On April 24, the Environmental and Sustainability Studies Program at the University of Kentucky gathered at the Lyric Theatre to celebrate graduating seniors and recognize students whose work reflects the interdisciplinary spirit of ENS. During the ceremony, the program presented two annual honors: the Creativity in ENS Award and the ENS Outstanding Graduating Senior Award. Below, from left to right in front: Holly Cason, Graciela Martinez, Sarah Ghanim, Zoe McComas, Kaylee Bliss, Jess Harrison, Emily Simon and Sophia McKay. Tony Stallins and Bob Sandmeyer (back) are the ENS supervising faculty. 


 

The Creativity in ENS Award recognizes students who explore environmental and sustainability themes through creative work that extends beyond traditional academic scholarship.

Kaylee Bliss
Kaylee Bliss graduates

By Jennifer T. Allen

“Recycling is one of the easiest ways everyone on campus can make an impact,” said Ryan Lark, zero-waste specialist in Facilities Management.

In 2024, the university collected 1,138 tons of recycling from the blue bins around campus to send to their recycling partner. This was only 40% of the 2,869 total tons recycled last year. The rest came from operations efforts including collecting scrap

By Haven L. Patrick 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 27, 2025) — Six University of Kentucky undergraduates have been selected for the Sustainability Summer Research Fellowship, a program that supports student-led projects that advance sustainable practices and community impact through research.

Now in its 11th year, the fellowship is a collaboration between the Office of Undergraduate Research, UK Sustainability and the UK Student Sustainability Council. Since its launch in 2014, the program has supported

By Cassady Brockman 

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Large-scale tourism can benefit a region economically but have many negative effects on the destination’s people and environment.  

University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences student Abbey McNely is researching the impact on tourism in Bali, Indonesia, with Betsy Beymer-Farris, Ph.D., assistant professor of geography at UK, and Jeffrey Seay, Ph.D, professor of chemical engineering at UK’s Paducah campus. This project began two years ago and pushed her into the world of research.  

“Essentially what I’m doing is examining the economic, social and environmental impacts of tourism in Bali, Indonesia, and examining ways you can mitigate the disparities that tourism causes in indigenous populations,” McNely said.  

McNely, a Lexington native,

By Zoey Schwartz 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 22, 2024) — The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research recently announced the 22 undergraduate winners of the 60th annual Oswald Research and Creativity Awards. Chad Risko, faculty director of the Office of Undergraduate Research, and research ambassadors celebrated the winners and presented the awards.

Established in 1964 by then-UK President John Oswald, the Oswald Research and Creativity Competition aims to promote undergraduate research and creative endeavors across all academic disciplines.

The competition spans categories, including biological sciences, design (architecture,

By Richard LeComte 

LEXINGTON, Ky – Graciela Martinez can see the forest for the trees. 

Martinez, an Environmental and Sustainability Studies major in the University of Kentucky’s College of Arts and Sciences, is joining several students in a year-long internship through UK’s Office of Sustainability. For her internship, she will be working with UK’s Urban Forest Initiative, which promotes the tree canopy on campus. 

This fall, Martinez said, she’ll be helping run the forest initiative and organize such events as Tree Week, which was in October. Then in the spring, like all interns, she’ll develop an individual project and report on it at an event. 

“I’ll be working on the planning side," said Martinez, who’s

By Jesi Jones-Bowman 

LEXINGTON, Ky (Oct. 10, 2024) — The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research has selected 15 undergraduates for the 2024-25 Undergraduate Research Ambassador program.

The program’s mission is to increase awareness and create opportunities for students to  engage in research. Ambassadors must demonstrate academic excellence, leadership potential and be involved in mentored research. This year’s ambassadors represent four colleges, nine disciplines and 10 research areas.

The student leaders’ goal is to make undergraduate research more accessible. Ambassadors promote undergraduate research involvement through

By Lindsey Piercy

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 25, 2024) — The Kentucky Climate Consortium (KYCC) will host the inaugural 2024 Kentucky Climate Symposium from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Sept. 26, at the University of Kentucky.

The event, taking place in Harris Ballroom of the Gatton Student Center, will bring together students, leading experts, researchers, policymakers and community members to share information and resources on climate change.

The symposium is designed as a collaborative

By Emily Sallee 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 5, 2024) — The University of Kentucky Office of Nationally Competitive Awards announced three students have been selected as award winners of a Critical Language Scholarship.

The program provides opportunities for American college and university students to study languages and cultures essential to America's engagement with the world. 

Each summer, undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at U.S. colleges and universities across the country spend eight to 10 weeks learning one of 13 languages at an intensive study-abroad institute.

More than 500 students were

By A Fish   

LEXINGTON, KY – In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, people have been left wondering about the future of global health and other increasingly globalized crises facing humanity. The University of Kentucky’s Global Health Case Competition prompts students to find answers to those questions.  

