Pure Award
pure award
Recognizing Michigan organizations who have incorporated innovative and exemplary best practices in natural, cultural, and heritage stewardship into their daily operations.
Michigan routinely ranks amongst the most awarded and sought after destinations for tourism, welcoming more than 130 million visitors annually. With its storied history, the Pure Award honors tourism sites, attractions and organizations who are working to preserve and protect our cultural, historical and environmental sites that are so widely recognized around the globe.
Who is eligible:
New in 2026, the Pure Award is expanding to include a category for individual recognition AND organizations.
- Organizational Eligibility:
- All industries are eligible to participate (tourism and non-tourism related)
- All for-profit and non-profit entities are eligible
- Initiatives or projects can be year-round or for a short period of time (such as an event or seasonal project)
- Individual Eligibility:
- Individuals must work directly with the project or projects highlighted in their nomination forms and be involved operationally with the execution of the project
Examples of work that can be considered for the Pure Award:
- Preservation or restoration work at cultural, historical and tourist sites
- Environmental stewardship to reduce visitor impact (such as transitioning to renewable energy, litter prevention, waste reduction, waterway clean-ups, invasive species control, etc.)
- Storytelling of Michigan history
- Public engagement for Michigan history, cultural, sites, and events and what makes us “Pure Michigan”
- Preservation of land for public use to recreate or to provide biodiversity and ecological protection for future generations
- Creating greater accessibility for community members and educational programs
- If your work contributes to making to our state and industry “Pure Michigan,” than you qualify for the Pure Award!
Winners will be selected based on the following criteria:
- Projects must support Michigan’s natural, cultural and/or heritage stewardship through active projects, events, restoration work, preservation, public engagement or enhancement of Michigan’s tourism industry.
- Projects must demonstrate impact for the general public and visitors in Michigan
- Projects must be already completed or in the process of completion. Future projects that have not begun will not eligible
The recipient will be recognized at the 2026 Pure Michigan Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Traverse City, MI from April 7-9, 2026.
Past Recipients
In partnership with the Manistee County Historical Museum and the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians Historic Preservation, Manistee Tourism sought to create a new way to tell the history of Manistee County, its settlement, and the 20 most influential people who made Manistee what it is today. Through Origins, a series of interpretive artwork, sculptures and narration placed in an existing Manistee city park, and a comprehensive history guidebook free to the public, the three organizations worked together to tell the “origins” of Manistee from a viewpoint that encompassed all people.
Now a National Historic Landmark, visitors from all over the world come to wander, wonder, and explore the beauty of this 1928 National Historic Landmark and uncover a unique piece of the American automotive story in metro Detroit.
Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary protects a nationally significant collection of nearly 100 historic shipwrecks in Lake Huron off the Michigan coast. Through research, education, and community involvement, the sanctuary works to ensure future generations can enjoy these underwater treasures.
Support by parent company Vail Resorts, Mt. