USU Sustainability Awards

Every year USU hosts the Annual Sustainability Awards to recognize contributions to a more environmental, economical, and equitable USU community. Thank you for your work on sustainability this year.

Student Sustainability Leadership Award- This award recognizes a current undergraduate or graduate student (or student group) who has provided exemplary leadership in sustainable actions within the USU community, including volunteerism, class projects, club events, and similar activities.
Sustainability Educator Award- This award recognizes a faculty member who has made
exemplary contributions to the education of students through sustainability-related education or research opportunities.
Employee Advocacy Award- This award is recognizes any USU employee who has made exemplary contributions as an advocate for advancing sustainability initiatives at USU or supported campus initiatives.
Innovation Award- This award recognizes any student, faculty, staff, or community member (or group) for ideas, actions, or programs that support USU community-wide sustainability efforts.

Award Winners 2021

Student Leadership Award

Sage Sutcliffe

Senior | Major in Human-Environment Geography | Minor in Environmental Studies and Sustainable Systems

Sage is passionate and strives to improve her own sustainable lifestyle and share her knowledge with others. She is a full-time student who has multiple jobs and responsibilities. Yet, she makes time to serve as the president of USU’s Sustainability Club and work in the Student Sustainability Office. Sage works tirelessly and enthusiastically to help students write sustainability grants to make changes across campus. Sage is truly a hard-working, deserving, intelligent, and sustainable queen.

Sustainability Educator Award

Courtney Flint

Professor, Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology

Courtney has helped our USU community become more sustainable through her teaching, research, and mentoring. She is part of the leadership team of USU’s Climate Adaptation Science Program, and Courtney has taken on an Extension specialist role to address the wellbeing and sustainability of communities throughout Utah and the Intermountain West. Her research projects about environmental-related wellbeing, water reuse perceptions, and human-river relationships are instructive about the connection between people and nature.

Innovation Award

Cristal Gonzalez Rosas

Senior | Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning

Cristal Gonzalez Rosas embodies sustainability in every aspect of her life. Cristal and fellow interns worked with the City of Logan on creating a sustainability podcast and translating outreach materials. Additionally, Cristal was involved in Dr. Courtney Flint's environmental sociology project about wellbeing in the Wasatch. In her personal life, Cristal finds ways to live sustainably, creating small habits like reusing shopping bags, washing clothes in cold water, biking, walking, and showering with lukewarm water. Cristal shows by example that little actions add up to important results.

Advocacy Award

Rebecca McFaul

Professional Practice Associate Professor

Rebecca is a member of the Fry Street Quartet and a leader in an ambitious program of environmental sustainability. FSQ’s Crossroads Project combines science, storytelling, and music as a backdrop for contemplation of human effects on Earth. The quartet recently developed an online premiere to reach a broader audience without travel. Additionally, Rebecca has been instrumental in increasing climate awareness in the NOVA Chamber Music Series. At USU, she has been equally impactful. She helped develop USU’s Planetary Thinking workshop and the CCA Americorps Sustainability Fellow position. Her students cite her as an inspiration to shift from being climate-aware to climate-activists.

USU Sustainability Awards

Award Winners 2021