Disney Environmental Champion of the Year Awards 2026
This Earth Month, Meet the Newest Environmental Champions
At Disney Experiences, finding ways to protect the environment starts with people who care. Across the world, cast members are finding creative, impactful ways to reduce our environmental footprint and help build a more sustainable future.
In honor of Earth Month, we’re celebrating recipients of the Disney Environmental Champion of the Year (DECOY) Awards, which honor cast members who go above and beyond to advance environmental sustainability through their work. From behind-the-scenes operations to guest-facing experiences, these Environmental Champions at Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort are helping care for the planet we call home.
Jared’s Making Waves in Water Conservation
Jared is helping make sustainability part of the guest experience at Walt Disney World —one gallon of water at a time. As a senior mechanical engineer on the Facility Asset Management team, Jared played a key role in the recent refurbishment of Stormalong Bay at Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Resorts.
Thanks to his strategic thinking and engineering expertise, the refreshed water park area now conserves thousands of gallons of water every day. By advocating for sustainable design and collaborating with teams across Walt Disney World, Jared helped guide a complex project forward while supporting Disney’s broader environmental goals.
Cutting Down on Plastic, One Hotel Stay at a Time
This year, the Hotels & Resorts team delivered a major environmental win by completing a multi‑year effort to reduce single‑use plastic in guest amenities in Walt Disney World hotels. As a result, plastic packaging has been phased out of bath amenities and vanity amenity kits, helping prevent millions of pieces of plastic waste.
Housekeeping Line of Business managers Tommy, Summer and Katie played a key role in bringing the initiative to life. Working closely with teams across Disney Experiences, they helped source alternative amenities, designed labels that maintained Disney show quality, and streamlined new processes for filling amenities. Through collaboration, creativity and a shared commitment to sustainability, the team turned a challenge into a meaningful, lasting change.
Valerie Demonstrates Bayou-tiful Sustainability
Valerie is a retail cast member in New Orleans and Bayou Country at Disneyland Resort and is known for inspiring their fellow cast members to commit to Zero Waste to Landfill efforts through their own dedication to disposing of waste properly.
As an area lead, Valerie has created an engaging learning environment for cast to understand the impact and importance of the Zero Waste to Landfill goal at Disneyland Resort, which includes sharing ways cast can participate in existing recycling programs and partnering with their management team to initiate new Zero Waste programs for the resort’s retail and food and beverage teams.
Jason Sources Change Through Sustainability
Jason Horn is a senior sourcing specialist who is always looking for new opportunities for supply chain sustainability. Throughout his forty years at Disneyland Resort, Jason has used his influence to reduce the environmental impact of the food served at Disneyland Resort. He pioneered sustainable seafood purchasing, championed recyclable packaging and shifted to locally raised beef as part of his role on the Strategic Sourcing team.
Jason has made sustainability a core part of his long career at Disneyland Resort and we’re proud to call him an Environmental Champion.
Candy Production’s Sweet Steps Toward Sustainability
The Disneyland Resort Candy Production team was awarded the 2026 Environmental Team of the Year Award for its multi-year commitment to weaving sustainability into their daily work. What started with simply counting waste bags evolved into rethinking processes, finding ways to reduce parchment paper, plastic wrap, and food scraps throughout their operation.
Candy Production applies innovation to their waste reduction measures, including a recent partnership with Circle D Ranch, home of the horses at Disneyland Resort. Candy Production provides any apples unfit for use to the Circle D Ranch stables as treats for the hardworking horses of Main Street, U.S.A. The team has shown what’s possible when people think about how they can make a difference through their work.
Thank You to Our Environmental Champions
We thank our Environmental Champions for helping us reduce our environmental footprint and reminding us that we all have a role to play in that effort. Learn more about last year’s Environmental Champion award recipients to see more examples of cast members making a difference.
This Earth Month, we’re celebrating the Disney Conservation Fund’s 30th anniversary by spotlighting 30 of Disney’s biodiversity, conservation and environmental sustainability stories. Follow our countdown to Earth Day at TheWaltDisneyCompany.com/Disney-Planet-Possible and visit Disney’s Animals, Science and Environment on Facebook and Dr. Mark on Instagram.
