Environmental Excellence Awards Winners Announced

During a Board of Supervisors meeting last night, the Loudoun County Environmental Commission announced the winners of its annual Environmental Excellence Awards, which honor individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations and educators for their leadership on environmental issues. 

This is the second year of the Environmental Excellence Awards program created by the Environmental Commission, which advises the board and makes recommendations on policies and practices related to the environment, sustainability and energy management. Members of the commission include representatives from the community, industry and higher education. 

County Chair Phyllis J. Randall (D-At Large) thanked commission Chair Gem Bingol for the group’s work.

“You all have done so much incredible work in the last two years,” she said.

The 2024 winners and categories are:

• Business: Orblynx Academy. The Ashburn-based academy provides STEM-based education and has a focus on sustainability, which helps students to understand and address environmental challenges.
• Citizen or Community Group: Lucketts Ruritan Club. The club promotes environmental awareness through community projects, including a weekly recycling service in partnership with Loudoun County.
• Educator: Manju Gomanthinayagam, Farmwell Station Middle School teacher. Gomanthinayagam founded the school’s Young Naturalist Club, which was instrumental in the school’s recognition by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources as a Virginia Naturally School for its efforts to increase environmental literacy.    
• Government Employee or Program/Team: Virginia Cooperative Extension – Loudoun. VCE-Loudoun, in collaboration with the Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Services, has launched a project at two county parks where tree saplings are temporarily planted in nursey-like gravel beds. This increases the survival rate for the young trees. 
• Student: Emma Lloyd. The home-schooled 11th grader contributed nearly 100 hours of her time to stream monitoring and related educational outreach efforts in 2023. She initiated a signage program for stream crossings on the Washington & Old Dominion Trail. She has also inspired other students to become certified stream monitors. 

 Gomanthinayagam said she is not the only educator working to improve the environmemt.

“I know many many more educators in Loudoun County that do far more than I do,” she said. “So, I’m just lucky to have a great admin that thought of nominating me. That’s the only thing I can think of.”

Lloyd said shew was inspired to become involved in stream monitoring by her mother.

“She’s the one who took me to my first event. I did not want to go but I ended up enjoying it so much,” Lloyd said.