ESSENCE & Sean “Diddy” Combs will salute GRAMMY¨-nominated artist and mega-talent Janelle Monae

ESSENCE & Sean "Diddy" Combs will salute GRAMMY¨-nominated artist and mega-talent Janelle Monae at the 2nd annual ESSENCE Black Women in Music event, an invitation-only, red-carpet event taking place during 2011 GRAMMY¨ Week. ÊHosted by ESSENCE.com Managing Editor Emil Wilbekin, Joy Bryant and Taraji P. Henson, Hollywood and the music industry will celebrate Janelle Monae on Wednesday, February 9 from 7-10PM, at Playhouse Hollywood. The evening will feature an exclusive performance by Monae, as well as special guest GRAMMY-nominated Big Boi of Outkast and music by DJ Rashida.

"Janelle Monae is a remarkable creative force and a passionately talented young performer, who perfectly personifies ESSENCE as the ‘voice and soul’ of Black women," said Essence.com managing editor Emil Wilbekin. "As fans around the world continue to embrace Janelle’s artistic vision, we are recognizing her tremendous influence among her peers with a salute to her contributions at the 2nd annual ESSENCE Black Women in Music event."

"As the cornerstone of African-African culture, music is synonymous with the ESSENCE brand," commented ESSENCE president Michelle Ebanks. "Black female musicians from Bessie Smith to Beyonce; Abbey Lincoln to Aretha Franklin have told our stories through their music. For Black women around the world — ESSENCE editorial, as well as signature ESSENCE programs such as Black Women in Music and the Essence Music Festival remain a valuable source of inspiration and a coveted platform for expression."

ESSENCE Black Women in Music honoree Janelle Monae is profiled in the February issue of ESSENCE magazineÑon newsstands nowÑas part of an exclusive "GRAMMY Insider" editorial package. Singer, songwriter and high funkstress, Monae burst onto the scene in 2007 releasing her first solo work, GRAMMY-nominated debut EP Metropolis, Suite I: The Chase. She followed that album with her first full-length LP,ÊThe ArchAndroid whichÊblends the talents of executive producers Nate Wonder, Chuck Lightning, Janelle Monae and Sean "Diddy" Combs, with co-executive production by Big Boi of Outkast.ÊThe album garnered a 53rd Annual GRAMMY Award nomination this year for "Best Contemporary R&B Album" and the album’s first single, "Tightrope", featuring Outkast’s Big Boi, is also nominated for "Best Urban/Alternative Performance" this year.

Lincoln is the sponsor of ESSENCE Black Women in Music. ÊStay tuned to Essence.com for highlights and behind-the-scenes access to ESSENCE Black Women in Music. ÊFollow us on Twitter @essenceonline #BWIM. ÊJoin in the discussion at www.facebook.com/essence

About Essence Communications Inc.:

Essence Communications Inc. (ECI) is the number one media and communications company dedicated to African-American women.Ê With a multi-platform presence in publishing, live events, and online, the Essence brand is "Where Black Women Come First".Ê The company’s flagship publication, ESSENCE magazine, is the preeminent lifestyle magazine for African-American women; generating brand extensions such as the Essence Music Festival, ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood, Window on Our Women and Smart Beauty consumer insights, the Essence Book Club, Essence.com, and ventures in digital media (mobile, television and VOD). For 40 years, ESSENCE magazine, which has a brand reach of over 8 million, has been the leading source of cutting-edge information relating to every area of African-American women’s lives.ÊAdditional information about ECI and ESSENCE is available at essence.com.

Four new conservation projects funded in the Albemarle-Pamlico Estuary Region

RALEIGH – Staff with the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program announced grant awards today for four projects aimed at improving water quality in the Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine region, which covers parts of northeastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia.

The APNEP Citizens’ Advisory Committee selected the projects, each of which helps identify, protect and restore the natural resources of the Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system. Details about each project follow.

· Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have devised a novel use for some of the thousands of crab pots lost every year in coastal waters. Using the grant, the pots will be reshaped and placed in estuarine waters to provide prime oyster habitat and eliminate unintended bycatch. This approach aims to address marine pollution, ghost fishing, a lack of oyster habitat and other threats to environment.

· The North Carolina Coastal Federation was awarded funds to engage in habitat restoration on the banks of Bogue Sound. By replacing sandbags with native grasses, erosion rates can be reduced while purifying stormwater and creating valuable marsh habitats.

· Staff with the North Carolina Coastal Studies Institute will partner with government agencies and students to build, deploy and monitor Basic Observation Buoy, or BOB, units as part of an environmental education curriculum. The units can be used to collect information about water quality in the region’s rivers and sounds. Information from these buoys will supplement other data collection efforts in the region, including information collected by the Albemarle- Pamlico National Estuary Program’s Citizens’ Monitoring Network. The monitoring network includes volunteers who routinely gather water quality data.

· Staff and students with Elizabeth City Middle School will use the grant to reconfigure a stormwater system to support an educational and functional wetland habitat on school grounds. In addition to providing an outdoor classroom space, the new wetland will filter stormwater runoff before it enters adjacent natural wetlands and the Pasquotank River.

Each project will improve water quality and educate residents about those improvements, said Bill Crowell, director of the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program. Environmental stewardship efforts are critical for the long-term protection of coastal ecosystems in the Albemarle-Pamlico region.

Estuaries are areas where river and ocean waters mix, supporting a rich array of terrestrial and aquatic life. The Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system provides coastal storm protection and a key nursery area for many coastal fish and shellfish, which support the region’s fishing and tourism industries. The Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system was designated by Congress as an "estuary of national significance" in 1987. For more information, see www.apnep.org <http://www.apnep.org> , or contact Jim Hawhee, APNEP’s community specialist, at (919) 733-0121 or [email protected].