Awards and Recognition
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville campus has taken large strides to “green” campus operations. These strides have been recognized on the local, regional, and national level. The University has served as a model and educator for campuses throughout the state and nation. This role is evident in the university’s recognition in the National Wildlife Federation’s recent document Higher Education in a Warming World: The Business Case for Climate Leadership on Campus ( find out more at www.nwf.org/CampusBusinessCase). The University of Tennessee is the only school in the state and one of only three in the Southeastern Conference to be recognized in this document.
Energy Efficiency Leadership Award (2009)
On October 2, 2009, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville was awarded an Energy Efficiency Leadership Award at the first-annual Summit for Campus Sustainability. The summit was coordinated by The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Tennessee Alumni and Students for Sustainable Campuses, the Middle Tennessee State University Sustainable Campus Fund, and TVA Green Power Switch.
UT Knoxville was recognized for the success of the Switch Your Thinking campaign, energy and water efficiency upgrades to Stokely Management Building, as well as for building a culture of sustainability on campus. Make Orange Green graduate assistant Sara Malley shared information about these projects with conference attendees, which included representatives from the EPA and TVA, along with faculty, staff, and students from universities across the state.
Make Orange Green in the News
Fall 2009
UT students take steps to conserve energy, money (WVLT)
UT aims to 'make orange green' (Knox News-Sentinel)
UT directing energy into courses on sustainability (Knox News-Sentinel)
Spring 2009
UT students, designers show off eco-friendly outfits (Knox News-Sentinel)
UT Hosts Electronics Recycling Event May 14-16 (WBIR)
Fall 2008
Tennessee Today UT Spotlight: Flipping the Switch
'Switch Your Thinking' aims to help UT reach energy-saving goal
UT switches to energy savings
UT turns to conservation in effort to cut utility bills
UT seeks to cut utility bills with conservation
UT students’ environmental fee put to good use
Spring 2008
UT Green Greening Program Receives 2008 Governor's Environmental Stewardship Award Honorable Mention
UT and EarthFest Partner for Climate Neutrality
MOG Recognized in the first of a three part eTorch series
MOG Recognized in the second of a three part eTorch Series
MOG Recognized in the third of a three part eTorch Series
Sustainability Manager Recognized for Making Orange Green
UT Knoxville Kicks Off Earth Month with 'Mount Trashmore'
Fall 2007
UT Certified as America's First Green Cleaning University
University of Tennessee press release
International Facilities Management Association
Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
Spring 2007
UT Wins Communications Award for the Make Orange Green program
Fall 2006
Enginnering Biodiesel Program
WATE Story
Knoxville News Sentinel Story
Appalachian Voices Story
Green Cleaning Certification (2007)
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville was the nation's first university certified for its green cleaning practices. The certification certified UT’s efforts to make the work of campus cleaning an environmentally friendly process. Green cleaning is a comprehensive approach in which practices affect every part of the cleaning process, from how employees are trained to the types of cleaning chemicals used. The certification applied to the seven buildings on the UT campus that are cleaned by UT personnel. In addition to the green cleaning certification for these buildings, UT has worked with contract cleaners in other campus buildings to use green certified materials in the cleaning process.
UT began using green cleaning products in academic and administrative buildings in the summer of 2006. The certification process was highly detailed, requiring UT to document its processes and materials. In addition, an auditor visited UT in October of 2006 to verify the university's work. The certification required that UT conduct extensive planning to make the cleaning process more efficient, including communication with clients and effective equipment maintenance. In addition, the certification required that all products used in the cleaning process be environmentally friendly.
Although UT is not currently certified, it maintains the use of green cleaning products and processes.
Make Orange Green Wins Keep Tennessee Beautiful Award
The University of Tennessee's Make Orange Green campaign took top honors for higher education programs at the Keep Tennessee Beautiful Awards this month.
Make Orange Green took home the Higher Education Award in the public education campaign category. The awards, presented biennially by KTnB and the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), recognize environmental achievements of organizations across the state that improves their community's appearance through public education programs.
The awards were presented by TDOT Commissioner Gerald F. Nicely. Award winners each received a grant of $1,000 to be used to further environmental education programs.
"This is a great honor for UT and for the Make Orange Green program," said Sarah Surak, public relations manager for UT's Facilities Services department. "We're proud of this recognition, and we look forward to encouraging even more people to take part in Make Orange Green."
