Nominations are now being accepted for the Lake Spirit Awards, which recognize individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to environmental stewardship in the Lake Tahoe Basin. The public can submit nominations through September 30 at the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s (TRPA) website.
There are three categories for nominations: Citizen, Agency Representative/Environmental Scientist, and Lifetime Achievement. Multiple recipients will be chosen from across the region in each category. Winners will be formally recognized by the TRPA Governing Board later this year.
Since its inception in 2011, the Lake Spirit Awards have honored more than 40 people whose efforts have led to measurable environmental improvements around Lake Tahoe. Awardees are selected based on their impact and ability to engage others in protecting the lake.
Some recent winners include Helen Neff for her leadership on traffic safety initiatives, Lila Peterson for coordinating Vail Resorts’ zero-waste program, Helen Henry Smith of Vikingsholm Foundation, Ben and Evan Anderson of Truckee High School’s Envirolution Club, Sue Hughes for work on Incline Flume Trail, Karen Mullen-Ehly with Washoe County Parks, Tom Carter for underwater litter collection efforts, Jeff Poulin for organizing litter cleanups, Amy Berry from Tahoe Fund, Heidi Doyle of Sierra State Parks Foundation, Jean Diaz with St. Joseph Community Land Trust, Marilee Movius of League to Save Lake Tahoe Community Engagement, Jay Howard from Nevada State Parks, Jacob Quinn with USDA Forest Service Trails, Forest Schafer from North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, Roland Shaw from Nevada State Parks and Don Lane with USDA Forest Service.
In addition to the biennial Lake Spirit Awards, TRPA also hosts the Best in Basin Awards every other year. These awards recognize projects and programs that show outstanding environmental design and stewardship of Lake Tahoe. Nominations are now open for projects completed in 2024 or 2025 at trpa.gov/awards/bestinbasin.
Winners of both award programs will be announced later this year and in May 2026 respectively.