enviroVOTE

A note about this website, created by students from my alma mater, came across a Society of Environmental Journalists listserv. Here's what I gleaned from a quick chat with one of the creators:

A few days ago envirovote.us was little more than marker scribbles on paper.

Tonight, as election returns flow in, the fledgling website -- designed by Northwestern University graduate students Brian Boyer and Ryan Mark -- will track the eco-friendliness of the 2008 election.

Results are based on a simple evaluation of candidates running for president, as well as Congressional seats, based on how many endorsements they received from environmental organizations such as the Sierra Club and Republicans for Environmental Protection, Boyer said. And though many organizations rated candidates, Boyer added, only about seven or eight such groups actually endorsed someone.

"We kind of wanted this to take the 'Rotten Tomatoes' approach where you rate movies on a meter," said Boyer, who was speaking by phone from Chicago. "Where you've got quality, you've got quality."

Boyer said he and Mark, both professional software developers turned students, hope to expand this first effort -- perhaps by providing analyses of local environmental groups and what they say about candidates running in state and city elections.