Mallory Sparks, a student in UK’s College of Arts and Sciences, has taken up that challenge. She’s a two-time competitor, and her team won the 2023 contest. The competition asked students to create a solution to combat poor mental health in youth in Monrovia, Liberia. Team 13 took first place with “LIFT UP Mental Health: Liberia Initiative to Foster Ties

By Haven L. Patrick 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 30, 2023) — The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research recently announced the 15 undergraduate winners of the 59th annual Oswald Research and Creativity awards. Chad Risko, faculty director of the Office of Undergraduate Research, and Research Ambassadors congratulated the winners and distribute the awards.

Established in 1964 by then-President John Oswald, the Oswald Research and Creativity Competition encourages undergraduate research and creative activities across all fields of study.

Categories are:

By Meredith Weber 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 27, 2023) — Nearly 40 University of Kentucky alumni and students will be honored during the 32nd annual Lyman T. Johnson Awards Luncheon 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 13, in the Gatton Student Center Grand Ballroom on UK’s campus.   

UK’s academic colleges and units select at least one Black alumnus whose faith, hard work and determination has positively affected the lives of people on the UK campus, the city, state or nation. These individuals receive the Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence award. At least one Black student who displays outstanding academic achievement and the ability to impact the lives of others is

By Jesi Jones-Bowman 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 25, 2023) — Five University of Kentucky students have been selected for the Sustainability Summer Research Fellowship program, a high-impact learning experience that contributes to the students’ academic growth as well as sustainability-focused research initiatives at UK and in the community.

As a learning institution, UK engages in sustainable practices by collaborating with faculty, staff and students across all colleges and departments. The Sustainability Research Fellowship is a collaborative program coordinated by the Office of Undergraduate Research and sponsored by the 

By Jenny Wells-Hosley 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 15, 2022) — University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto has selected two student representatives to speak at the UK December Commencement Ceremonies this Friday, Dec. 16, at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center.

The two student speakers are Alyssa Hargis and Princess Valencia.

Alyssa Hargis

Hargis, from Milford, Ohio, is a first-generation college student, graduating with dual bachelor's degrees in public health and environmental and sustainability studies. She is also a member of the Lewis Honors College

CHSS Workshop Series Grants

The Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences’ Workshop Series Grants are supported by generous donors and the College of Arts and Sciences.  These grants offer funding for faculty and graduate students to create a series of workshops for reading, writing, and discussion of a particular theme across disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.

During the Spring Semester of 2022, CHSS supported four Workshop Series Grants. These workshop events presented new pedagogical and research ideas within A&S and across other UK Colleges as well. Below, we spotlight each series of workshops. We would like to thank our donors and everyone who participated in these workshops, and to congratulate those who planned and executed these innovative events.

By Ryan Girves

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 13, 2022) — The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has selected undergraduate students as new scholars for the Gaines Fellowship Program. 

Fellowships are awarded in recognition of outstanding academic performance, a demonstrated ability to conduct independent research, an interest in public issues and a desire to enhance understanding of the human condition through the humanities.

Founded in 1984 by a gift from John and Joan Gaines, the Gaines Center for the Humanities functions as a laboratory for imaginative and innovative education on UK’s campus. 

UK’s 12 new Gaines Fellows are:

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 15, 2022) — Now in its third year, the University of Kentucky’s SPARK (Students Participating as Ambassadors for Research in Kentucky) Program gives an introduction to health equity research to students from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in research. And there’s something extra special about its newest cohort of participants — it includes students not only from UK but also from Kentucky State University. Among the students selected are three majors in the College of Arts & Sciences. 

“From our first two cohorts, we had proof of concept and strong feedback on what was successful or not. We felt it was a good time to grow,” said SPARK

By Carlie Laughlin

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 11, 2021) — University of Kentucky students, faculty and staff from every area of campus are leading exciting, sustainability-focused programs. These programs provide high-impact research and learning opportunities for students and faculty, have significant positive environmental and economic impacts on operations, and provide resources and support for a foundation of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion at UK and across the Commonwealth. 

The 2021 Sustainability Showcase, hosted in the innovative and community-facing Cornerstone Exchange, highlighted the university's accomplishments in student engagement, athletics, health care, campus operations and interdisciplinary scholarship. A brief award presentation also honored the recipients of

By Jesi Jones-Bowman

UK undergraduate researchers Bridget Bolt and Gretchen Ruschman. Students are encouraged to explore undergraduate research opportunities at the Research + Creative Experience Expo.

At the University of Kentucky, undergraduates have access to outstanding research and creative work activities led by world-class faculty and staff that promote self-discovery, experiential learning and lifelong achievement.

Explore exciting undergraduate opportunities at the first annual UK Research + Creative Experience Expo 3-5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 13, around the Gatton Student Center’s Social Staircase.

“The goal of the Research + Creative Experience Expo is to introduce undergraduates to the diversity of research and creative work conducted at UK,” said Chad Risko, faculty