The Green Gown Awards are awards given to acknowledge institutions of higher education such as colleges and universities on their exceptional efforts towards sustainability,[1] under the purview of the Environmental Association of Universities and Colleges (EAUC), with support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).[2] The awards are referred to as the "highest recognition given to higher education institutions that carry out sustainability efforts" in reaching the United Nations (UN)'s Sustainable Development Goals.[3][4]
The original awards, now the Green Gown Awards UK & Ireland, were given to institutions in United Kingdom and Ireland. This was later expanded with the Green Gown Awards Australasia in 2010 and the International Green Gown Awards from 2014.[5] Among the most sought-after category is the Sustainability Institution of the Year.[6]
Background
The first Green Gown Awards were awarded by EAUC in 2004 to institutions of higher education in United Kingdom and Ireland.[5] These first awards were made in six categories - Energy Efficiency, Sustainable Construction, Transport, Sustainable Procurement, Waste Management, and Water Efficiency, with the categories changing and expanding in later years.[7]
There are two levels of acknowledgement in the awards: Winner (awarded to best institution within a category) and Highly Commended (sometimes awarded as an honourable mention).[6]
In 2010, the awards expanded beyond United Kingdom and Ireland. The original awards programme in those two countries was renamed Green Gown Awards UK & Ireland and another programme was created for the Australasian region, Green Gown Awards Australasia.[5] The awards were later expanded to French-speaking countries in 2014, as Les trophées des campus responsables.[5]
The awards were further expanded to the rest of the world with the introduction of the International Green Gown Awards in 2014, with the first such awards being won by RMIT University (Australia) for the category Continuous Improvement: Institutional Change, Hull College (UK) for Social Responsibility, and Manchester Metropolitan University (UK) for Student Engagement.[8]
Since 2019, the award categories have included Sustainability Institution of the Year, awarded to institutions who sustained a whole-institution commitment and delivered impact towards sustainability while being a sustainable organisation as a whole.[6]
The International Green Gown Awards have had separate winners in each category for small and large institutions since 2020.[9]
Winners
International Green Gown Awards
The United Kingdom is the country with the most awards, totalling 15 awards from 12 institutions. The individual institution with the most wins is International Islamic University Malaysia, Malaysia with six awards, including four awards in one year in 2024, making it also the only institution to win more than two awards in the same year.[10]
2014
2015
2016
2017-2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
- ^a Although the Chinese University of Hong Kong is located in Hong Kong, the award specifically noted the recipient country as China, not Hong Kong.
References
