By Lookout Staff

April 18, 2011 -- An old Chinese proverb claims, “A book is like a garden carried in the pocket.” The Santa Monica Public Library has teamed up with the city’s Office of Sustainability to issue a final call for gardeners – submissions for the Green Prize for Sustainable Literature.

In its fifth annual celebration, the library awards the prize to authors, illustrators and publishers who produce quality books for adults and young people that broaden the public's awareness of sustainability in our community.

Past winners have included “Living Like Ed: A Guide to the Eco-Friendly Life” by Ed Begley, Jr. and “The Santa Monica Farmers’ Market Cookbook: Seasonal Foods, Simple Recipes, and Stories from the Market and Farm,” by Amelia Saltsman.

Santa Monica’s Sustainable City Plan is manifest throughout the city – from the design of new public parking structures and commercial centers like Santa Monica Place to its recent ban on single-use plastic bags. The city “green” office defines sustainability as “meeting current needs – environmental, economic, and social – without compromising the ability of future generations to do the same.”

Accordingly, the Green Prize will be awarded to books published last year that reflect sustainability criteria through original text, design, illustration, and photography. The submissions are judged by a panel of librarians, teachers, and local authorities on environmental science.

Applicants have until April 30 to send in their submissions, and winners will be announced at the Green Prize Awards in the fall.

All books published in the U.S. in 2010 are eligible and the public is encouraged to suggest titles, including works created for young people.

More information may be found by emailing Nancy Bender, Public Services Librarian at: nancy.bender@smgov.net or by visiting the website http://smpl.org/Green_Prize.aspx.