Make Orange Green, rolled out in the fall of 2006, promotes and coordinates environmental stewardship activities at the University of Tennessee. The campaign is a collaborative effort of UT's Facilities Services department, Office of Public Relations and Student Environmental Initiatives Committee.
Make Orange Green's goal is to promote the positive steps that the University is taking in campus environmental efforts and provide information on how all members of the university community can help Make Orange Green.
UT Recycles, UT Cares Awards
2005 Green Schools Higher Education Awards
Each year the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation presents three Green School Higher Education Awards. The University of Tennessee was awarded with the 2005 Green Schools Higher Education Award for Solid Waste Reuse for its Spring Cleaning program and the Solid Waste Reduction award for the Make Orange Green program. The University was also awarded Honorable Mention Award for Solid Waste Recycling for it’s promotion of America Recycles Day.
2005 Green Schools Higher Education Award for Solid Waste Reuse
Every spring over 4,000 students move out of campus residence halls in less than five days. Unfortunately, students ready to leave campus for the summer do not take the time to find outlets to donate unwanted clothing, non-perishable food items, carpet, and household items. In recent years, University of Tennessee employees have reported finding everything from televisions to mini-refrigerators to clothing in campus dumpsters. In the spring of 2004 the Facilities Service’s UT Recycles, UT Cares program and the Department of University Housing initiated the Spring Cleaning. From May 3rd to May 7,th 2004 over 12,630 pounds of non-perishable food, household items, carpet, and clothing were collected from residence halls for reuse.
2005 Green Schools Higher Education Award for Waste Reduction
The Department of University Housing and the Facilities Services Department celebrated the Environmental Semester (Spring 2005) by challenging students living in residence halls to Make Orange Green. Each residence hall was challenged to decrease energy and water usage while increasing recycling levels from January to March. In all, the twelve campus residence halls used 565,781 less kilowatt hours in January-March 2005 than the average of the previous three years. The residents of the “winning” hall, the Apartment Residence Hall, will be rewarded with a cookout April 21st for their conservation efforts. The residence assistants of the Apartment Residence Hall worked hard to reduce energy use. They even convinced their hall clerk to work in the dark when possible!
2005 Green Schools Higher Education Honorable Mention Award for Solid Waste Recycling
For the second consecutive year, the UT Recycles, UT Cares program worked to educate students, faculty, staff, and members of the community through the national America Recycle’s Day campaign. The UT Recycles, UT Cares program organized events involving and educating the student body, faculty, staff, and the community.
In all, 1,052 members of the campus community promised to increase recycling rates and purchase more recycled content products by signing the America Recycles Day pledge. Six happy winners were randomly selected to win prizes ranging from a basketball signed by Pat Summit to stadium seat packages donated by the GSAR program.
2005 Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Awards
2005 Non-Profit Recycler of the Year: The University of Tennessee
Each year the Tennessee Recycling Coalition awards one outstanding Tennessee non-profit organization with the Non-Profit Recycler of the Year award. In 2005 The University of Tennessee was awarded with this honor for the Spring Cleaning program.
Spring Cleaning is administered during the May exam period and runs for one week. The Facilities Services Department and the Department of University Housing, along with several other partners work to collect items students moving out the residence halls no longer need. After two successful years, the program has collected over 20,000 pounds of clothing, non-perishable food, and household items from residence halls.
Tennessee Pollution Prevention Partnership Partner Recognition
In 2007, Deputy Commissioner Paul Sloan joined members of the Tennessee Pollution Prevention Roundtable in Nashville to recognize organizations who achieved Partner-level status in the Tennessee Pollution Prevention Partnership (TP3). Sloan presented The University of Tennessee, Knoxville campus with a TP3 Partner certificate. Only twenty-one Tennessee organizations demonstrated environmental improvements elevating them to Partner-level status in TP3. Acknowledging the Roundtable’s shared sense of environmental responsibility and the collaboration, Sloan noted, “These new TP3 Partners serve as real-world examples for others who seek to go beyond compliance. Their environmental innovations and accomplishments have conserved resources, lessened their impact on the natural world and saved money for the organization.”
2004 Knoxville News Sentinel Environmental Achievement Award
For the past twelve years the Knoxville News Sentential has recognized organizations that actively improved the local environment through recycling, cleanup, or local beautification programs. In 2004 The University of Tennessee’s UT Recycles, UT Cares program was awarded the 2004 Environmental Achievement Award for a Knoxville organization.
