We live in a day and age when a clean environment and the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions are paramount in the automotive industry. It's nice to see, regardless of the reasoning behind it, and with that a lot more attention gets placed towards the Green Car Journal's Green Car of the Year award.

Since 2005, the Green Car of the Year award has been handed out at the LA Auto Show in November, and they have just announced the five finalists. For this year, it's not surprising that there are no diesels that made the short list. Recently, the Volkswagen AG group gave both trophies back for its overall wins with the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI and the 2010 Audi A3.

For 2016, Audi makes the list again with the A3 e-tron, as well as the Chevrolet Volt, Honda Civic, Hyundai Sonata and Toyota Prius. It's a list filled with electrics, hybrids and fuel-efficient gas models.

“This is the strongest field of finalists we’ve seen in our annual Green Car of the Year program,” said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal. “Each of the five nominees makes a strong environmental statement in distinctly different ways, with a common strategy of recognizing what’s most important to today’s drivers. Their use of wide-ranging powertrain technologies underscores that all approaches are essential to achieving important environmental goals.”

The award will be handed out at the Green Car of the Year's press conference at 9:00am PT on Thursday, November 19.