Observer Ethical Awards announced

Yesterday saw the results of this year's Observer Ethical Awards revealed after a three month public vote, in which thousands participated.

Winners of the readers' vote included Natural Collection, which claimed the 'best online retailer' award for the second year running, while Al Gore was named 'campaigner of the year', for his success with An Inconvenient Truth. They also chose Sainsbury's as the supermarket with the best green initiative of the Big Four, for its compostable plastic bags.

A separate set of categories were chosen by a celebrity panel of judges, including Julian Rhind-Tutt of Channel 4's Green Wing; Peter Duncan, chief scout and former Blue Peter presenter and Lucy Sigele, the Observer Magazine's ethical living columnist. The winners here included Terra Plana shoes, which was named 'best ethical fashion product of the year' and BioRegional Minimills Ltd, which received Invention of the Year for their unique initiative that turns straw into paper. Follow the jump for a list of the results in full.

Categories voted for by Observer Readers

Campaigner of the Year
Al Gore
Former US presidential candidate, Gore has taken global warming to Hollywood with his Academy Award winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth. It is difficult to imagine that there would be much of a debate on environmental destruction without him. His campaigning continues with the series of Live Earth concerts this July.

Best on-line retailer sponsored by The Ecologist
Natural Collection
This is the second year that Natural Collection have scooped the award for their ethical website and mail-order business. This August they will launch a new fashion range for which they've called in Allanna McAspurn of the Ethical Fashion Forum to source their products.

Best local retailer sponsored by The Ecologist
Infinity Foods
One of the country's leading organic produce wholesalers, Infinity's own shop, in Brighton, stocks a huge range of fairtrade and organic produce, sourced from some of the most ethical co-operatives in the world.

Politician of the Year
Caroline Lucas
Caroline Lucas, Green Party MEP, has spent the last 20 years campaigning on ethical issues, from GM, climate change and localised food production to mobile-phone safety.

Best Supermarket Initiative of the Year
Sainsbury's - Packaging that turns to compost
Sainsbury's has replaced 150m plastic containers with 'compostable packaging' made from maize, sugar cane or starch, which can naturally break down in a compost heap at home.

Categories voted for by celebrity judging panel

Invention of the Year
Bioregional Mini Mill
Minimills have the capacity to make paper from straw. The judges were impressed by a series of innovations developed over ten years which led to the construction of the working model. Funding has now been secured to take the project forward to a commercial mill. The Minimill has revolutionary implications for paper production.

The Ecover Award for Young Campaigner of the Year
Stratherrick School
The judges were charmed by Stratherrick's eco campaign and in awe of the level of commitment shown by the pupils. In every available space in the school there is a sustainable initiative in progress, from water butts to the wildlife garden. After collecting six month's worth of plastic bottles, the children attended a week-long, on-site workshop given by the Sustainable Education Trust and ended up building an impressive 6ft greenhouse made from 1,500 used bottles.

The Do-It-Yourself Award
Jonathan Sear and Paul Speight
Eco property developers, Jonathan Sear and Paul Speight, chose to eco-refit a run-down ex-council estate home - housing stock that is pretty much ignored by most sustainable projects. The house included solar water heating, a kitchen floor made of recycled trainer sole off-cuts and internal insulation of the sloping ceilings. They have formed the Lancaster Cohousing Company to create a 24-home scheme in the city, built on ecological values.

Ethical Fashion Product of the Year, sponsored by Jupiter Asset Management
Terra Plana
Terra Plana are an innovative, sustainable and fashionable shoe manufacturer based in Bermondsey, south London. Their shoes are made from chrome-free leather and use a signature stitching design that cuts down on the need for solvent glues and other sources of pollution.

Conservation Project of the Year
Carshalton Lavender
The project has seen the re-introduction of three acres of lavender fields to an area of south London. Carshalton lavender mixes conservation ideals with nostalgia, recreating, on a much smaller scale, what was once a very important local industry. It also educates younger residents on the benefits of preserving the local eco system.