News Release Detail | Corporate - The Cliffs Communities

The Cliffs Communities, Clemson University, Furman University, and SCDNR unite to connect youth with nature and wellness

Greenville, SC (December 6, 2007) – Today, at the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s annual Advantage Greenville luncheon, a group of prominent organizations from South Carolina’s public and private sectors came together to introduce the Carolina Preserve Initiative – a cooperative of innovative partnerships whose common goal is to invest in future generations of families through the gateway of healthy living and the outdoors. Clemson University, Furman University, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, and The Cliffs Communities make up the Initiative’s core group of founding contributors, committing support behind the idea that by utilizing the region’s wealth of natural and human resources to integrate wellness into the lives of youth and their families, individuals – and, by extension, the greater community – can be immeasurably benefited for years to come.

“Clemson is excited to be a part of such an innovative, and worthwhile, public-private partnership,” said Dr. James Barker, President of Clemson University. “There can perhaps be no better use of one’s time, energy, and resources than to help a young person. The Carolina Preserve Initiative is consistent with Clemson’s mission as a land-grant university and with our focus on environmental sustainability as one of eight academic emphasis areas.”

Barker said Clemson’s Youth Learning Institute, led by Executive Director Jorge Calzadilla, will be partnering with The Cliffs Communities and ZestQuest to introduce children to innovative, nature-based experiences year-round near Lake Keowee. Initial programs will include a summer adventure camp and a residential field study program that allows students and teachers to participate in the Teaching Kids About The Environment (KATE) program during the school year. Teaching KATE is a hands-on learning program for grades 3-5 that gets children outdoors while they learn about water ecology, wildlife resources, forestry, and soil science.

"Furman University is a private college with a very public mission. The Carolina Preserve Initiative is powered by our belief in the synergies that exist between caring for ourselves and, in turn, humankind's care of the world in which we live," explained Dr. David Shi, President of Furman. "Sustainability is to the natural world what wellness is to human society. Last academic year at Furman, we celebrated the Year of the Environment. As 2007 comes to a close, this new Carolina Preserve Initiative provides a perfect catalyst for re-committing ourselves to thinking critically and acting responsibly toward protecting our future… and that begins with young people. Just as Furman is committed to educating its own students about the realities and implications of climate change, the university is also committed to efforts such as the Carolina Preserve Initiative that expose young people to the wonders and fulfillments of nature."

Furman University is currently working with The Cliffs on a sustainable model to save the rainforests, based on faculty and student studies at The Cliffs Preserve at Patagonia, Chile – one of The Cliffs Communities’ four international properties. This past summer, the University announced “The Cliffs Cottage”, Southern Living magazine’s first ever environmentally-friendly Showcase Home being constructed on the Furman campus.

“The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources sees the Carolina Preserve Initiative as a valuable collaboration because it takes the state’s most valuable human resources – our children – and teaches them about lands, lakes, and wildlife in ways that instill a sense of stewardship and build character,” added John Frampton, Director of the SC Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).

“We believe that wellness is fundamental to all forms of success in life – good health is the gift that keeps giving. We’re honored to pool our resources with such an esteemed group of leaders to put as many children as possible on the pathway to success,” stated Jim Anthony, Founder and CEO of The Cliffs Communities. “Our close relationships with Drs. Barker and Shi, and with the SC Department of Natural Resources, are allowing us to move forward aggressively on a series of forward-thinking projects under the Carolina Preserve Initiative. I also salute the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce for providing a forum in which to introduce and enlist support for this Initiative.

“It’s important to us to make a meaningful difference in lives of youth and their families by helping them cultivate a love for an active outdoor lifestyle in one of the most pristine areas of the country,” Anthony continued. “It’s our hope that, as a result, they will not only be happier, healthier individuals but greater contributors to the community at large. We continue to move forward ambitiously on projects related to the Initiative and are planning another exciting announcement in the next 90 days.”

The Cliffs Communities has also demonstrated its success in working with public schools and universities, and members of the country’s best teaching hospitals, to achieve multi–dimensional benefits for students, faculty, businesses and the surrounding community. Zest Quest, a 501(c)(3) organization, was founded four years ago by Jim Anthony and is supported by The Cliffs and other public funding with the goal of improving children’s health and activity levels. Zest Quest has grown to include 13 schools and over 7,000 students. The Cliffs Wellness Symposium, a three-day-long interactive wellness forum tackling top trends in wellness was held at Asheville’s Grove Park Inn and included highly informative sessions from The Cliffs Medical Advisory Board. The Cliffs has also found incredible partnerships in Western North Carolina, having recently announced a partnership with UNC-Asheville in the construction of The North Carolina Center for Health and Wellness.

The Carolina Preserve Initiative: A Synergy of Strengths
The Carolina Preserve spans approximately 3.5 million acres and encompasses two of the Southeast’s most acclaimed cities: Greenville, SC and Asheville, NC. Situated on the Southernmost leading edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, this 5,500-mile area includes 1.5 million acres of national and state forests and parks, as well as tens of thousands of acres of freshwater lakes, designated Wild and Scenic Rivers, streams, creeks, and waterfalls. Together with its incomparable natural landscape, the Carolina Preserve is one of the nation’s most superb environments for quality-of-life. Here, one can enjoy innovative and award-winning health and wellness communities, commercial sectors, and educational institutions, all led and staffed by knowledgeable professionals whose work ethic stems from an ever-present sense of care.

Pathways to Regional Brand Building
Though several years in the making, through a series of individual projects and one-on-one partnerships, today’s announcement of the Carolina Preserve Initiative begins down a pathway toward building better lives for children with a broad, public-private partnership. Drs. Barker and Shi, Ms. Cope, and Mr. Anthony stress that building an effective brand will take more committed community partners than their founding group of organizations. Issuing a call-to-action today to an audience of Upstate, South Carolina business leaders, this core group is encouraging other public institutions and members of the private sector to unite around the Carolina Preserve Initiative by becoming both meaningful contributors and active collaborators.