Raleigh, N.C. (April 23, 2015) – Springtime heralds the arrival of more than just blooming flowers and warmer temperatures. The season also brings Earth Day on April 22, as well as NC State’s Green Brick Awards, presented by the Campus Environmental Sustainability Team for outstanding contributions to campus sustainability.
Each year the campus community submits Green Brick Award nominations, and a selection committee chooses a student, a faculty member, a staff member and a campus department or student organization to receive the award. This year’s awards were presented on April 17.
The 2015 student winner is interdisciplinary studies major Hannah Frank, co-manager of the Campus Farmers Market and a core organizer for Fossil Free NCSU, the NC State chapter of a student-led campaign for climate neutrality and renewable energy in the UNC system.
The staff recipient, NC State Dining chef David Johnson, led the creation of a rooftop organic garden that grew produce served in the On the Oval restaurant on Centennial Campus.
Faculty winner Danesha Seth Carley, a crop scientist in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is coordinator of the college’s Office of Sustainability Programs. Among her many sustainability efforts, perhaps the most visible is the redesign and restoration of the No. 2 golf course at Pinehurst Resort, which was exposed to worldwide scrutiny when both the men’s and the women’s 2014 U.S. Open championships were held there on back-to-back weeks. The renovated course uses more native plants and requires much less water than a typical golf course.
NC State University Student Centers won the campus organization award for its efforts to enhance sustainability during the ongoing renovation and expansion of Talley Student Union. Talley is expected to earn LEED Silver certification when the project is completed. Since the renovated building reopened to the public in 2013, 30 percent of Talley’s waste has been diverted from landfills through recycling and composting. [read full story]
April 22, 2015