Green Earth Book Awards
About the Green Earth Book Award
Each Earth Day since 2004, The Nature Generation has bestowed this coveted award to children’s and young adult literature that best convey the message of environmental stewardship. We celebrate the winning authors and illustrators and applaud all authors who continue to tell the stories about the environmental challenges we all face in a way that resonates with children and young adults. We also recognize the publishers who continue to bring these stories to fruition.
QUICK LINKS
2026 Long List
NatGen is pleased to announce the Long List for the 2026 Green Earth Book Award. We received over 225 submissions in the fall of 2025 and this list comprises the books that were selected for the Long List.
These Long List titles have been vetted and are currently being reviewed by six separate panels of judges. Each book is categorizied into the following six categories: Picture Book Intermediate and Primary, Children’s Fiction and Non-Fiction, and Young Adult Fiction and Non-Fiction.
Congratulations to all the authors who write stories and share the facts and to the illustrators who create the artowork. And kudos to the publishers and publishing companies that bring the final products to all of us.
The Short List will be finalized in April, with all winners, honors, and recommended reading announced on Earth Day – April 22. Click on the book cover graphic or the seal to see the complete list of Long List books. 
2025 Winners!
NatGen celebrates the current GEBA winners, honor books, and recommended reading. From powerful storytelling to compelling non-fiction that brings environmental issues and information to young people in relatable ways, these books offer a unique and vital perspective to the conversation around our planet’s future.
This year’s winners represent not only excellence in writing, but a deep commitment to environmental awareness, advocacy, and action. Their work reminds us that books are more than just stories or studies—they can be catalysts for change.
Congratulations to all the authors, illustrators, and publishers who bring these stories to life. Listed below are the Winners, Honor Books, and Recommended Reading for the 2025 Green Earth Book Award.
Now, it’s your turn. Read these extraordinary books. Share them. Discuss them. Let them spark conversations in classrooms, libraries, and communities.
GEBA Celebration
On October 16, 2025, NatGen held its annual Green Earth Book Award Celebration, where we officially presented the 2025 GEBA-winning authors and illustrators with their awards. Each author and illustrator spoke about their specific books and illustrative process. There was also a fascinating keynote from science writer and palentologist, Riley Black.
Watch the event here.
2025
WINNERS
2025
HONOR
2025
RECOMMENDED READING
Meet the 2025 Judges
The 2025 Green Earth Book Award judges are literary, environmental, and educational professionals who volunteer their time to review the books. In 2025, our judges reviewed over 130 books in six categories! Several judges serve on more than one panel and review in multiple categories. Many have served on our panel for years.
The caliber of our judges’ professional experience benefits the Green Earth Book Award. Our vetted panel comprises university professors of children’s literature and teacher education, high school teachers, environmental educators, and authors. We have several librarians who work in county and school libraries. NatGen judges work in the information technology sector and several who support the federal government in environmental management and consulting. We also have multiple judges who work in science fields and for the National Wildlife Federation, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. We believe the mix of experience, education, and participation on our panels enhances the overall review process.
Judges review books using an established set of award criteria per category. The criteria capture a book’s environmental concepts such as environmental stewardship, the celebration of nature, defending the environment, as well as awareness and inspiration.
Patty Dean, Panel Chair, Associate Professor in Teacher Education, Salisbury University
Deanna Antonio, Reading Specialist and Environmentalist, Retired
Darby Bade, Principal GDIT
Tish Blessing, Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Niya Brown, Clinical Faculty, Salisbury University
Ellen Claussen, Educator, Retired
Cathrene Connery, Associate Professor of Literacy and Children’s Literature, Salisbury University
Paula Dillon, Librarian, Loudoun County, VA
Karen Fitzsimmons, Librarian, Retired
Stephen Ford, Curriculum Resource Center Director, Salisbury University
Doris Gebel, Children’s Literature Consultant
Debra Wolf Goldstein, Executive Director, One Little Earth
Sarah Mulhern Gross, High School English Teacher/Emphasis on Science and Literacy
Grace Hao, 12th Grade High School Student
Dr. Yuan He, Assistant Professor, Education Studies, Stephen F. Austin State University
Leah Hill, Kindergarten Teacher
Jen Cullerton Johnson, Author
Ian Kline, President and CEO, The Cadmus Group
Lydia Kline, Science Policy Analyst, National Institutes of Health
Louisa Koch, Education Director, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Adriane Lam, Assistant Professor, Binghamton University Department of Earth Science
Isaac Larison, Associate Professor, Literacy Education, Marshall University
Renee’ Critcher Lyons, Professor, East Tennessee State University; 2019 YALSA Nonfiction Award
Jennifer McColl, Contract Management Specialist
Cynthia McDermott, Literary Professor, Retired
Gretchen McRoberts, Artist/Naturalist
Terry McTigue, NOAA, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science
Margy Meeks, Librarian, Retired
Elizabeth Myers, 1st Grade Teacher, Talbot County, MD
Char Moffit, Assistant Professor of Education, California State University Chico
Jennifer Noonan, Children’s Librarian, Lewes Public Library
Cindy Olson, Art Director for Ranger Rick Magazines National Wildlife Federation
Maren Ostergard, Early Literacy/Outreach Librarian, King County Library System
Sharon Sheridan, GFWC Education Community Service Program Chairman; Retired Librarian
Chris Schmidt, Retired Librarian
Autumn Smith, Reading Specialist, Patapsco Middle School
Tamara Teaff, Retired Librarian, Virginia Reader’s Choice Committee
Sharryn Larsen Walker, 2023 CWU Distinguished Professor for Service, Professor, Central Washington University
Cindy Woodruff, Retired Librarian
Past Winners
View a list of previous GEBA winners.
Submission Period for the 2027 GEBA Will Open in the Fall
Submissions for the 2027 Green Earth Book Award will be accepted October through December 15. 2026. Books published in 2026 are eligible to submit. Please join our mailing list to be kept up to date.
Submission Criteria
SIX AWARD CATEGORIES:
Picture Book Primary
young readers up to age 8
Picture Book Intermediate
young readers ages 9-12
Children’s Fiction
young readers ages 8-12
Children’s Non-Fiction
young readers ages 8-12
Young Adult Fiction
readers ages 13-21
Young Adult Non-Fiction
readers ages 13-21