The City of Raleigh announced on May 8 the winners of its 2026 Environmental Awards, recognizing individuals and organizations for their contributions to sustainability, climate action, and environmental stewardship.
The awards highlight efforts across a range of categories including community resilience, business innovation, waste reduction, education, and creative arts. The recognition is part of Raleigh’s ongoing commitment to making the city more resilient and advancing sustainability for all residents.
Among this year’s honorees are George Jones, Executive Director of Partners for Environmental Justice (PEJ), who received the Raleigh Environmental Stewardship Award. PEJ focuses on restoring urban wetlands like Walnut Creek and engaging communities in disaster preparedness and clean-up efforts. Laura Olsen was recognized with the Business Innovation for Environmental Stewardship Award for her work transforming landfill-bound materials into architectural concrete through her company Trashy. Other awardees include Athena Wollin for community resilience advocacy; Raleigh Tool Share—a city collaboration—for equipment electrification; NC State Sustainability Career Development Program led by Keondra Jenkins; Food Recovery Network led by Brynn Capuano; Highland UMC Community Victory Garden; Dr. Angela Allen’s Environmental Resource Water Assessment Training Program at NC State; Raleigh Community Kickstand; Southeast Raleigh Garden Collaborative; and several student-led initiatives in art and stormwater awareness.
Students were also celebrated through the Capture It! contest which invites local youth to create art or videos demonstrating ways to protect streams from pollution. This year’s still art winner was “Choking the Blue” by Lily Burnette and Reece Newman, while Khloe Moye, Kaitlyn Gronotte, and Ben Borie won in video with “Capture It! How to Protect Your Watershed.” Alexandra van Dorsten received the Stormwater Smart Award for connecting students with local waterways through hands-on science projects.
The Trashion Fashion competition showcased recycled garments made by high schoolers, college students, and aspiring designers using materials otherwise destined for landfills. Winners included An Nguyen (“The Paper Duchess”), Charlie Gocmen Nordwell (“Actions Have Consequences”), Abbigale Hoover (“Renewable Rose”), Christina Mellott (“Colors of the Corset”), Rachael Thomas (“Conscious Craft Collection”), and Amara Robinette (“Does This Dress Make Me Look Trashy?”).
A public gallery event featuring contest artwork will be held May 14 at Pullen Arts Center. The gallery will remain open throughout May and June.
Raleigh is home to professional sports teams including the Stanley Cup-winning Carolina Hurricanes according to the official website. The City contributes to community life with its sports scene as well as focusing on delivering public services through its city manager’s office according to its official website. Governance is provided by an elected city council supported by a city manager overseeing operations as outlined on its official website.
