2025 Student Sustainability Award Winners

The 2025 Student Sustainability Awards intend to recognize important contributions to UC Irvine and the Orange County region for sustainable progress, advocacy, and research by students during 2024-2025. University of California, Irvine undergraduate and graduate students of the current academic year are eligible for these awards.

We received over 15 nominations for the 2025 Student Sustainability Awards, and are extremely proud to announce the winners of the awards, and a few honorable mentions.

 

1. Outstanding Sustainability Research Contributions

This award is intended to recognize a student that has contributed greatly to sustainability research at UC Irvine. This award celebrates the important place students have in research at UC Irvine. The student receiving this award should have substantial contributions to a research team, individual research, or faculty research that influences sustainability in a particular field.

The winner of this year's award is:

Amin Akbari for Peer-to-peer residential charger sharing: Exploring public perceptions in California

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honorable mention: June Griffin's "Demystifying the tropics: FTIR characterization of pantropical woods and their

 

2. Outstanding Sustainability Initiative

This award intends to recognize a student, registered campus organization, or other student group for the implementation of an event, program, project, or other that greatly enhanced sustainability at UC Irvine or in the surrounding community. This award celebrates the student leadership needed to improve sustainability at UC Irvine through many different initiatives.

The winner of this year's award is:

Food Recovery Network at UCI for their Mariner's Church Farmers Market Recovery project

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honorable Mention: Birding at UCI (BAU)'s "Bird Safe Glass Initiative"

 

3. Outstanding Sustainability Champion

This award intends to recognize an individual student that has contributed greatly to the improvement of sustainability at UC Irvine. This award celebrates student leadership, innovation, and love for UC Irvine and wanting to improve its sustainability efforts. The student receiving this award should have impacted other students, the campus, and/or the community through their efforts this year.

The winner of this year's award is:

Jaz Romero

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honorable mention: Chloe Selby

 

Congratulations to these award winners! If you have any questions about the nomination process or awards, please reach out to sustainability-center@uci.edu.