Destin, FL, June 9 - Emerald Coast Emerging Leaders (ECEL) was recently awarded with a $1,500 grant from Keep America Beautiful, a national non-profit organization that focuses on and promotes a national cleanliness ethic between business and private sectors.

     Members of ECEL have been working with Keep America Beautiful in its Cigarette Litter Prevention Program for the past two years, focusing on the Destin harbor area.

     “This campaign focuses on cleanup, education, and prevention,” said Cory Fosdyck, chairman of ECEL, Certified Financial Planner and Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor, The Krueger Group, Merrill Lynch. “The partnership and funding are critical to ECEL achieving its objective.”

     According to the Cigarette Litter Prevention Program’s website, during the Ocean Conservancy's 2006 Annual International Coastal Cleanup, US communities reported that cigarette butts were the “most littered item on roadways, beaches, and sidewalks-representing 35 percent of items collected.” ECEL’s goal is to lower the amount of cigarette litter in order to keep Destin looking its best.

     Last year, ECEL was awarded with a $500 grant, which was used to purchase cigarette butt receptacles.

     “This year's campaign becomes even more crucial given that the Destin Seafood Festival is returning to the Harbor in 2008,” Fosdyck said.

     ECEL has yet to decide how it will use the money this year, but will continue to focus on the harbor area.

     The Emerald Coast Emerging Leaders is a young professionals program of the Destin Area Chamber of Commerce that encourages personal and professional development, confidence building, and connections to the community and to each other.

     For more information about ECEL, please call (850) 837-6214 or visit www.DestinChamber.com/ecel online.