SAN DIEGO, June 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Cox Communications, in partnership with The Trust for Public Land, is honoring volunteers who are creating, preserving or enhancing outdoor spaces.

Nominations are being accepted at CoxConservesHeroes.com for environmental volunteers in Cox's service areas in Orange County, San Diego County and Santa Barbara through 5 p.m. on June 21.

Three finalists from each area will compete through online voting to be named the Cox Conserves Heroes for Orange County, San Diego and Santa Barbara.

Each of the three winners will receive $5,000 to donate to a local environmental nonprofit organization of their choice. The benefiting nonprofits will also receive a public service announcement and promotional air time valued at $10,000 and 20 volunteer hours from Cox Communications employees.

Each area's second- and third-place winners will receive $2,500 and $1,000 respectively to donate to their environmental nonprofit of choice.

The Cox Conserves Heroes program was created through a partnership between The Trust for Public Land and Cox Enterprises, the parent company of Cox Communications, to honor everyday conservationists. The program also runs in Arizona, Atlanta, Louisiana, San Francisco and Virginia. More than $280,000 has been donated to local nonprofits through the Cox Conserves Heroes program.

Para más información, visita  CoxConservesHeroes.com or find us on Facebook.

Social Media: #CoxConservesHeroes and #CoxConservesHero

About Cox Conserves
The parent company of Cox Communications, Cox Enterprises is a leading communications, media and automotive services company. Launched in 2007 by Chairman Jim Kennedy, Cox Conserves is Cox Enterprises' national sustainability program. Cox Conserves focuses on reducing waste and energy consumption, as well as conserving water. The program engages each of the company's major subsidiaries (Cox Communications, Manheim, Cox Media Group and AutoTrader.com) and encourages Cox Enterprises' 50,000 employees and their families to engage in eco-friendly practices.

About The Trust for Public Land
Founded in 1972, The Trust for Public Land is the leading nonprofit working to conserve land for people. Operating from more than 30 offices nationwide, The Trust for Public Land has protected more than three million acres from the inner city to the wilderness and helped generate more than $34 billion in public funds for conservation. Nearly ten million people live within a ten-minute walk of a Trust for Public Land park, garden, or natural area, and millions more visit these sites every year.

SOURCE Cox Communications