Airports Going Green® Awards

Airports Going Green® brings together aviation leaders and innovators, providing national and international airport and airline perspectives on sustainability. Awards will be given in the following categories:

  • Outstanding Individual Leadership: To recognize an airport’s individual “sustainability champion”
  • Outstanding Airport Leadership: To recognize an airport or airport system’s governing body
  • Outstanding Tenant, Concession, or Vendor Program: To recognize any type of sustainability project or program undertaken at an airport by a tenant, concessionaire, or vendor
  • Outstanding Sustainability Infrastructure Development: To recognize an airport’s sustainable design and/or construction project
  • Outstanding Sustainability Program: To recognize an airport’s sustainable program, project, or initiative, not related to a design or construction project
  • Outstanding Airline Project or Program: To recognize any type of airline sustainability project or program

Winners will be recognized during the AGG Awards Luncheon on November 15.

Past Recipients

2021 Airports Going Green® Award Recipients: 

  • Pioneer in Aviation Sustainability: Robert Horton, Vice President of Environmental Affairs & Sustainability, Dallas Fort Worth
  • Outstanding Sustainability Program: Introduction and Use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel, San Francisco International Airport
  • Outstanding Sustainability Infrastructure Development:
    • San Francisco International Airport, SFO AirTrain Project
    • Allegheny County Airport Authority, PIT Microgrid at Pittsburgh International Airport
    • Dallas Fort Worth, Integrated Operations Center
  • Outstanding Tenant, Concession, or Vendor Program: US Supply House, Cracking the Plastic Code  

2021 Honorable Mentions: 

  • Outstanding Individual Leadership: Dan Mann, Executive Director, Louisville Regional Airport Authority
  • Outstanding Sustainability Program: Philadelphia International Airport

2020 Airports Going Green Award Recipients:

  • Pioneer in Aviation Sustainability: Bryan C. Wagoner, P.E., Director, Department of Environment and Sustainability, Wayne County Airport Authority  
  • Outstanding Sustainability Program: Indianapolis Airport Authority Sustainability Toolkit
  • Leadership in Development Practices for High Performance Buildings: Anthony Bernheim, Healthy & Resilient Buildings Program Manager, San Francisco International Airport
  • Leadership in Sustainability Enterprise Management: Brendan J. Reed, Director of Planning & Environmental Affairs, San Diego International Airport/San Diego County Regional Airport Authority

2019 Airports Going Green Award Recipients:

  • Pioneer in Aviation Sustainability Award: Elizabeth Leavitt, Senior Director, Environment and Sustainability, Port of Seattle
  • Sustainable Alternative Jet Fuel Trial at Van Nuys Airport, Los Angeles World Airports
  • Green Cooling Tower Program, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
  • Airport Economic Development and Revitalization Project, Greater Rochester International Airport
  • Todd Cavender, Director, Environment & Sustainability, Indianapolis Airport Authority
  • Flight for the Planet, United Airlines

2019 Honorable Mentions:

  • Renewable Natural Gas Initiative, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport
  • Solar Power Plant, El Dorado International Airport, Bogota, Columbia
  • American Airlines, Hangar 2, Chicago O’Hare International Airport

2018 Airports Going Green Honorable Mention Recipients

View photo of Honorable Mention Recipients

  • Sustainable Water Quality Program at Jackson Hole Airport, Wyoming
  • Conexao Escola “School Connection,” Rio de Janeiro International Airport, Brazil
  • Leadership of Jeff Daniels, Assistant Director Maintenance Operations, Greater Orlando Aviation Authority
  • Hilton Chicago O'Hare Airport Mattress Recycling Program, Chicago, Illinois
  • Raptor Relocation Project, United Airlines
  • Fort Lauderdale - Hollywood International Airport Parking Structure Sustainability

2017 Airports Going Green Award Recipients

  • Sam Mehta - 2017 James M. Crites Aviation Sustainability Pioneer Award
  • Denver International Airport Hotel and Transit Center Project
  • Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport/Wayne County Airport Authority Reconstruction of Runway 4L-22R and Associated Taxiways
  • Farmer's Fridge, Chicago O'Hare International Airport
  • John Kulikowski, Captain, United States Air Force Chief, Airfield Pavement Evaluation Team
  • London Gatwick Airport, Recycling and Renewable Energy Facility
  • Swedavia Airports, Sustainable Aviation Fuel & Fly Green Fund
  • Tampa International Airport, Be WELL Health and Wellness Campaign
  • Vancouver Airport Authority, Project Green YVR: Climate Smart Partnership

