2025 Green Umbrella Sustainability Awards
Green Umbrella will honor 2 organizations and 4 individuals for their impact, innovation, and leadership at the 12th annual Midwest Regional Sustainability Summit, on June 5th, 2025 at the Sharonville Convention Center in Cincinnati. The conference brings together hundreds of visionary leaders to share inspiring, forward-thinking, and solution-oriented ideas that propel us toward a healthier, more resilient, sustainable, and equitable future.
IMPACT Award
The Sustainability IMPACT Award recognizes significant and measurable sustainability impact that increases natural resource conservation with/for diverse audiences within its facilities operations, organizational structure, and/or community.
Green Columbus
Green Columbus is a regional leader in sustainability, environmental justice, and grassroots community engagement. Under the visionary leadership of Executive Director Shelly Douglas, the organization has built a powerful model for inclusive, high-impact climate action—delivering measurable results while empowering communities across Central Ohio.
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Green Columbus organizes the largest volunteer-led Earth Month campaign in the U.S. In April 2024 alone, over 1,500 volunteers participated at 150+ worksites, planting an extraordinary 74,000 trees. These efforts directly address urban heat islands, improve air quality, and promote climate resilience—while expanding equitable access to green space in underserved neighborhoods.
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Year-round, Green Columbus operates the Linden Avenue Tree Nursery, which grows and distributes approximately 3,000 trees annually to residents free of charge. Located in a historically disinvested community, the nursery ensures that the benefits of urban forestry—like shade, stormwater management, and improved public health—are shared equitably.
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Through collaborative leadership and tireless volunteer coordination, Green Columbus has created a scalable blueprint for sustainable urban transformation. By linking environmental action with social equity, they are not only planting trees, but cultivating long-term resilience and a shared sense of environmental responsibility. We are proud to present Green Columbus with this year’s Sustainability Impact Award.
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The award will be accepted by Shelly Douglas, Executive Director of Green Columbus
INNOVATION Award
The Sustainability INNOVATION Award recognizes an innovative program that promotes, practices, and/or encourages sustainability included in but not limited to successful education programs, facilities operations, public campaigns, and inclusive strategies.
Greater Cleveland Partnership
Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) is redefining what it means to lead on sustainability through innovation, collaboration, and measurable regional impact. As one of the only chambers of commerce in the nation with a dedicated sustainability strategy, GCP brings together the region’s business community to tackle the climate crisis while advancing economic resilience.
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GCP convenes a Sustainability Leaders Group of more than 40 major companies, including Fortune 500s, to drive collaborative solutions. One standout result is the creation of a solar co-op—a joint purchasing initiative in partnership with Cuyahoga County that intends to deliver megawatts of clean energy to Northeast Ohio. GCP also helped form a Regional Climate Working Group that has already helped secure over $400 million for local sustainability projects.
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At the community level, GCP runs an annual Sustainability Summit and provides a robust sustainability resource platform for small businesses and suppliers. Its Clean Energy and Tree Canopy Working Groups are setting ambitious, actionable goals to expand renewable energy and urban green space.
Through bold leadership and inclusive programming, GCP is catalyzing a cleaner, greener, and more equitable future for Greater Cleveland—earning them the 2025 Sustainability Innovation Award.
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The award will be accepted by Emily Keller-Dey, Director of Sustainability Initiatives, Greater Cleveland Partnership
LEADERSHIP Award
The Sustainability LEADERSHIP Award recognizes individuals that serve as strong and inspiring leaders in support of sustainability for their region, staff, students, customers, company, or community. This year, we recognize three individuals for their outstanding sustainability leadership.
Deepa Vedavyas
Deepa Vedavyas is an award-winning sustainability and resilience leader whose visionary, cross-sector work is driving transformational change across Northeast Ohio and beyond. As the inaugural Director of Resiliency and Sustainability at the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council (NOPEC), she led the organization’s first sustainability mission and a formal clean energy commitment, targeting a 50% renewable energy mix by the end of 2026 across 247 communities.
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Her leadership has shaped landmark initiatives including Ohio’s first LEED ND Silver Certified neighborhood, the Cleveland Clean and Equitable Energy Future Plan, Cleveland's LEED for Cities Silver Certification, and the country’s first ICLEI Northeast Ohio Resilient Cities Leadership Cohort. Deepa launched the first regional SDG learning cohort for 20 Ohio foundations and secured major federal and philanthropic grants to pilot climate education and sustainability programs.
