Bhubaneswar : Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) has won 2023 International Green Gown Awards for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Sustainability. The prestigious award was presented at a ceremony as a part of the UN High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development on July 17, 2023. KISS stood out as the sole NGO in India to be shortlisted for this distinguished category.
Among the 93 finalists representing 25 countries, KISS was recognised as one of the 12 winners for its Project Uday – creating changemakers in tribal pockets.
The International Green Gown Awards, supported by esteemed organisations such as the United Nations Environment Programme, the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU), L’Agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), International Association of Universities (IAU), and Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI), celebrate and endorse the outstanding efforts of educational institutions worldwide in promoting sustainability. KISS rightly deserves the award as it has served as a shining example of impactful and innovative practices in sustainability.
The organisation’s honesty in sharing both successes and challenges faced along the journey demonstrates its bravery, confidence, and humility. This recognition highlights the importance of higher, technical, and vocational education institutions in addressing the pressing climate and biodiversity crises.
The judges thought that Project Uday is a really inspiring and well thought through project, clearly scalable and social benefits are really clear and aligned with tackling some of the most challenging of the SDG’s. The recognition will encourage KISS to contribute towards a sustainable world with renewed vigor, Prof. Achyuta Samanta, Founder of KIIT & KISS said, while congratulated students, staff and well-wishers of the institute for the achievement.
