The Northeast Georgia Regional Solid Waste Management Authority (NGRSWMA), in cooperation with the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission (NEGRC), is hosting the Northeast Georgia Solid Waste Summit on Friday, January 27, 2012 at the Classic Center in downtown Athens. In this informational fair involving 10 different counties in Northeast GA, organizations, agencies and private companies involved in solid waste education, reduction, recycling, disposal, collection and land issues will be on hand to answer questions and distribute informational material.
In this episode of Inside the Winners’ Circle, Joyce is joined by 3 magnificent women deeply involved in the Solid Waste Management programs of their respective counties.
Suki Janssen is the Waste Reduction Administrator for Athens-Clarke County, Georgia. Her duties include the contract management of the public/private recycling facility in Athens-Clarke County, a variety of waste reduction events, local green school program, and more. Prior to her position in Athens-Clarke County, she was a Program Coordinator for the Keep Georgia Beautiful program within the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. She was responsible for the coordination of Winning Water: Children’s Water Festival, Waste in Place teacher workshops and a variety of education initiatives for the KGB program. She is a certified middle grades teacher, Georgia Recycling Coalition President for 2008-09, and Northeast Georgia Regional Solid Waste Management Authority board member. She is married to Chris Janssen, a middle school math teacher in Oconee County, and lives with two dogs, two chinchillas and six snakes.
Elaine Oakes is originally from Thomasville, GA, but has resided in Monroe since 1974. She learned about environmental stewardship at an early age from her father, who always stressed the importance of using our natural resources wisely. She became a volunteer for Walton Clean and Beautiful in 1987 and was hired as a part-time director in 1989. The program is the Walton County affiliate to keep America Beautiful, Inc whose mission is” to engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community environments”. Since that time, Elaine’s position has expanded to include managing the Walton County Recycling Center as well as the Keep Walton Beautiful (as it is now called) volunteer network. The focus has expanded from litter prevention and recycling to also include beautification and education on non-point source pollution
Sandra Webb is the Executive Director of Keep Madison County Beautiful & Recycling Center. Her duties include educational classes in the schools and helping plan environmental programs for Madison County.
