Meet the Class of 2008: For the 12th year, we select 40 high-achieving Georgians under the age of 40. They are making their marks in business, government, education, the arts and the world of nonprofits.
Each year, the Georgia Trend editorial staff engages the magazine’s readers to help identify those individuals who will lead our state’s business, cultural, academic and governmental institutions in decades to come.
This year marks what may be the highest level of individual participation in 40 Under 40 history. More than 300 readers nominated some 180 candidates. Selecting those individuals named in the following pages was not an easy task for the editorial staff, but it was rewarding. For a look at the process, see page 41.
Individual profiles were contributed by Patti Ghezzi, Matt Hennie, Karen Kennedy, Ed Lightsey, Patty Rasmussen, Kenna Simmons, Christy Simo, Randy Southerland and Rick Woodall.
Tommy Linstroth’s blood runs green. As head of Melaver’s Sustainable Initiatives, he ensures that the real estate company’s products are as environmentally friendly as possible, while reducing the environmental impact of the company’s operations.
“Americans on average spend 90 percent of our time indoors,” he says. “Making sure that people have a healthy indoor environment to be in – that you’re not breathing in fumes from the walls or the formaldehyde of your furniture – is vastly important.”
As founder of Savannah Recycles, Linstroth encouraged the city to institute curbside recycling starting in January 2009; he’s also working to initiate a graywater ordinance. “Buildings use almost half of the energy in the U.S., as well as 75 percent of the electricity generated from power plants,” Linstroth says. “Buildings have such a profound impact that if we’re going to start curbing climate change, it really needs to start in the built environment.” – CS
