The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) is now accepting nominations for the 2016 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence. The Indiana Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence is Indiana’s most prestigious environmental recognition award. Although IDEM accepts nominations from all Indiana citizens and organizations, the selection process is highly competitive and only one winner will be selected to receive this award. The award will be presented in September or October 2016.
Examples of Eligible Projects
The following provides examples of eligible project categories and a link to some previous award recipients and their projects. This information is intended to inspire others to submit a nomination to get recognition for innovative and sustainable programs or projects.
Projects that are eligible for award include, but are not limited to, those that are demonstrating exemplary environmental, economic, or social benefits achieved by innovative:
- green infrastructure projects;
- initiatives to reduce toxics use;
- pollution prevention projects;
- food waste reduction efforts, recycling and composting programs;
- manufacturing process improvements and/or “green tech” solutions;
- initiatives to “green” businesses, farms, schools, recreational, sports, health care and hospitality facilities;
- clean energy projects;
- natural resource/habitat protection or restoration efforts;
- energy efficiency improvements; and
- education and training programs.
The roof-mounted solar array at Cornerstone is pictured. Photo provided.
Examples of previous award-winning projects
Selection Criteria
Nominations will be evaluated by a review committee selected by the Office of Program Support (OPS). The review committee will include representatives from children’s health, economic development, agriculture, education, energy development, government, pollution prevention, and recycling. The review committee will evaluate the project using the Narrative Guide [PDF].
- A full description of the project, along with a brief project summary
- An explanation of how the project serves to advance environmental excellence
- The project’s economic benefits and savings, in detail
- How the project has improved the community or workplace
- How the project reflects leadership commitment to these improvements
- How the project can be transferred to other organizations
- The features that make the project outstanding
- The project’s overall environmental impact
Eligibility Requirements
- Project must be located in Indiana.
- Project must have been fully implemented in 2014 or 2015.
- Nominee must provide quantifiable data to support their nomination.
- Nominee must have a positive reputation for environmental health and safety. Unresolved compliance issues or enforcement actions involving the nominee or its parent company may eliminate a project from consideration for an award.
- Project must be voluntary (not the result of federal or state mandates, regulations, or enforcement decrees).
- Nominee must agree to share the project information with others through written materials that will appear in various IDEM publications and web pages.
Nominations must be received (not postmarked) by IDEM by 5:00 PM (EDT) on Friday, May 13, 2016. Late nominations will not be accepted. If you would like to verify receipt of your nomination, call (800) 988-7901 or (317) 233-5434.
How to Complete and Submit a Nomination
- Complete the Nomination Cover Page. The Nomination Cover Page is available on the IDEM Forms page under the form name “Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence – 51656”.
- In the Project Summary section (on Nomination Cover Page):
- Summarize the main points and highlights of the project.
- Include specific and concise descriptions of the environmental, economic, and social benefits and overall merit of the project using key concepts from the other sections of the nomination.
- For long-term projects (those initiated prior to 2013), focus on the environmental, economic, and/or social benefits achieved within the past three years and explain how the project is a model for other successful projects.
- In the Project Summary section (on Nomination Cover Page):
- Follow the Narrative Guide to prepare your complete project description. Please limit the nomination to ten double-sided pages.
- Your nomination should include the following:
- Nomination Cover Page.
- A full description of the project using the Narrative Guide.
- Any supplemental material(s).
- Please submit only one copy of each nomination.
- Nominations may be submitted via ground mail, e-mail, fax, or hand delivery to the addresses provided below. If submitting via fax or e-mail, please ensure all graphs and charts will print legibly.
- For more information call (800) 988-7901 or (317) 233-5434.
Nomination Submission Information
Nominations must be received (not postmarked) by IDEM by 5:00 PM (Eastern Time) on Friday, May 13, 2016.
Mailing Address: (for submission via U.S. or overnight mail)
Indiana Department of Environmental Management
Office of Program Support
ATTN: Governor’s Award
100 North Senate Avenue Room 1316
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2251
Physical Address: (for hand-delivery)
Indiana Department of Environmental Management
Office of Program Support
100 North Senate Avenue Room 1316 (13th floor of building)
Indianapolis, Indiana
FAX: (317) 234-8752
- Please write on the FAX cover sheet “ATTN: Governor’s Awards”
E-mail: ctap@idem.in.gov
Nominations must be received (not postmarked) by IDEM by 5:00 PM (Eastern Time) on Friday, May 13, 2016. Late nominations will not be accepted. If you would like to verify receipt of your nomination, call (800) 988-7901 or (317) 233-5434.
Selection of Award Recipients
After the nominations are received, IDEM will conduct a background investigation of each nomination’s environmental history with IDEM, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, and the Indiana Department of Revenue. Nominations with a reasonably positive reputation with all of these agencies will be forwarded to the review committee for consideration. Past compliance issues will not necessarily eliminate a nomination from consideration. The review committee will evaluate the severity of any compliance issues during the review process.
Note: Information submitted in nominations for Governor’s Award becomes public record. Nominees that wish for certain information submitted in a nomination to remain confidential may call IDEM’s Office of Program Support at (800) 988-7901 for more information.
