Our Accomplishments through the years
- May 2006 - George Pakenham dismayed by idling vehicles outside his NY apartment, polluting his air
- September 2006 - Started recording encounters with trucks, cars and trucks and over 5 year notes nearly 3000 engagements. Website and social media campaign launched
- December 2007 - Demo to documentary produced – 12 minutes
- Summer 2007 - Initial documentary footage captured
- Summer 2007 - Alliance with Environmental Defense Fund formulated to address the idling engine problem
- February 2009 - Mayor Bloomberg signed new idling bill – updating 1971 law
- May 2009 - New Yorker article by Ben McGrath creates worldwide attention
- Summer 2009 - Other stories in local CBS TV, NPR, BBC radio
- Fall 2012 - The documentary film Idle Threat is completed and has World Premiere at the Woodstock film festival. Many other festivals follow including The Environmental Film Festival of our Nations’ Capital. Three Rivers in Pittsburgh, Wild and Scenic in California. The film goes on Wild and Scenic nationwide film circuit.
- Spring 2013 - Big Nose Big City, companion children’s book to the film, is launched – Available on Amazon Idle threat also available on Amazon
- Summer 2013 - 5-year contract with a film distributor s signed and the film appears on KCET, public TV in Los Angeles
- 2013 - Idle Threat shown to various governmental agencies in NYC. The effort begins to create a bill to enable concerned citizens the right to submit evidence to the Department of Environmental Protection and received 50% of the $350 dollar fine. Hence, bill 717a was announced on the steps of city fall, winter 2014. Other global interviews and articles, including 2nd radio show on NPR. Also acclaimed on PARADE magazine that Pakenham is Eco Man of the Year in the State of NY
- Dec 19, 2017 - Bill 717a is voted on in City Council and passes 47 – 3. Effective date Feb 18, 2018
- June 2018 - 2nd New Yorker article by Ben McGrath is published
- Summer 2018 - NY Post, NBC TV news, CBS, all run stories on the new law
- Fall 2018 - Yale University runs a story
- Winter 2019 - HBO Vice TV picks up the Yale story and creates their own 9-minute story for cable. It gets 1.4 million views on their YouTube channel and 4.2 million views on their Facebook page
- Summer 2019 - Berlin based TV show, Galileo, sends crew to NYC to shoot their own story. (9 million viewers in Europe), 2nd BBC radio interview. Idle Threat posted on YouTube for a free download. Formulation of VERDANSA as a nonprofit entity to create a smartphone app to handle file formulation for the DEP of NY.
- March 2020 - Launch of Smartphone App