Project Green Schools believes strongly in U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools
Overview and Aims
The U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools (ED-GRS) is a public engagement initiative for school sustainability that is structured as a federal recognition award. By highlighting schools, districts, postsecondary institutions, and early learning centers’ cost-saving, health-promoting, and performance-enhancing sustainability practices, ED-GRS celebrates these institutions and brings more attention to their work.
Recipients of the award are invited to a ceremony in Washington, D.C. where they receive a plaque; are the subject of media attention; and have their efforts celebrated. Other schools, in turn, learn from their practices. In addition to communicating school sustainability practices, the award uses a small number of honorees each year to share resources that all schools can employ through its Green Strides School Sustainability Resource Hub.
The ED-GRS recognition award is not a certification or benchmarking program, although nominees may use an array of other programs to demonstrate their progress toward the award’s three Pillars. Instead, it is a one-time recognition of an institution’s progress in the award’s three sustainability focused pillars. For this reason, each early learning center, school, district, or postsecondary institution is only eligible to receive the award once and the award is accorded in one year only. The ED-GRS award does not convey federal funding to states, districts, schools, or IHEs.
- Reduce environmental impact and costs;
- Improve the health and wellness of schools, students, and staff; and
- Provide effective environmental and sustainability education.”
Learn more about the U.S Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools program here.
Check out highlights from the 2018 Green Ribbon Schools’ Honorees as well as closing remarks from Andrea Suarez Falken, Director of U.S DOE Green Ribbon Schools.
You can also look back at past Honorees and closing remarks here.
Highlights from the 2024 Honorees
PDF (4.40M)
Highlights from the 2023 Honorees PDF (4.66M)
Highlights from the 2022 Honorees PDF (6.34M)
Highlights from the 2021 Honorees PDF (5.1M)
Highlights from the 2020 Honorees PDF (4.87M)
Highlights from the 2019 Honorees PDF (12.1M)
Highlights from the 2018 Honorees PDF (7.48M)
Highlights from the 2017 Honorees PDF (2.2M)
Highlights from the 2016 Honorees MS Word (1.5M)
Highlights from the 2015 Honorees MS Word (1.71M)
Highlights from the 2014 Honorees MS Word (1.63M)
Highlights from the 2013 Honorees MS Word (437K)
Highlights from the 2012 Honorees MS Word (437K)
Please note: ED’s award is called “U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools” and has “District Sustainability Award” and “Postsecondary Sustainability Award” categories. “Green Ribbon Schools” without the “U.S. Department of Education” is not ED’s award, but instead is a program overseen by another organization.