A trusted advisor to the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network USA, the American Planning Association, and the U.S. Green Building Council, she bridges global expertise with local action through her various roles. Deepa’s work has been featured by the UN Foundation and has helped mobilize millions in resources to advance equitable, climate-forward communities. Currently pursuing a second Master’s in Sustainability at Harvard University, she continues to catalyze systems-level impact for a more sustainable and just future.
Padma Chebrolu
Padma Chebrolu is an internationally acclaimed filmmaker, heritage artist, and environmental activist whose visionary storytelling blends traditional arts with urgent calls to protect our planet. A recipient of the Ohio Governor’s Award in Arts Education and the Ohio Arts Council Heritage Fellowship, Padma is best known for Passage of the River—a powerful, visually rich film about the Ohio River and Indigenous cultures, which has won more than 40 international film awards across 12 countries.
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Through hundreds of workshops, classes, and performances, Padma has mobilized communities around environmental action—distributing thousands of tree seedlings in partnership with local nonprofits and national partners, and sparking widespread engagement around river conservation and clean water. Her work has reached audiences from Cincinnati to Singapore through global podcasts, public speaking, and international exhibitions.
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As a board member of the Ohio Alliance for Arts Education and an advisor to OhioDance, Padma continues to elevate the role of the arts in environmental change. Her creative leadership, grounded in cultural preservation and propelled by global impact, inspires collective responsibility for a more resilient, equitable future.
Alan Wight
Alan Wight is a visionary educator, connector, and food systems leader whose groundbreaking work is redefining how communities engage with sustainability, storytelling, and place. As the creator and lead author of Cincinnati’s Foodshed: An Art Atlas, Alan spent over five years building a one-of-a-kind, multimedia chronicle of the Greater Cincinnati food system. This new large-format book—published in late 2024—features contributions from more than 160 collaborators, including farmers, artists, policy advocates, and nonprofit leaders.
Supported through collective impact fundraising and amplified by partner organizations with a combined reach of over 683,000 followers, the Atlas has reached thousands through over 30 public presentations, eight exhibitions, and more than 10 public art displays across the region. With storymaps, original art, and participatory research, the project bridges disciplines and generations to honor the region’s food heritage while inspiring a resilient and equitable future.
Alan’s leadership embodies inclusive design and creative collaboration. Through his work—as a professor, researcher, and community builder—he has created a landmark resource that not only educates and connects, but also transforms how we see our food system, our communities, and ourselves.
Sustainability Achievement Award
Joanne Gerson
Joanne Gerson has dedicated her life to environmental stewardship, inspired by the Jewish principles of Tikkun Olam—repairing the world—and a deep belief in interfaith collaboration for the common good. As Founder and Co-Chair of Faith Communities Go Green (FCGG), Joanne has galvanized over 100 faith communities across Greater Cincinnati to take meaningful climate action through energy efficiency, education, and civic engagement. Her leadership has been instrumental in launching FCGG’s four working groups—Education & Lifestyles, Facilities, Advocacy, and Member Engagement. Among these efforts, she co-leads an Energy Efficiency Initiative that helps houses of worship lower their utility bills and drive community resilience.
Joanne’s sustainability journey spans more than four decades. She helped pioneer environmental education at the Cincinnati Zoo with the founding of KinderZoo in 1979 and the Super Saturday enrichment program in 1981, both of which still thrive today. She has shaped municipal zoning to better protect local waterways and helped create educational resources on sustainable land use across Hamilton County. Within her own faith community, she founded the Rockdale Temple Environmental Committee and later Shomrei Olam, a regional Jewish environmental initiative that inspired broader interfaith efforts.
From furniture upcycling to policy advocacy, Joanne has modeled how passion, education, and persistence can shape more sustainable systems. Her tireless volunteer leadership, innovative spirit, and unwavering commitment to environmental justice make her a most deserving recipient of the Sustainability Achievement Award.
Thank You to Our Sponsors!
To become a sponsor of the 2025 Summit, please contact charlie@greenumbrella.org
Champion Level
Sustainer Level
Leader Level
Steward Level
KERAMIDA, Sustainergy, Rumpke, UC Center for Public Engagement with Science (PEWS), Z3 Data Services, Cincinnati Public Radio, CET-PBS, Sustainable Ohio Public Energy Council (SOPEC),
UC Sustainability, KZF Design, Interfaith Cincy, Electrification Coalition, Go Zero, Drive Electric Dayton