Nominations are open now for the
MEEA Annual Awards!

Celebrating outstanding achievement in environmental education throughout Maine
Honor the students, teachers, schools, and programs that make EE possible.

Nominate someone by March 21st!

Nominate someone here

Every year, MEEA recognizes the excellent environmental educators, programs, schools, students, and environmental education partners in Maine. Nominations open every spring and awards are presented during a ceremony at the MEEA Annual Conference every May. Winners receive an honorarium and commemorative plaque at the ceremony. The ceremony will take place on Thursday, May 7, 2026 at the MEEA Annual Conference in West Gardiner, Maine.

About the 2026 MEEA Conference

About the Awards

Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award

The Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award is designed to recognize an environmental education professional who works either outside the formal classroom setting or as a classroom teacher who incorporates environmental education as integral to their pedagogical philosophy and practice. This award honors Eberhard Thiele, the first President of MEEA (1981), who served many years on the board and inspired many students as the Director of Environmental Studies at the University of Maine, Fort Kent. Winners will receive a plaque and $250 check.

Student of the Year

The Student of the Year Award is designed to recognize an outstanding Maine student (K-college) who has demonstrated leadership in their school and community by facilitating environmental actions such as spearheading sustainability efforts, environmental education, climate and environmental justice projects, etc. This student is passionate about the natural world and shares this passion with their community. Winners will receive a plaque and $250 check.

Excellence in Environmental Education Program Award

The Excellence in Environmental Education Program Award is designed to recognize an outstanding environmental education initiative that is innovative and positively enhances environmental awareness. Such programs include those that center youth engagement, equitable access, and/or expand the field of environmental education. Recipients for this award may include programs within organizations such as schools, nonprofits, land trusts, cities, and others. Winners will receive a plaque and $750 check.

Nominate someone here

School of the Year

The School of the Year Award is designed to recognize an outstanding public or private school that demonstrates an ongoing commitment to delivering environmental education that involves most staff, reaches a majority of students, and takes place year-round. Winners will receive a plaque and $250 check.

Joan B. Saxe Grassroots Environmental Award

The Joan B. Saxe Grassroots Environmental Award is a new award in collaboration with the Saxe family and friends designed to recognize and enable a Maine Environmental Changemaker activist (30 or under) to lead grassroots advocacy promoting significant environmentally oriented projects focused on the protection and preservation of historically natural, undisturbed, biodiverse areas that may be under threat of development or other non-natural uses.  This award is in recognition of Joan B. Saxe who loved her native Maine and tirelessly devoted her entire life to protect Maine's natural areas. Winners will receive a plaque and $750 check.

Environmental Education Partner of the Year Award

The Environmental Education Partner of the Year Award is designed to recognize an outstanding Maine organization or business that is committed to serving their community through prioritizing environmental education, equity, sustainability, and community connections. Winners will receive a plaque and $750 check.

2025 Recipients

  • Maya Faulstich, 2025 Student of the Year Award

  • Enock Glidden, 2025 Environmental Partner of the Year Award

  • Isha Kasai, 2025 Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award

  • Elm Street School, 2025 School of the Year Award

  • Linda Woodard, Lifetime Achievement Award

  • Hearty Roots, 2025 Excellence in Environmental Education Program

2024 Recipients

  • Yujin Hirada

    Student of the Year | Thornton Academy

  • Leah Burgess

    Student of the Year | Spruce Mountain High School

  • Lorna Fake

    Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award | Brightfield School

  • Patti Bailie

    Lifetime Achievement Award | University of Maine at Farmington

  • Veazie Pre-K Nature Based Education Program

    Excellence in Environmental Education Program

  • Portland Public Schools

    School of the Year

  • Dennis Brackett

    Environmental Partner of the Year Award | Katahdin Schools

2023 Recipients

  • Patagonia

    Environmental Ally of the Year

  • Belfast Area High School Marine Institute

    Excellence in Environmental Education Program Award

  • Isaac Davis

    Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award

  • Chloe Blanchard and Audrey Hufnagel

    Students of the Year

  • Meroby Elementary

    School of the Year

2019 Recipients

  • Auburn SHARECenter

    Environmental Ally of the Year

  • Old Orchard Beach Conservation Commission

    Excellence in Environmental Education Program Award

  • Tammi Matula (East Grand School)

    Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award

  • Amara Ifeji and Melissa Tian

    Students of the Year

  • Emily Cohen (Vinalhaven School)

    Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator of the Year

  • Anita Smith

    The Maine Environmental Education Association Lifetime Achievement Award

2018 Recipients

  • Pat Parent

    Eberhard Thiele Environmental Educator Award

  • St. George School

    School of the Year

  • Paige Nygaard

    Student of the Year

  • Ecology of Architecture Team

    Environmental Ally of the Year