The annual Environmental Leadership Awards were held on Wednesday, April 24 to recognize students, faculty, staff, and community members who demonstrate exceptional Environmental Leadership in their everyday lives.

At the awards, three employees were honored who inspire their peers to live more sustainably through their everyday actions in the workplace.

Faculty: Jon Hathaway

As an Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Jon goes above and beyond every day to engage with his students about the importance of clean waterways. He has used green fee funds to complete a project on Second Creek to better understand how the river flows and to find ways to improve the creek. Additionally, he also brought in students to help with the field research and data analysis.

More recently he was selected to receive the Outstanding Faculty Award by the UT Chapter of Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society. He received the award for his consistent and genuine concerns for student success. He has been a mentor for numerous students by involving them in his research and giving them invaluable experience. He truly cares for their success as students and their life after UT.

His research in the area of Water Resources Engineering is inspiring. By having all-encompassing projects that help us better understand, and therefore improve the waterways that go through UT, Knoxville, and East Tennessee, we are able to maintain the beautiful environment around us.

Jon was also the 2016 recipient of the National Science Foundation CAREER award. It is professors like Jon who motivate students, get them involved in projects, that make UT a great place to be.

Staff: Stephanie Langley

Stephanie is a staff member in First Year studies who’s quiet steps make a big difference. She has done all she can to make the events run through her department more environmentally friendly. She worked with UT Recycling to ensure events are zero waste, and even her choice of giveaways was mindful of reducing waste.

She had Mug Project stickers placed on all tumblers before they were given out hoping to further the impact of this thoughtful, sustainable gift. Stephanie is also very mindful of the way she goes about promoting environmentalism with her peers. Her nominee mentioned that she almost always brings her lunch in reusable bags and eats off a ceramic plate that she washes after lunch every day. She refills her mug at dining facilities rather than using disposable cups.

Stephanie is also a gardener and often brings her homegrown veggies in to share with coworkers when she has extra. In addition, she walks everywhere around campus rather than driving, often even when her meetings are downtown or further down Cumberland.

She’s not loud about it, but sometimes the best and most impactful people aren’t pushy about things. Her personal practices make everyone around her want to be better.

Lifetime Achievement: Dr. Joanne Logan

The final employee award of the night was the “John Nolt Lifetime Achievement Award”, which recognizes an employee who will make a lasting impact at UT past their tenure. Dr. Joanne Logan has been a driving force for all things environmental for over 30 years.

She was instrumental force in both forming and keeping the Committee on the Campus Environment going and having it be as successful as it is today. She is an extremely hands-on employee, always making sure the job gets done, no matter what it is.

Dr. Logan helped created the “Green House Living, Learning Community” to further engage students on what it means be live sustainably on campus. She also developed the first-ever first year studies course focused on sustainability, which eventually lead to the creation of the Sustainability Major. In short, sustainability on our campus would not be what it is today without her.

Above all that, she inspires everyone around her to live more sustainably, through showing both the importance of it and easy ways to infuse a sustainable lifestyle into your life. She shares a passion for the environment with her students and has inspired many on this campus. She was extremely deserving of this award.