The inaugural Global Sustainability Awards for North America was held at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School on September 12, 2026. RCE Greater Atlanta was a co-sponsor of the awards, and they were organized in part by RCE member Isaac Harper, from Georgia Cleantech Innovation Hub. TiE Atlanta, other organizers, RCE Greater Atlanta, awardees, and more attended the event in-person and online, including at a watch party in Houston. There were award categories for educators, K-12 students, college students, and individual changemakers, and awards were presented for each of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Between the award presentations, there were panel discussions and a keynote address from Dr. Jagdish Sheth, an author and professor of marketing who recently retired from Emory University. Additionally, various organizations had tables during the Maker Faire sessions, and RCE had a table promoting the Mentorship Program and everything else RCE has to offer.
Multiple RCE members received awards for their initiatives and leadership, including Jenny Hirsch, SCoRE’s senior director who serves as the lead coordinator of RCE, and Ruthie Yow, SCoRE’s associate director who serves as the Community of Practice co-lead in RCE. Other RCE members who received awards are Claire Horn (former RCE Marketing and Communications Coordinator), David Lloyd Davis (executive director of Cascade Springs Nature Conservancy), and Garry Harris (president of Center for Sustainable Communities). Hearing about so many initiatives contributing towards the SDGs was such an inspiration and source of hope, which is especially important now.
After the individual changemaker awards, Dr. Sheth gave a keynote address. He spoke about his academic career in marketing and sustainability, and the commitment he and his wife Madhu have to the SDGs, especially SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). He also spoke about sustainability topics including consumerism and carbon footprints.
There were also panel discussions about relevant topics. The first panel was about how businesses can make sustainability a growth strategy instead of a responsibility, and panelists shared interesting perspectives on the future of corporate sustainability. One attendee asked an insightful question about how businesses can be more sustainable when there is seemingly a contradiction because businesses profit by selling more, while sustainability is usually associated with producing and consuming less. The other panel later in the day was about how to work across sectors to make change happen. During this discussion, panelists from different sectors shared inspiring ideas about a very current and relevant topic.
Overall, the Global Sustainability Awards were very inspiring and reminded us that we can all be changemakers.
Get involved with RCE Greater Atlanta!
RCE Greater Atlanta has been advancing the Sustainable Development Goals through education and training since 2017. Our core programs are the SDG Futures Fellowship and the GROW Mentorship Program. Join our network of changemakers! Get involved: https://rcega.org/get-involved
We are currently looking for additional mentors for the GROW Mentorship Program. Applications are open until November 1!