Annual Terra Awards Recognize Commitment to Sustainability

ALBANY, N.Y. (May 1, 2025) — Three members of the UAlbany Community were honored with Terra Awards for their longstanding commitment to sustainability at UAlbany. The awards were presented during an Earth Day celebration held in the Science Library Atrium April 22. 

The event was hosted by Mary Ellen Mallia, UAlbany’s director of sustainability, and Todd Foreman, vice president for finance and administration. It included information tables with representatives from the University Libraries, UUP and the Institute for Transformational and Ecosystem-based Climate Adaptation. 

Senior Kelsey Rejman won the Terra for students. Mallia called her an active and impactful member of Green Scene, which encompasses the work of the Office of Sustainability. Rejman is an eco-rep and a member of the Clean Energy Conservation Corps who promotes useful and creative sustainable practices among her peers. She organized clothing swaps that have grown into twice weekly free thrift stores in the Campus Center Orb, promoting reuse and waste reduction. She’s a leader in composting education and holds workshops on clothing repair and patch-making, which Mallia noted fosters creativity and community building and showcases Rejman’s “ability to connect environmental awareness with practical skills and artistic expression.”

Irina Holden, a science librarian, received the Terra for faculty. Mallia called Holden “a long-standing and impactful advocate for sustainability” at UAlbany, noting her service as a sustainability coordinator and her oversight of the campus’s heritage garden. Holden teaches a freshman seminar, “Food for the Future,” that focuses on critical issues in food systems, hosts tours of the heritage garden, and organizes the Science Library Earth Day celebration.

Trish Meyer of Planning, Design & Construction in Facilities won the Terra for staff. “Trish's meticulous approach to her responsibilities is evident in her detailed purchasing records and her proactive sharing of item specifications,” Mallia said, noting that Meyer’s diligence and careful selection of furnishings not only adheres to mandated sustainable practices but fosters a culture of conscious consumption on campus. “Her commitment to sustainable procurement practices has a lasting impact, shaping the environmental performance and aesthetic of the University's spaces for years to come,” Mallia said.