GDI Award Nominees
Nominees for Excellence in Team Sustainability Performance:
Embassy Abu Dhabi
Embassy Abu Dhabi overcame challenges and limitations to implement a range of sustainable building practices including reducing water consumption, improving energy efficiency, and improving waste management. Their efforts have contributed to cost savings, enhanced relationships with local and host country communities, and promoted a culture of sustainability within the Embassy community.
Embassy Beirut
Embassy Beirut’s concerted marketing campaign addressed solid waste issues on the compound and established a recycling program. The Embassy’s advocacy efforts have encouraged staff to recycle in their homes and host their first Earth Day event, showcasing primarily women-owned businesses that offer products made from recycled, upcycled, or sustainable material sources and produced by NGOs focused on supporting women in vulnerable communities.
Embassy Belgrade
Embassy Belgrade has collected over 40kg of aluminum cans, numerous plastic bottle caps, and over 800 used glass jars to be repurposed by local groups. The Embassy continues to highlight the importance of reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills and re-thinking everyday consumption needs to decrease our overall carbon footprint.
Consulate General Cape Town
Consulate General Cape Town is our first Post to move to convert all residences to solar and/or battery as the primary power source, setting the precedence for our global operations. The consulate’s solution to load shedding involves converting 95% of its residential portfolio from limited generator power to enough solar and battery storage to run each of its 25 stand-alone houses completely off-the-grid for the majority of the year. This project will result in a cost savings of $1.2 million over the first five-year period.
Consulate General Chennai
Consulate General Chennai initiated energy conservation and waste management measures such as the installation of solar lights, occupancy sensors, LED lights, and double-glazed temperature control external windows in the consulate and residences. This project is projected to save about 52KW of power per light annually, 1866 units of power monthly, and 40KW of energy savings annually.
Embassy Dar Es Salaam
Embassy Dar Es Salaam has focused on improving data reporting for improved energy and water efficiency, service delivery, and cost-containment opportunities. Coordinated efforts have reduced water bills by 56%, resulting in over $100,000 of savings per year.
Consulate General Guayaquil
Consulate General Guayaquil has worked extensively with the community and partners to get people to recycle over 1,549 kg of cardboard, 566 kg of paper, 153 kg of plastic, 448 kg of glass, and 419 kg of metal scraps. The Green Team has established a World Wildlife Federation-designated wildlife conservancy, and champions efforts to reduce the consulate’s carbon footprint.
Consulate General Ho Chi Minh City
Consulate General Ho Chi Minh City has demonstrated exceptional sustainability performance by transforming the historic site of the Tet Offensive into a thriving Community Garden. The team’s efforts have not only increased feelings of comradery and belonging in the community, but it has also fostered the promotion of positive people-to-people relationships between the United States and Vietnam.
Embassy Islamabad
Embassy Islamabad took significant steps toward sustainability, green initiatives, a clean environment, reducing carbon footprints, water, and electricity conservation. These steps have the potential to save up to $180,000 annually through electricity conservation and have reduced irrigation water consumption by 50% in areas where a geotextile fabric weed barrier was installed.
Consulate General Karachi
Consulate General Karachi organized a tree planting event, which will not only provide shade in the arid climate and a habitat for native birds and insects, but will be critical in a city with hazardous levels of air pollution. Images and videos from this event reached over 60,000 people and engaged more than 1,000 accounts on social media, leading to the Green Team’s intention to have monthly plantings of native trees on the compound and showcase to the greater community ways to make their footprint more sustainable.
Embassy Kingston
Embassy Kingston is getting ready to pave the road for developing an EV platform in Kingston. The pending installation of PairTree stand-alone off-grid solar carport canopies will demonstrate the commitment of Embassy Kingston to sustainability, reduce its carbon footprint, and provide a model for other diplomatic locations to follow.
Embassy Lima
Embassy Lima upholds the U.S. government’s commitment to creating a sustainable and climate-focused workplace through its community engagements and partnerships. Post also hosted a community beach clean-up event in partnership with local organizations and educational institutions and conducted a “Follow the Trash” investigative journalism project to raise awareness about the importance of recycling.
Consulate General Mumbai
Consulate General Mumbai continues to find ways to become better stewards of our planet and reduce our impact on the earth. The consulate is expected to save $5,000 annually by retrofitting exterior lighting to LED. Additionally, the post was recently certified as a Wildlife Habitat by the World Wildlife Federation, has a robust recycling and composting system, and has also acquired its first two fleet electric vehicles to support carbon-free emissions and lead by example.
Embassy Nairobi
Embassy Nairobi took initiative in building over 24 pollinator homes for pollinators and creating a robust waste management system. The Nairobi Green Team also manages and coordinates the collection and recycling of oils from over 300 residential generators, small engines, and all used and unserviceable batteries through their motorpool shop.
Embassy New Delhi
Embassy New Delhi has been working to innovate its robust waste management system. In the past year, the team has handled 162 tons of material and deposited $120,000 in revenue. The recycling program has reduced the quantity of waste going to landfills and decreased the trash disposal cost by 82%, saving approximately $40,000.
Embassy Niamey
Embassy Niamey buffered itself from the impact of power interruptions on the local energy grid by acquiring a renewable battery energy storage system. The Embassy has managed to save about $89,000 over seven months in electricity costs, created approximately 50-75 jobs with workers from over nine nations involved, and improved energy independence and resilience.
Embassy Paris
Embassy Paris shares its greening initiatives on social media to heighten the French public’s awareness and engagement with the mission and lead by example. Whether it be their river clean ups, clothing drives, energy sobriety solidary initiative, or learning about waste processing at the contracting facility, Embassy Paris is actively trying to improve the image of the U.S. government in France and help French citizens better understand how the U.S. values sustainability and green actions.
Embassy Singapore
Embassy Singapore is focused on moving towards 100% renewable energy use. Despite funding limitations and logistical challenges, Embassy Singapore is replacing energy-intensive equipment with new energy-efficient equipment, installing a modern building management system to calibrate its HVAC systems, and replacing fluorescent lights with energy-efficient LED lights.
Embassy Skopje
Embassy Skopje continues to promote energy conservation while looking to implement innovative ways to generate cost-effective savings. The Embassy has implemented various programs, projecting approximately 640 kWh units of energy savings annually, and water conservation measures with an estimated savings of 10,000 to 15,000 gallons annually.
Embassy Surabaya
Embassy Surabaya is passionate about helping correct waste management issues, establishing a plastic recycling collection in collaboration with a local non-profit to create eco-friendly tote bags out of plastic waste, and collecting 50 kg of used clothes to be repurposed and donated to a local orphanage. Proceeds from bag sales and fundraising events are used to fund other Green Team projects at the Embassy including an organic composting program in the community garden.
Embassy Tunis
Embassy Tunis is focused on substantially reducing waste and promoting greater environmental awareness in their community. The Green Team launched an initiative to replace all single-use products with reusable products, transitioning the cafeteria to zero-plastic, and spreading awareness about minimizing waste through a mission-wide notice.
IRM (Domestic)
IRM’s IT Sustainability Working Group’s efforts are positively impacting the current and future state of the Department’s IT sustainability efforts. The group has enhanced IT sustainability by incorporating sustainability metrics into the Tech-for-Life initiative and the IRM FBS, the latter of which will be applied to offices across IRM, ensuring the socialization of Bureau and Department IT sustainability efforts.
Alaina B. Teplitz
William H. Moser
Caroline D’Angelo
