Blue Marble Awards

NASA’s Environment and Energy “Blue Marble” Awards recognizes groups and individuals demonstrating exceptional environmental leadership in support of NASA’s missions and goals.

The Purpose

The “Blue Marble” Award Program is an opportunity for NASA to raise internal awareness of the important role employees and contractors play, often behind the scenes, in enabling environmentally-sound mission success and mitigating environmental risk. Additionally, this program enables NASA to increase participation in and potentially gain wider recognition for NASA employee achievements through prestigious external environment and energy award programs.

History

As part of NASA’s award program, the NASA Environment and Energy Award Program was initiated in 2006 as an approved Special NASA Awards Program (NPR 3451.1) that recognizes NASA civil service employees and contractor personnel who demonstrate environmental leadership in carrying out NASA’s mission. These honorary, non-monetary awards are also referred to as the NASA “Blue Marble” Awards. The most recent awards ceremony was in September 2022 at the NASA-wide environmental meeting held at Langley Research Center.

Excellence in Environmental Leadership

“Blue Marble” Award Categories

There are four “Blue Marble” Award categories:

• The NASA Environmental Quality Award– Nominations can be made in any one or more of the five following subcategories: a) greening the government, b) environmental management, c) conservation, d) environmental remediation, and e) environmental communication.
• The NASA Award for Excellence in Resilience or Climate Change Adaptation – Nominations can be made in any one or more of the following five subcategories: a) greenhouse gas reduction, b) fleet, c) master planning, d) enhance recovery, and e) green practices.
• The NASA Excellence in Energy and Water Management Award– Nominations can be made in any one or more of the following three subcategories: a) energy efficiency, b) water conservation, and c) renewable energy use.
• The NASA EMD Director’s Environment and Energy Award– The Director’s Award recognizes exceptional leadership or professionalism in enabling environmentally sound mission success at NASA facilities or during NASA sponsored activities.

“Blue Marble” Award Criteria

Award winners are determined using five equally weighted factors:

1. Impact to Mission
2. Scope of Impact
3. Scalability/Extensibility
4. Ingenuity/Creativity/Leadership
5. Teamwork/Collaboration

“Blue Marble” Awards Administration

The Office of Strategic Infrastructure (OSI), Environmental Management Division (EMD) is responsible for administering the “Blue Marble” Award Program. EMD provides staff support for the award program and is responsible for forming an intra-agency Award Committee who is makes recommendations to the Assistant Administrator for Infrastructure who makes the final determination of the award recipients.

Past Winners

2022

NASA Environmental Quality Award

Individual Award: Shari Miller (GSFC/WFF)
Recognized for excellence in National Environmental Policy Act implementation at GSFC/WFF
Group Award: DEVELOP National Program Team (LaRC)
Recognized for enhancing environmental decision-making through the NASA DEVELOP Program

NASA Excellence in Resilience or Climate Change Adaptation
Group Award: The NASA John H. Glenn Research Center (GRC) Fleet Management and Transportation Team
Recognized for outstanding and lasting contributions in the management and promotion of GRC’s sustainable fleet initiative, especially with the strategic installation of onsite electric vehicle charging stations.

NASA Excellent in Energy or Water Management Award
Individual Award: Evelyn Baskin, Ph.D., GSFC
Recognized for Implementation of the largest UESC project at the NASA GSFC Greenbelt campus

NASA Excellence in Energy or Water Management Award
Group Award: Utility Energy Services Contract (UESC) Phase 1 Team (KSC)
Recognized for the creative use, refinement, and enhancement of the KSC performance contract process to implement approved ECMs recurrently, which resulted in the successful award of UESC Phase 1, a $19.1 million energy efficient improvements project, contributing a savings for the Government of $1.4 million annually.

NASA EMD Director’s Environmental and Energy Awards:
Individual Award:  John Matthews, KSC
Recognized for exceptional leadership and outstanding commitment above and beyond individual job responsibilities, to assist KSC and the Agency in enabling environmentally sound mission success.
Group Award: Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Improvement Team (HQ/GRC/MSFC)
Recognized for improvements to RPS NEPA processes, resulting in significant cost and schedule savings for RPS-enabled missions.
Group Award: Stennis Space Center Sustainability Team
Recognized for using Geospatial Information System (GIS) technology to facilitate energy intensity reduction.

