Earth Day Environmental Awards

The Earth Day Environmental Awards for Leadership and Sustainable Initiatives celebrate individuals or groups who are making a positive environmental impact, either through an exemplary new initiative or body of work. The awards recognize individuals or groups making positive environmental impacts, whether on campus, or in the community at large. 

Earth Day 2018 Award Recipients

Zoe Holderness

Zoe Holderness

Zoe Holderness is an undergraduate student majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Zoe serves as Greek Sustainability's Executive Vice President, Collegiate Panhellenic Council's Director of the Environment, Alpha Phi's Director of Sustainability, and is a member of Student Sustainability Advisory Council. She is an advocate for the environment, picking up trash as she walks and educating her peers on the negative implications of single-use items, the importance of energy and water reduction, in thinking about how their food is sourced and how far it travels. Zoe leads by example, and the long-lasting impact of her work is the way she influences the perceptions and practices of those around her. 

Maithili Appalwar

Maithili Appalwar

Maithili Appalwar is an undergraduate student majoring in Industrial Engineering. Maithili is the founder of a social enterprise that aims to create low-cost solutions to help farmers in developing countries harness the power of natural resources. The flagship product is called Jalasanchay, which means conserving water in Hindi. Jalasanchay is a cost-effective lining used to create ponds on farms. Each pond, on average, stores 3 million liters of water. Jalasanchay has been piloted at over 4,000 ponds in India, helping farmers to extend the growing season by providing consistent access to water throughout the year. The ponds also reduce the need for drilling bore wells, which  helps to restore the level of the underground water table.