The winners of the 2011 Green Gown Awards Australasia were announced at a fabulous dinner and award ceremony at the prestigious National Wine Centre of Australia, in Adelaide, South Australia on 29 September 2011. The evening was addressed by internationally renowned guest speaker and environmental activist Jon Dee – founder and Managing Director of Do Something!

In their second year and founded in the UK, the Awards were established to recognise sustainability excellence within institutions and this year drew winners in 6 categories, with 27 institutions submitting applications. Organisers were delighted with this overwhelming response from 20% of Australasian tertiary education institutions.

The Award submissions were subject to strict judging by a panel of independent experts, comprising representatives from 21 organisations, including Universities Australia, TAFE Directors Australia, DEEWR and industry experts such as Siemens and InterfaceFLOR. The judges were extremely impressed with the quality and standard of entries, and congratulated the efforts of all involved with the Award scheme.

The winning entries showcase the innovative and diverse initiatives being developed and implemented within our tertiary education institutions. The Continuous Improvement – Institutional Change category was awarded to La Trobe University for showcasing excellent leadership through embedding sustainability into every facet of their activities, whilst New Zealand’s University of Canterbury took out the Continuous Improvement – Specific Area award for their stream restoration project. The University of Adelaide won the Student Initiatives category for delivering a fun behaviour change program targeted at engaging students in sustainable transport. The Learning and Teaching category was won by RMIT University for incorporating sustainability within their Bachelor of Arts – Textile Design degree.

Commenting on the 2011 Awards, Leanne Denby – President of Australasian Campuses Towards Sustainability (ACTS), the managing organisation of the Awards said “we were delighted and overwhelmed with the positive and enthusiastic response from the sector. The Awards scheme celebrates outstanding initiatives and showcases the strength of the sustainability movement in the tertiary education sector. We recognise the awards as a fantastic initiative to support and reward the many efforts of institutions to drive the sustainability message forward. We look forward to the Awards going from strength to strength and inspiring others”.

The Green Gown Awards Australasia are run by ACTS and founded in the UK by the – Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) and HEEPI. The event was held in conjunction with the 11th International Australasian Campuses Towards Sustainability (ACTS) Conference and was attended by over 120 international and national sustainability practitioners from the tertiary education sector, business and government. ACTS is the sector champion for improving and promoting sustainability in the further and higher education sector. Representing 49 universities, TAFEs and polytechnics within Australasia which equates to 36% of the Australasian sector, and has seen unprecedented growth in membership since incorporating in 2006.

Continuous Improvement – Institutional Change
• Winner – La Trobe University
• Highly Commended – TAFE NSW Northern Sydney Institute

Continuous Improvement – Specific Area
• Winner – University of Canterbury
• Highly commended – Victoria University

Learning & Teaching
• Winner – RMIT University
• Highly Commended – Australian National University
• Highly Commended – Swinburne University of Technology

Student Initiatives and Campaigns
• Winner – The University of Adelaide
• Highly Commended – Curtin University

TAFE & Smaller Institutions
• Winner – TAFE NSW – New England Institute
• Highly Commended – TAFE SA Regional Institute

ACTS Award of Excellence
• Charles Sturt University