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How to Enter
Annual Awards Process
The Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards are given annually. Nominations are due December 31 each year for an awards ceremony normally in late June.
Download the Nomination Package for Awards (PDF) (12 pp., 237 KB, About PDF).
How to Enter the Award Competition
The Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge is open to all individuals, groups, and organizations in the United States, both nonprofit and for profit, including academia and industry. To be eligible for the award, a nominated technology must meet the scope of the program:
- It must be green chemistry (i.e., has a significant chemistry component and is source reduction)
- It must have reached a significant milestone within the past five years (e.g., been researched, demonstrated, implemented, applied, patented, etc.)
- It must also have a significant component within the United States.
Entries must be sent no later than December 31. Awards will be presented the following summer in Washington, DC.
Nominated green chemistry technologies should be an example of one or more of the three focus areas. Green chemistry technologies will be judged on how well they meet the selection criteria (where applicable). Approximately five awards will be made. One award will be made in each of the five award categories.
Self-nominations are allowed and expected. There is no entry fee and no standard entry form, but nominations must meet certain requirements. Nominations must be single-spaced and no longer than eight pages, with type no smaller than 12-point. When printed on 8½-by-11-inch paper, they must have margins of at least 1 inch. Nominations that do not meet these requirements may be rejected by EPA. Nominations may include chemical reactions, tables, graphs, photographs, and other illustrations. Although nominations may be in color, the judges may read the nominations printed in black and white. Nominations should not, therefore, require color for interpretation.
Nominations must include the following:
- A cover page with the project title followed by the date of the nomination and the complete names (with titles as appropriate), addresses, telephone numbers, and email addresses of the following individuals or organizations:
- Primary sponsor(s): the individual or organizational owner of the technology. For academic nominations, the primary sponsor is usually the principal investigator.
- Contact person(s): the individual who is responsible for communicating with the awards program sponsors. For academic nominations, the contact person is usually the principal investigator. For other nominations, the contact should be a project manager or other technical representative.
- Contributors: those individuals or organizations that have provided financial or technical support for development or implementation of the nominated technology. Providing information on contributor(s) is optional.
EPA will add the people listed as sponsors and contacts to a contact database. EPA periodically sends reminders and updates about the program to those in this database.
- The second page should contain the following information:
- Project title.
- Short description of the most recent milestone(s), with date(s), that the nominated technology has reached within the past five years. Examples include, but are not limited to: critical discovery made, results published, patent application submitted or approved, pilot plant constructed, and technology implemented or commercialized. Only one milestone is required.
- Statement indicating whether the nominated technology is eligible for the small business award, the academic award, or both.
- Statement indicating which one of the three focus areas best describes the nominated technology (i.e., the primary focus area). If the nominated technology falls within more than one focus area, you may include the secondary focus area(s).
- If the nominated technology involves international or multinational collaboration: Description of the aspects of the technology that occurred within the U.S. during the past five years.
- An abstract not to exceed 350 words that describes the nominated technology. Consider including information about the problem your technology addresses and the benefits of your technology. EPA plans to publish these abstracts in its annual Summary of Award Entries and Recipients booklet.
- The remaining pages should explain in detail how the nominated technology meets the scope of the program and the selection criteria. Explain the following:
- The chemistry of the new technology, emphasizing how the technology is innovative and of scientific merit. Consider including chemical structure diagrams rather than using simple text to describe your chemistry. Patent numbers or references to peer-reviewed publications may also strengthen your nomination. The judges recognize the interdisciplinary nature of green chemistry. To be eligible for an award, however, your technology must include a significant chemistry component, even though it is probably the result of collaborations with engineers, biologists, toxicologists, etc.
- The problem (environmental or human health risk) that your technology addresses and how your technology solves the problem.
In addition, EPA strongly encourages you to compare the cost, performance, and environmental profile of your technology with any competing technologies. This may help you demonstrate the broad applicability of your technology. You may include structure diagrams, tables, and other graphics. You may use color in your nomination, but be aware that the nomination may be printed in black and white, so information in color may be illegible.
There is no limit on the number of nominations that EPA will accept from any one sponsor. A sponsor must, however, submit each nomination separately.
All entries received will be considered public information. No material will be returned. Program sponsors are not responsible for lost or damaged entries. EPA acknowledges receipt of nominations, usually by email. If you have not received an acknowledgment by mid-January, please contact the Green Chemistry Program at greenchemistry@epa.gov or (202) 564-8740.
Submit an electronic copy of the nomination with the primary sponsor's name in the file name. It may be to your advantage to submit your nomination as a .pdf file to minimize possible reading errors, but EPA accepts and is able to read all common file types. The electronic copy may be emailed to greenchemistry@epa.gov (preferred) or sent on a floppy disk, ZipTM disk, or CD, clearly labeled with the sponsor, computer format (Windows or Macintosh), and file name(s). The nomination must be sent no later than December 31.
Note: Irradiation of Federal mail may damage electronic media. To send a disk, please use a package delivery service and the following address:
Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
EPA East, Room 5133
1201 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20004
Telephone: 202-564-8740
Additional details are available in the Nomination Package for Awards (PDF) (12 pp., 237 KB, About PDF).
Judging Entries
A panel of technical experts selected by the American Chemical Society
will judge the entries. These experts might include members
of the scientific, industrial, governmental, educational,
and environmental communities. Judges may request verification
of any chemistry described or claims made in entries that
are selected as finalists. The judges will select award
recipients based on the chemistry projects or programs that
best meet the selection criteria.
Notification of Winners
Winners will be notified prior to the official public announcement, which will be made in spring or summer in Washington, DC. A crystal sculpture will be presented to the primary sponsor of the winning green chemistry project in each of the five award categories. Certificates will be presented to individuals (as identified by the primary sponsor) who contributed to the research, development, or implementation of the chemistry.
Additional Information
Questions about eligibility, nomination procedures, or the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge program should be directed to EPA's Industrial Chemistry Branch at greenchemistry@epa.gov or (202) 564-8740.
Download the Nomination Package for Awards (PDF) (12 pp., 237 KB, About PDF). The closing date for the awards is December 31.
Read on about past award entries and recipients.