ANAHEIM -- Today Dr. Robert Sawyer, Chairman of the Air Resources Board (ARB), will join Jiminy Cricket in Disneyland to present the 2006 California Environmentality Challenge awards to 32 fifth-graders from the Lake Tahoe Environmental Magnet School for their award-winning effort. Bob Comlossy's fifth-grade class produced the science project designed to help restore and replenish the bat population at the meadow just off State Highway 89.

Disney's Jiminy Cricket's Environmentality Challenge is an educational outreach program dedicated to helping future generations understand the complexities of the environment around us and every global citizen's responsibility to take action to protect the Earth. As a way to integrate business needs with environmental values and concerns, the Walt Disney Company partnered with several California state agencies that are key stakeholders to promote and encourage students to take action to restore, protect and promote the environment.

"I am thrilled to be part of the Environmentality Challenge because it advances ecosystem discoveries in the varied communities of the state, promotes awareness of the need for a cleaner environment and encourages teamwork, problem solving and how to develop a true interest for learning. As a teacher, I know that any effort that combines these elements will definitely result in a bright future for the student and for the health of our environment," said Dr. Sawyer. To date, more than one million students have enrolled in the program that challenges students to think and act responsibly toward the environment.

For further information on the program, please click here.

The Air Resources Board is a department of the California Environmental Protection Agency. ARB's mission is to promote and protect public health, welfare, and ecological resources through effective reduction of air pollutants while recognizing and considering effects on the economy. The ARB oversees all air pollution control efforts in California to attain and maintain health based air quality standards.

The energy challenge facing California is real. Every Californian needs to take immediate action to reduce energy consumption. For a list of simple ways you can reduce demand and cut your energy cost, see our website at http://www.arb.ca.gov.