2017

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Group Award: The International Space Apps Challenge (OCIO, HQ)
Group Award: Stormwater Management – Proactive and Green Solutions for NASA Langley’s Next 100 Years

NASA Excellence in Energy & Water Management                                                                                 
Group Award: Kennedy Data Center Consolidation (KDCC) Team

NASA EMD Director’s Environmental and Energy Award
Individual Award: Steve Slaten, JPL
Innovative Solutions to Successfully Remediate NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Groundwater
Group Award: NASA Environmental Tracking System (NETS) Development and Maintenance Team
Group Award: Environmentally Responsible Aviation (ERA) Project Team (ARMD, HQ)

2014

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Individual Award: Mary Gainer, LaRC
Integrating Cultural Resources and NEPA Programs for LaRC and NASA
Group Award: LaRC Graphic Information System (GIS)

NASA Excellence in Energy & Water Management                                                                                 
Individual Award: Cedreck Davis, MSFC
Outstanding Leadership in Managing MSFC’s Energy & Water Program
Group Award: SSC EMCS Enhancements Team

NASA EMD Director’s Environmental and Energy Award
Individual Award: Raymond Rubilotta, GSFC
Establishing a “Green” and Safe Work Environment at GSFC
Group Award: KSC GHG Scope II: Emission Reduction Pilot Team

2012

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Individual Award: Bryon Maynard, SSC
New Artificial Reefs for the Mississippi Gulf Coast
Group Award: Sustainable Demolition Team, LaRC

NASA Excellence in Energy and Water Management Award
Group Award: Langley New Town Phase I Design-Build Team

NASA Director’s Environment and Energy Award
Individual Award: Denise Thaller, KSC
Exceptional Leadership in Establishing Agency’s First Center Sustainability Plan at KSC
Individual Award: Keith Peecook, GRC
Exceptional Leadership in completion for the Decommissioning of the Plum Brook Reactor
Group Award: Shuttle Program Transition and Retirement Environmental Management Team, GRC

2010

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Individual Award: Barbara Naylor, KSC
Cultural Resource Management at KSC
Group Award: An Event That is Changing a Culture: NASA Waste to Disney Dirt (KSC)

NASA Excellence in Energy and Water Management Award
Individual Award: Leslie Prufert-Bebout, ARC
Basic research utilizing algae to produce carbon-neutral renewable energy (diesel fuel, methane, and hydrogen) for NASA Exploration, Aeronautics, and national needs.
Group Award: Energy Efficiency and Water Conservation Team (JSC) – Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Program

NASA Director’s Environment and Energy Award
Individual Award: Michael Blotzer, SSC
Environmental Management since 1990
Group Award: NASA Causeway Seawall Project Team (KSC) 

2008

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Individual Award: Ms. Radel L. Bunker-Farrah, WSTF
Exceptional Management of the WSTF Environmental Program
Group Award: Constellation Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) Team, Multiple Centers

NASA Excellence in Energy & Water Management Award
Individual Award: Bruce Chesson, KSC
Energy Conservation and Environmental Awareness for Government Transportation
Group Award: JPL Facilities Energy Team, JPL

NASA Director’s Environmental Award
Individual Award: Richard A. Wickman, HQ
Former Deputy Director of the Environmental Management Division
Group Award: KSC Environmental Assurance & Promotion of Sustainable Practices in Construction & Demolition Activities Team, KSC

Special Awards
Ms. Merilee Fellows, JPL
NASA Manager for Community Involvement for Environmental Remediation Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Ms. Sandra Parker, JSC
Attwater’s Prairie Chicken Endangered Species Recovery Project

2007

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Individual Award: Timothy S. Howell, ARC
Monk Hill Treatment System Agreement with the City of Pasadena and the California Institute of Technology
Group Award: CITE Stand Historic Property Mitigation Team, KSC

NASA Excellence in Energy and Water Management Award
Group Award: Energy Management Team (EMT), MSFC

NASA EMD Director’s Environment and Energy Award
Individual Award: James Allen Elliott, MSFC
Environmental Leadership in Achieving Sustainable Operations
Group Award: Emulsified Zero-Valent Iron Remediation Team, KSC

2006

NASA Environmental Quality Award
Individual Award: Mr. Calvin Williams, HQ
Championing NASA’s Green Building/Sustainable Design Standards
Group Award: Shuttle Environmental Assurance Team, MSFC

NASA Excellence in Energy & Water Management Award
Individual Award: Mr. Larry A. Viterna, GRC
Enabling Increased Efficiency of Wind Tunnels and Renewable Wind Energy Systems
Group Award: Energy Management Team, MSFC

NASA Director’s Environmental & Energy Award
Individual Award: Burton R. Summerfield, KSC
Individual Award: Sandy Olliges, ARC
Group Award: Clean Air Act (CAA) Principal Center Team, MSFC