A pair of environmental recognition programs have joined together to honor organizations that have achieved significant achievements in protecting the environment and helping sustain the future. Winners of the Governor’s Sustainability Awards and the Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact Awards Program were recognized during a ceremony and luncheon in Oak Brook on Nov. 9, 2012.
Twenty-one Illinois companies and organizations have been honored with Governor’s Sustainability Awards presented by the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC). ISTC is a unit of the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois. Since 1987, ISTC has presented Governor’s awards to organizations in Illinois that have demonstrated a commitment to environmental excellence through outstanding and innovative sustainability practices that will also save money and help the economy. Any Illinois public or private organization is eligible to apply for an award. Organizations who are winning for the first time received the Sustainability Award. Those organizations that have won in past years and are continuing their environmental efforts are awarded a Continuous Improvement Award.
"These businesses and organizations have shown that it is possible to create and maintain conditions under which people and the environment can exist in productive harmony, and fulfill the social and economic requirements of present and future generations,” says Manohar Kulkarni, ISTC Director.
The 2012 Governor’s Sustainability Award winners are:
Sustainability Award (first time winners)
Advocate Health Care – Oak Brook
Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd. – Rosemont
CCH, a Wolters Kluwer business – Chicago
City of Moline – Moline
Clarke – Roselle
County of Will – Joliet
Flex-N-Gate Urbana – Urbana
Fluorecycle, Inc. – Ingleside
Knauz Automotive Group – Lake Bluff
The Label Printers LP – Aurora
Lawrence Foods, Inc. – Elk Grove Village
Naperville Park District – Naperville
Naval Station Great Lakes – Great Lakes
The Peterson Garden Project – Chicago
Quaker Foods & Snacks - Bridgeview
Testa Produce, Inc. – Chicago
Wight & Company – Darien
Continuous Improvement
Caterpillar Technical Center – Mossville
Farmland Foods, Inc. – Monmouth
Vaughan & Bushnell Mfg. Co. – Bushnell
Village of Schaumburg – Schaumburg
The other recognition is for participants in the Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact, which outlines
environmental goals that colleges and universities may adopt on their campuses. The Compact includes objectives such as purchasing renewable energy, implementing green building practices, developing sustainable transportation options, improving water conservation, and incorporating sustainable dining practices. The program offers universities and colleges three levels of participation:
• Bronze institutions making a commitment to creating a sustainability program and engaging the campus
community.
• Silver institutions which are ready to make targeted commitments to greening their operations and monitoring performance.
• Gold for institutions that are integrating sustainability throughout their campus and working towards measured improvement. The twenty-one Illinois colleges and universities being honored, and their recognition level are:
Danville Area Community College – Danville – Bronze
DePaul University – Chicago – Bronze
Elmhurst College – Elmhurst – Bronze
Heartland Community College – Normal – Bronze
Illinois Institute of Technology – Chicago – Gold
Joliet Junior College – Joliet – Gold
Kankakee Community College – Kankakee – Gold
Lewis & Clark Community College – Godfrey – Gold
Lewis University – Romeoville – Bronze
Lincoln Land Community College – Springfield – Bronze
Moraine Valley Community College – Palos Hills – Gold
Northwestern College – Bridgeview – Bronze
Northwestern University – Chicago – Bronze
Roosevelt University – Chicago – Bronze
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville – Bronze
Southwestern Illinois College – Belleville – Bronze
Triton College – River Grove – Bronze
University of Illinois at Chicago – Gold
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign – Gold
Waubonsee Community College – Aurora – Gold
Wilbur Wright College – Chicago – Bronze
The Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is the home of the Illinois State Scientific Surveys: Illinois Natural History Survey, Illinois State Archaeological Survey, Illinois State Geological Survey, Illinois State Water Survey, and Illinois Sustainable Technology Center. It was established by statute in 2008 and builds on the Surveys' reputations for basic and applied research and service.
