The City of Berkeley is honoring long-term Ecology Center Board member Mark Gorrell by giving him his own day in celebration of his achievements. Join us at Berkeley City Council for the reading of the Proclamation declaring Tuesday, January 25th as Mark Gorrell Day!
Tuesday, January 25, at 7:00 pm
Council Chamber, Old City Hall
Martin Luther King Way at Allston Way, Berkeley
In Recognition of Mark Gorrell and his Many Contributions to the City of Berkeley and Humanitarian Service on Behalf of Others
Whereas, for four decades Mark Gorrell has selflessly given his knowledge and service to the City of Berkeley, and to others, tirelessly contributing to social progress as architect, designer, environmental leader, and respected teacher, following a path of community service through all of his work, and
Whereas, Mark readily tackles vexing and complex environmental and social problems such as designing and building a sustainable civic infrastructure; reducing the environmental impact of urban life, including his pioneering designs in the new field of transit villages; promoting adaptive technologies such as solar and wind power; championing recycling, reuse, and industrial-scale composting, and designing recycling centers locally and around the world, and
Whereas, Mark has provided exceptional leadership in hosting Native People’s at the annual Pow Wow in Martin Luther King park, celebrating Indigenous culture and values, respecting the Earth, sustainability, balance, and brotherhood among the peoples of the world, and
Whereas, Mark has put himself on the line many times to advance social justice, having been arrested to save old-growth redwoods, in the struggle against apartheid, and protesting the university’s involvement in weapons labs, and
Whereas, Mark has been a leading and prescient voice for energy conservation and alternative energy, serving numerous terms on the Energy Commission, governing the Community Energy Services Corporation, drafting and lobbying for the passage of the Residential and Commercial Energy Conservation Ordinances (which have been replicated across the country), and advancing Rising Sun, a local nonprofit training young people in the service of energy conservation, and
Whereas, Mark’s dedication to social justice and change reaches back decades, first in the 10th Street Neighborhood Association, where he helped to create a park, sidewalks, and street trees; as a core member of the editorial collective of Berkeley Action, the unique newsletter focused on electing progressive candidates for public office; and as board member, President, and newsletter editor of the Thousand Oaks Neighborhood Association, and
Whereas, Mark has worked tirelessly to guide Berkeley towards Zero Waste, fighting plans for a local incinerator while working to legislate recycling and waste reduction, helping to pass a county measure to fund recycling, co-authoring Berkeley’s Zero Waste resolution, serving on the Ecology Center Board of Directors for over 20 years; and bringing Berkeley’s successes to other parts of the world, and
Whereas, Mark is a leader in green building, one of the first architects in Berkeley to design and build green retrofits for homes and offices, serves with Architects Designers and Planners for Social Responsibility, is an active member of the Sustainable Business Association, and is co-founder of both the Green Resource Center (later Build It Green), and Berkeley EcoHouse, a demonstration home for middle and lower income residents, and
Whereas, beyond all Mark’s accomplishments, it is never so much what he does, but how he does it, always modeling kindness and having the unique ability to defuse a tense moment with an absurd joke, thus relieving the tensions so that people can get back to problem solving.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Berkeley City Council recognizes a lifetime of achievement and service on the part of Mark Gorrell, an exemplary, learned, and wise citizen, extends our appreciation for his many contributions, and hereby declares January 25, 2011 as Mark Gorrell Day, in the City of Berkeley.
