Coley of Milwaukee Water Commons was the featured speaker and addressed the need for society to be more inclusive in what is known as “the commons”, public spaces and resources that belong to all of us. At a 2021 “all virtual” event, the keynote was pioneering Harlem poet Dahveed Nelson, a member of the Last Poets, credited for work that led to the emergence of hip-hop. In 2022, a hybrid virtual and in-person event featured Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes as Keynote. In 2023 the keynote was replaced with an intergenerational panel on Climate Justice. In 2024, the AAEPA committee presented a community “Call to Action” and the Milwaukee Environmental Justice Alliance announced their organization.
A web page featuring all the information on this year’s event can be found at this link:
https://nearbynaturemke.org/6th-annual-2025-african-american-environmental-pioneer-awards/
This year, several organizations joined as sponsors, allowing us to hire professional AV support, hire numerous performing artists and provide food during the networking hour.
2025 Event Sponsors, to date, include:
- Century CityTriangle Neighborhood Association
- Clean Wisconsin
- Elevate
- Faith In Place
- Friends of Lincoln Park
- Fund for Lake Michigan
- Greater Milwaukee Foundation
- Hummingbird MKE
- Land Restoration School
- Midwest Environmental Advocates
- Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
- Milwaukee Parks Foundation
- Milwaukee Water Commons
- Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin
- Near West Side Partners
- Nearby Nature Milwaukee
- Northwest Side Community Development Corporation
- Reflo
- The Nature Conservancy
- Urban Ecology Center
- Wisconsin Green Fire
- Wisconsin Green Muslims
The 2025 AAEPA Planning Committee includes:
- Terry Evans, Urban Ecology Center
- Timothy Scott Sr., Nearby Nature Milwaukee
- Aton Fox, Milwaukee Water Commons
- Danitra Jones, Northwest Side CDC
- Wilniesha Smith, Reflo
- Mars Patterson, Nearby Nature Milwaukee
- Makayla Cooper, Nearby Nature Milwaukee
- Jerica Fehr, Nearby Nature Milwaukee
- David Thomas, Nearby Nature Milwaukee
- Yvonne McCaskill, Century City Triangle Neighborhood Association
- Jenny Abel, Sierra Club Great Waters Group
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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