2026 Green Difference Awards: A Fabulous Event by Project Green Schools

Jaimie recently attended the 2026 Green Difference Awards, organized by our friends and colleagues at Project Green Schools. She was amazed by the magnificent work of the awarded students. Here are a few of her highlights:

Readington Middle School EcoAmbassadors

Betsy Freeman is a teacher at Readington Middle School in Whitehouse Station New Jersey. She runs the Gift & Talent Development program, cultivates Enrichment, teaches Creative Computing, oversees the Viking Broadcast and EcoAmbassadors, and is a Model UN Adviser.  Her EcoAmbassador students were awarded the 2026 Grand Prize of $10,000.00  for the Project Green Schools Outdoor Classroom Challenge.  They have designed and are building a Tiny Forest and Living Lab: A 3-zone Regenerative System comprised of The Sensory Grove, The Climate Resilience/Phenology Zone and The Miyawaki Habitat.  Betsy and her students were recognized for their innovative design and implementation of outdoor learning spaces, demonstrating exceptional creativity and environmental leadership.

I met them all at my book signing table, and it turns out Betsy has been DIYing our EfS Enduring Understandings, Standards and Performance Indicators throughout her curricula and projects for years!  Needless to say, I was over the moon to know that we had a small part to play in Betsy’s EcoAmbassadors’ accomplishments. I am also excited for all Betsy’s students to read my new book, “Response-able: How to Live Well Over Time on Planet Earth” and to “book club”  it with them. 

Stephen Ritz and the Green Bronx Machine

Stephen Ritz is infamous for his transformative work with the Green Bronx Machine. I met him when he was a classroom teacher pioneering vertical gardening in the basement of his school. He was a student of mine in our first professional development program in Education for Sustainability with the NYC Department of Education.

Since then he has built a vegetable empire growing students, schools, and communities in the South Bronx. I saw him recently at the 2026 Project Green Schools Awards Ceremony, at which he received the Lifetime Achievement Award. We were very happy to see one another and I signed a book for him. As you can see, he still wears his swiss cheese hat to formal events.