2017 Airports Going Green Award Honorable Mentions:

  • Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Sustainable Food Court Initiative
  • Meacham International Airport, Fort Worth, Texas, Administration Building Renovation
  • Orlando International Airport Sustainability Initiatives, Under the Leadership of Judith-Ann Jarrette, Recycling Rangers; Airport Hyatt Regency Hotel
  • Philadelphia International Airport, Terminal F Baggage Claim Building
  • Port Authority of New York and Jersey, John F. Kennedy International Airport - TWA Flight Center Hotel Facility
  • JFKIAT, John F. Kennedy International Airport, Terminal 4 Sustainability Initiatives and Operations/Maintenance Practices
  • Rio de Janeiro International Airport, Organic Solid Waste Management
  • Sacramento International Airport, 7.9 MW PV Facility
  • San Diego County Regional Airport Authority Sustainability Initiatives, The Good Traveler Program; Green Concessions Program
  • Chicago Midway International Airport, Runway 13C-31C Rehab and EMAS Replacement
 

2016 Airports Going Green Award Winners

  • Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport & Sean Donohue, CEO The First North American Airport to Achieve ACI-ACA Carbon Neutral Certification (3+)
  • Copenhagen Airports Air Quality Program
  • HMS Host Food Donation Program
  • Hong Kong International Airport Carbon Measurement Program
  • Nashville International Airport & Christine Vitt, Vice President, Strategic Planning and Sustainability Geothermal Lake Plate Cooling
  • United Airlines Biofuels Program

2016 Honorable Mention Recipients

  • Colorado Department of Transportation: Statewide General Aviation Airport Sustainability Program
  • Jeffrey Daniels, Orlando International Airport: Individual Leadership
  • Houshang Esmaili, San Francisco International Airport: Individual Leadership
  • Flagstaff Airport: Sustainability Plan
  • Kent State University Airport: Sustainable Master Plan 
  • Montreal-Trudeau International Airport: Deicing fluid recovery, recycling and reuse facility
  • Napa Farms Market & San Francisco International Airport: Reusable Water Bottles
  • John Picard (John Picard & Associates): Individual Leadership
  • Lorenzo Lo Presti, CEO, Rome International Airport: Individual Leadership
  • G.V. Sanjay Reddy (Mumbai): Individual Leadership
  • Rio de Janeiro International Airport: Employee Sustainability Training Program
  • San Diego International Airport: Air Conditioning Condensate Sustainability Program
  • Tampa International Airport: Legacy of Environmental Actions for our Future (LEAF)
  • Vancouver International Airport: Waste Wars
  • O'Hare International Airport: South Air Traffic Control Tower Sustainability Initiatives

2015 Airports Going Green Award Winners

  • Leadership in Aviation Sustainability - Jim Hinde, Director, Albuquerque International Airport (ABQ)
  • Boston Logan International Airport Conservation Mooring Program and Sustainability Initiatives (BOS)
  • Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport Solar Energy Generation Site and Parking Garage Maintenance (MSP)
  • Lakeland Linder Regional Airport Solar Farm, Lakeland, Florida, U.S.A. (LAL)
  • Hertz Rental Car, Living Journey Program
  • Southwest Airlines, Sustainability Initiatives

2015 Honorable Mention Recipients

  • Burlington International Airport House Removal, Material Recycling, and Site Restoration Program, Vermont, U.S.A. (BTV)
  • Gerald R. Ford International Airport Stormwater/Deicing Treatment, Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.A. (GRR)
  • General Mitchell International Airport Baggage Claim Building Remodel, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.A. (MKE)
  • Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport Central Plant Project (IAH)
  • San Francisco International Airport, Air Traffic Control Tower and Integrated Facilities (SFO)
  • Salt Lake City International Airport Sustainability Management Plan (SLC)
  • Tampa International Airport LEAF Program (TPA)
  • South Bend International Airport Terminal Geothermal Conversion, Indiana, U.S.A. (SBN) 
  • The Grove Inc., Fresh Market On the Go (concessionaire) at Chicago O'Hare International Airport
  • Farmer's Fridge, Sustainable Kiosks (concessionaire)