Green Mountain Coffee and Ashoka's Changemakers have announced the winners of their "Revelation to Action: Your Place. Your Idea. Your Change" competition. Three overall competition winners, one from Shelburne, and seven state winners were chosen among hundreds of creative ideas for strengthening and engaging communities across the northeastern U.S.

The revelation to action winners were announced at a celebration event held July 14 at the Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts in Boston. Each winner was awarded $5,000 and will be featured on www.Changemakers.com/Revelation as one of the best ideas for mobilizing citizens to build a better community.

Vermont Food Education Every Day (VT FEED) won as one of the three overall competition winners. Partnered with Shelburne Farms, VT FEED works with schools and communities to raise awareness about healthy food, the role of farms and farmers, and good nutrition. VT FEED is a catalyst for rebuilding healthy food systems and cultivating links between classrooms, cafeterias, local farms, and communities.

Jr. Iron Chef VT, partnering with VT FEED, won one of the seven state awards. Jr. Iron Chef VT is a statewide competition that gives students an opportunity to gain hands-on experience preparing and cooking nutritious, farm-fresh foods. The program highlights local agriculture and encourages students to make healthy eating choices and understand more about nutrition and school food systems.

"Shelburne Farms is very proud and pleased that two programs in which we have been so closely involved were recognized by Ashoka and Green Mountain Coffee, and the voters for their impact as changemakers in the Vermont community," said Megan Camp, the vice president and program director of Shelburne Farms.

A panel of five distinguished judges from the northeastern business and academic community narrowed the diverse pool of applicants to 15 finalists based on the innovation, social impact and sustainability of each entry. The changemakers online community then voted for the best entries, and the three finalists with the most votes were selected as overall competition winners. Green Mountain Coffee selected seven additional state winners - one from each of the participating states.

"We believe a simple idea can transform your street, your neighborhood, and your community," said Michael Dupee, vice president of corporate social responsibility at Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., who also served as a competition judge. "The range of pragmatic and innovative ideas we learned about through the revelation to action competition will hopefully serve as a catalyst for other communities to consider and adapt to their local circumstances."

"The solutions submitted to this competition are powerful initiatives for grassroots change, whether they address homelessness in Vermont, prisoner reform in Massachusetts, or better parenting programs for fathers in urban New York," said Diana Wells, Ashoka's president. "The changemakers community is sharing practical solutions that inspire people to pitch in to build on the strengths of their communities."

More information on Ashoka's Changemakers and the revelation to action competition can be found online at changemakers.com.