Did you attend the sustainability party of the year? There was a photo booth, a gong, awesome pins, stickers, branded Maison Jars—this way we avoided single-use cups—and even a DJ.
The Annual Sustainability Award Ceremony honors the people who go above and beyond their role description and take on the challenge of cleaning up the environment.
This year, the seven award recipients advance sustainability on campus, in the hospital, and internationally through advocacy, education, and programs that reduce waste and pollution.
The Seven Stewards
As told by each nominator:
Katie Lichter, MD, MPH, resident physician, Department of Radiation Oncology
She is a founder of UCSF's GreenHealth Lab, a research group with over 20 members from various medical schools and residencies engaged in climate health projects, including life cycle assessments, OR waste audits, and studies on climate-related events' effects on national cancer outcomes.
She is working to incorporate sustainability into the UCSF Quality Improvement group. Lichter's work lies at the nexus of climate change and healthcare, focusing on raising awareness of its impacts on cancer patients and advocating for healthcare decarbonization.
She has co-authored peer-reviewed articles, including a recent report on utilizing Uber Green to reduce emissions from patient transit, a pilot project initiated by UCSF's Radiation Oncology Department with the aim of national expansion.
Marya Zlatnik, MD, clinical professor, UCSF Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, Chair of the Senate Sustainability Committee
Zlatnik has spearheaded the Academic Senate's Theme Years on Decarbonizing UCSF. She led a Town Hall for the UCSF community to learn more about UCSF's ongoing sustainability efforts, including efforts toward campus decarbonization, and she has led discussions of UCSF’s sustainability efforts at multiple Senate leadership meetings to build support among the other Senate committees, Senate leadership, and the faculty more broadly.
Zlatnik has engaged leadership at the UCSF and system-wide levels by providing comments on four system-wide policies related to sustainability and representing the committee on other campus sustainability committees and in the decarbonization planning process.
Gunnar Mattson, student, School of Medicine
Mattson has participated in and directed research projects that have investigated clinical practices and how we might improve standard operating procedures to reduce the environmental impact of health care. First, with a mentor in the Department of Radiology, he assisted in conducting an environmental audit of different methods for performing colorectal cancer screening. This is a relatively new concept— inserting the environmental impact into decision-making about clinical choices for care. In his second research project, Mattson partnered with a mentor in the Department of Dermatology to develop and lead a pilot telehealth program at the San Francisco VA to determine the clinical utility and environmental mitigation of a direct-to-patient tele-dermoscopy service.
Working with the Office of Sustainability, Gunnar served as a Climate Health-Action Fellow as part of the UC Carbon Neutrality Initiative. The UCSF Climate Resilience Team, with whom he worked, sought to understand the impacts of climate change on the UCSF community, to develop mitigation and adaptation strategies for institutional climate resilience, and to connect key stakeholders to prioritize equity within climate action planning efforts.
Sapna Thottathil, PhD, managing director, Center for Climate Health and Equity
As a driving force, Thottathil actively participates in and facilitates various UCSF forums, including the equity-centered climate resilience monthly meetings funded by the University of California Office of the President.
With commitment, she has taken the initiative to develop a curriculum on decarbonization in clinical practice and health systems, not only for faculty clinicians at UCSF but across the entire UC system. Her tireless efforts, in collaboration with the Center for Climate, Health, and Equity, to formalize this curriculum and make it accessible to a broader audience of clinicians and students, exemplify her extraordinary passion for embedding sustainability into educational programs.
Her efforts to integrate sustainability into UCSF's core missions of education, research, operations, and public service truly set her apart as a changemaker who consistently goes above and beyond to drive meaningful and lasting impact.
Ana Figueroa, RN, UCSF Health
Figueroa has led several sustainability efforts in the Mission Bay operating rooms, including improving collection for single-use devices and transitioning to reusable gel products from disposable foam.
By serving as a green champion, Ana advocates for sustainable practices in the operating rooms, educates, and reminds fellow staff of the importance of these practices.
Allan Ndovu, student, School of Medicine
Ndovu has been a true force in the climate and health movement at UCSF. He has led important, timely, and impactful work on climate and health education, working closely with a team of faculty and students. He has served as a thought partner, mover, and shaker in climate and health education and research.
Ndovu has been a key leader in developing and implementing a curriculum for climate and health at the UCSF School of Medicine. As part of the Climate Health and Sustainability Education (CHASE) curricular team, he collaborated on developing learning objectives, content, and reached out to pre-clinical F1 course directors to engage them in integrating climate and health content into their lectures.
Karim Salgado, owner of Carmelina's Taqueria at Parnassus Heights
Salgado is very responsive to UCSF's sustainability goals. Before being asked, she switched to paper straws and eliminated all single-use plastic drink bottles. Carmelina's Taqueria also consistently meets UCOP's annual deadlines for sustainability reporting.
Each recipient's dedication, advocacy, and work serve as a testament to the power of collective effort in driving UCSF toward a sustainable and healthier future.
In addition to celebrating the award recipients, the ceremony recognized and honored Sustainability Certificate recipients. Individuals, groups, and clinics that have taken steps to green their areas.
Gold Office Certification | Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics Admin Office at Genentech Hall | Nicole Taylor
Silver Office Certification | Transportation at Rutter Center Garage | Edgar Rodriguez and Yuliana Herandez
Gold Lab Certification | Ku Lab | Rebecca Lee
Gold Lab Certification | Kober Lab | Ester Chavez-Iglesias
Platinum Lab Certification | Moasser Lab | Joehleen Archard
Silver Lab Certification | Wilson Lab | Camille Fouassier
