JUNE

Green Impact has quickly become ACTS' flagship sustainability engagement and change program. It supports organisations, staff and students in the Australasian region in making tangible changes to their practices, processes and ways of working towards a more positive future. Over the last three years, our Green Impact program has grown into a strong network of staff, students and leaders who are creating positive sustainability changes in their organisations, and has become a valued part of the long-standing Green Impact community.

This year, we are delighted to launch the very first Green Impact Australasia Awards to celebrate the innovations and innovators in sustainability by our regional Green Impact participants. Each of our finalists have been recognised by their respective institutions as individual or team champions as part of the 2019 Green Impact program, and are now in the running to win one of three Australasian Awards.

Congratulations to the well-deserving finalists, who represent sustainability leaders from ten different institutions across the three award categories! We look forward to announcing the winners via a live-stream announcement on the Green Impact Australasia Facebook page at 6pm AEST / 8pm NZST on Thursday 2nd July 2020. 

STAFF CHAMPION FINALISTS
Peta White – Viridescent Green, Deakin University
Annie McKillop – Greenarians, Auckland University of Technology
Daniel Hempel – PVCE, UNSW Sydney
Tess Tuxford – Victoria Amazonica, Victoria University of Wellington

STUDENT CHAMPION FINALISTS
George He – Advancing Research, The University of Melbourne
Sanjna Ullal – Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Monash University
Chester James-Smith – Rural Clinical School, University of Tasmania
Madeleine Ford – Green Health, The University of Western Australia

ENGAGEMENT INNOVATION FINALISTS
Eco Heroes – The University of Melbourne
Green Eyed MonStars – La Trobe University
Sustainability 407+ – Monash University
Evergreens – The University of Adelaide
 

Applications for the 2020 Green Gown Awards Australasia are now open, with a few adaptions to make the submission process a bit easier this year:

• Deadlines have been pushed back to later in the year for both application stages. Please review all key deadlines on our website.
• Finalist case study videos are no longer an eligibility requirement. Finalists still have the option to submit a video if they wish, or complete a short case study template as an alternative. 
• All finalists will be showcased and winners officially announced as part on an online event in November.

The finalists of the 2020 International Green Gown Awards have been announced, with the winners to be announced via a virtual awards event on 8th July 2020 as part of the United Nations High Level Political Forum. 

We congratulate all the finalists on their exceptional sustainability initiatives and wish our regional winners all the best of luck for the July announcement:

Benefitting Society: Macquarie University 'Yanama budyari gumada'
Walking with good spirit on Darug Country, Western Sydney

Student Engagement: University of Wollongong 'Desert Rose'
A House for Life Demonstrating Sustainable Dementia-Friendly Design

Sustainability Institution of the Year: Charles Sturt University
Creating a world worth living in

UNSW Sydney has released their 2019 Environmental Sustainability Report, detailing progress in the first year of their Environmental Sustainability Plan (ESP) 2019-21. Highlights feature expanded onsite solar generation capacity, successfully piloting the Green Impact program and commitment to divest from fossil fuels by 2025!

UNSW President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Jacobs said that despite the effects of the catastrophic bushfire season in Australia and the uncertainty of how the COVID-19 pandemic would affect the University, the commitment to making our campuses and operations more sustainable remained stronger than ever.