Green Gala

We Celebrate Leaders in Sustainability

Green Gala is UCLA’s annual sustainability award ceremony at which students, staff, faculty, and community partners are recognized for their work creating sustainable communities on and off campus. Since 2016, Green Gala is an opportunity to honor the sustainability work that makes UCLA a vibrant, innovative, and supportive place to study, work, and live.

Green Gala is hosted and organized every spring quarter by Team Green, a student-led program that is part of the Office of Residential Life. If you would like to nominate a person or program, check back here in the spring where our call for nominations will be posted.

2021 Winners

Congratulations to all the wonderful nominees and winners of our 2021 Green Gala Awards! Below are descriptions of each of the award categories and a list of past winners.

Programs

This category recognizes a sustainability program from this academic year, which educated the UCLA community about a sustainability-related topic, issue, or idea.

Past Winners

2021 – Basic Need COVID Relief and Food Insecurity

2020 – University Apartments Residents Association (UASRA) Free Food Program

2019 – Waste Awareness Week, Renewable Energy Association (REA)

2018 – Zero Waste Campaign, E3

2017 – USAC Facilities Commission Sustainability Committee

2016 – EcoChella (Coastalong)

Projects

This category recognizes an operational project led by students, staff, faculty or a combination which furthered sustainability efforts on campus by providing solutions to complex problems in order to meet UCLA sustainability goals.

Past Winners

2021 – UCLA Sustainability Social Media Team

2020 – CALPIRG Plastic Free Seas Campaign

2019 – Bruin Beekeepers Botanical Garden

Research Projects

This category recognizes an undergraduate or graduate student research project that focused on the advancement of sustainability efforts globally, in the local community, or right here at UCLA.

Past Winners

2021 – Community Housing Stability and Engagement and Sustainability Action Research (SAR) Plastic Implementation

2020 – Bruin Home Solutions (BHS) Mealworm Project

2019 – Sustainability Action Research (SAR) Sustainable Purchasing

2018 – Sustainable Ebony Harvesting in Cameroon

2017 – Sustainable Buildings: Pauley Pavilion

2016 – James Howe

Staff

This category recognizes a staff member (non-faculty, non-student staff) who has served as an advocate for sustainability initiatives through the course of their work at UCLA.

Past Winners

2021 – Duane Muller

2020 – Rey Soto

2019 – Kayla Shirey

2018 – Sajal Debnath

2017 – Javier Ayala

2016 – Stacey Beggs

Faculty

This category recognizes a faculty member who has made exemplary contributions to sustainability through research, coursework, policy, and/or community engagement during this academic year.

Past Winners

2021 – Michael Jerrett and Yifang Zhu

2020 – Rebecca Shipe

2019 – Carl Maida

2018 – Magali Delmas

2017 – Felicia Federico

2016 – Thomas Gillespie

Student Leaders

This category recognizes an individual undergraduate or graduate student who has demonstrated outstanding leadership while contributing to UCLA sustainability during this academic year, through research, programming, volunteering, outreach and/or being a role model for sustainability.

Past Winners

2021 – Kristen Soares and Elizabeth Tanner

2020 – Diana Nguyen and Joshua DeAnda

2019 – Elias Platte-Bermeo and Salome Vergne

2018 – Evelyn Alvarez, Pamela Lim, and Simon Ng

2017 – Mochi Li

2016 – Austin Park

Sustainability Achievement Award

This category recognizes the achievements of an individual who is a sustainability champion and agent of change on the UCLA campus.

Past Winners

2021 – Chidera Izuchukwu

2020 – Noah Garrison

2019 – Todd Lynch

2018 – Morgan Barnes

2017 – Paul Watkins

2016 – Cully Nordby