March 26, 2026
Contact: Melissa Villarin
Office: 916-327-5365
Office E-mail: MVillarin@CCCCO.edu
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California Community Colleges Board of Governors this week honored leading innovators and standout programs with the 2025 Energy and Sustainability Awards for their ongoing efforts of to achieve environmental sustainability while advancing the goals of the system’s strategic plan, Vision 2030.
Six awards were handed out at the Board of Governors meeting on Tuesday, March 24 in Sacramento. The honorees, recognized for outstanding achievements in energy and sustainability, include Riverside Community, Sonoma County Junior, and Kern Community College Districts; Shasta College; and leaders from Contra Costa Community College District and Mt. San Antonio College.
“Congratulations to this year’s winners for turning vision into action. Your work and leadership reflect a dedication to forward thinking and measurable outcomes, and the solutions you’re delivering are making a meaningful difference by reducing carbon emissions, improving energy efficiency, and supporting a more sustainable future,” said California Community Colleges Board of Governors President Hildegarde B. Aguinaldo.
The Board of Governors Energy and Sustainability Awards were established in 2012 and hold even greater significance today because climate initiatives are embedded into Vision 2030. The system’s strategic plan also calls for leadership from California’s community colleges in climate action in workforce development and daily operations.
“This work goes beyond recognizing a challenge, it’s about rising to meet it. Vision 2030 is guiding and accelerating these efforts as our colleges and leaders drive progress through innovation and bold thinking, advancing our goals while shaping solutions that protect our planet,” said Chancellor Sonya Christian, California Community Colleges.
This year’s award categories are Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Innovative Project for large community college districts, medium-size districts and small districts. Awards also were presented for Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Faculty/Student Initiatives, Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Sustainability Champion, and Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Climate Action Leadership.
Following are brief summaries of awardee achievements:
Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Innovative Project (large district)
Riverside City College recently completed a major adaptive reuse project, transforming its mid-century Physical & Life Science buildings into the new School of Business, Law, and Computer Information Systems. The district and its partners prioritized sustainability - preserving the structural shell, reducing demolition waste, and modernizing all major building systems with high efficiency ones, while navigating several complex challenges, including integrating seismic upgrades within limited ceiling space.
Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Innovative Project (medium district)
The Sonoma County Junior College District’s Emeritus HVAC & Roof Decarbonization Project aimed to improve building occupant comfort, eliminate natural gas use, and increase overall building energy efficiency. A roof replacement, swapping a natural gas fired boiler with an air to water source heat pump, and new domestic hot water heat pump, helped the district save $22,099 in natural gas costs, and $3,228 in electricity costs in the project’s first year.
Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Innovative Project (small district)
Shasta College’s Food Services and Ag/Natural Resources programs developed campus “carbon sinks” to dispose of green waste in a way that is carbon neutral and benefits the college’s working farm, which is run by students, and instruction. Waste is collected, composted, and spread twice a year on the farm fields to enrich the soil. Dorm students, who help operate this farm, assist with the process, which is tied into various components of their curriculum.
Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Faculty/Student Initiatives
The Kern Community College District’s California Renewable Energy Laboratory (CREL) Traveling Academy is a student-centered sustainability initiative that brings renewable energy education directly to schools across Kern County. The program integrates sustainability education into summer bridge and enrichment programs to expand awareness of clean energy careers, particularly among underrepresented student populations. In Summer 2025, the Academy served 120 students more than double the previous year.
Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Sustainability Champion
Contra Costa Community College District’s (4CD) energy and sustainability manager, Tracy Marcial, has been promoting sustainability and energy efficiency since 2016. Her leadership and influence are clearly seen in the Districtwide Sustainability Goals, and because of that leadership the district can proudly see measurable progress against climate change. Tracy’s work and impact are rooted in her belief and practice that sustainability is closely woven into the district’s focus on closing equity gaps.
Excellence in Energy and Sustainability – Climate Action Leadership
Eera Babtiwale has served as Mt. San Antonio College’s (Mt. SAC) special projects director, sustainability since 2020. Babtiwale has demonstrated exceptional statewide leadership in climate policy execution, decarbonization planning, Mt. SAC’s second Climate Action Plan and more. Babtiwale played a key role in the California Community Colleges Solar and Storage RFP, helping develop a unified bid to advance cost-efficient renewable energy access across the system, leading to the Mt. SAC Solar Bess Project.
To view pictures of the Energy and Sustainability Award winners, please visit our Energy and Sustainability Awards photo collection.
The California Community Colleges is the largest system of higher education in the nation, composed of 73 districts and 116 colleges serving 2.2 million students per year. California community colleges provide career education and workforce training; guaranteed transfer to four-year universities; and degree and certificate pathways. As the state’s engine for social and economic mobility, the California Community Colleges supports the Vision 2030, a strategic plan designed to improve student success, our communities and our planet. For more information, please visit the California Community Colleges website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter).
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