Sponsored by the Office of Sustainability, and in support of UC’s strategic direction, Next Lives Here, and the goals outlined in the 2024 UC Sustainability + Climate Action Plan, the Sustainability Award Program serves as a celebratory and competitive framework for recognizing UC students, staff, and faculty who are doing exemplary work in sustainability. Any member of the UC community is welcome to submit a project that they feel meets the criteria outlined in either the Sustainability Faculty Award, Sustainability Student Award, Sustainability Research Award, or Sustainability Staff Award category.
The intention of the Sustainability Award is to encourage and incentivize the UC community to build and enhance our culture of sustainability while also supporting academic excellence, urban impact, and innovation. Nominations will be accepted on a rolling basis until January 17th, 2025, and award recipients will be celebrated during Sustainability@UC Week 2025. Each award winner will receive a $250 cash prize.
Award details
Faculty Award
This award recognizes a faculty member who is dedicated to cultivating a culture of sustainability at UC. Awardees exemplify a strong commitment to sustainability through teaching and/or service.
Qualifications: Must be a current UC faculty member.
Evaluative Criteria: Nominations will be judged using the following criteria: Innovation, Impact, Practicality, Inclusion, and Builds a Culture of Sustainability
Staff Award
This award recognizes a staff member or department’s outstanding initiative or leadership in their office and/or work. Awardees are dedicated to the enhancement of UC as a living laboratory and to integrating sustainability into an aspect of the operations of UC.
Qualifications: Must be a current staff member, office, or department at UC.
Evaluative Criteria: Nominations will be judged using the following criteria: Innovation, Impact, Practicality, Inclusion, and Builds a Culture of Sustainability
Research Award
This award recognizes an outstanding research achievement by an individual or team that is dedicated to cultivating a culture of sustainability at the University of Cincinnati and beyond.
Qualifications: Corresponding Principle Investigator must be a current UC faculty member and/or team. The research must have taken place during the current academic year.
Evaluative Criteria: Nominations will be judged using the following criteria: Commitment to equity and inclusion, scholarship, societal impact, commercialization activity and research partnership.
Student Award
This award recognizes a student, a group of students, or a student organization’s outstanding initiative or leadership related to sustainability. Awardees are innovative in their ways of solving problems to enhance UC’s culture of sustainability.
Qualifications: Must be a UC student, group of students, or student organization during at least one semester of the current academic year.
Evaluative Criteria: Nominations will be judged using the following criteria: Innovation, Impact, Practicality, Inclusion, and Builds a Culture of Sustainability
Nomination Process
Interested in submitting a nomination?
- Visit this link to submit a nomination.
- Sign in using your UC 6+2 and password
- Once logged in, scroll down until you find the FORMS section. The Nomination forms for each award should be listed separately. Select the form based on if you are nominating someone for the Faculty, Staff, Student, or Research Award.
- Fill out the form as instructed. Click NEXT
- Review your submission, then click SUBMIT.
Have additional questions? Email green@uc.edu
This program is administered and juried by the PACES Steering Committee. PACES Steering Committee members, families, and pets are not eligible for awards.
Awards Ceremony
Awardees will be celebrated on Thursday, January 30th, 2025, from 5:30-6:00pm. Join us afterwards for a reception and public lecture by Niall Kirkwood from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.
These events are part of Sustainability@UC Week 2025 (January 27th-February 1st), a week full of sustainability-related events and activities for students, researchers, educators, staff, and the public! This week is organized by the UC Office of Sustainability, the School of Environment and Sustainability (SEaS), Student Government, and the Center for Public Engagement with Science (PEWS). Stay tuned for the full schedule!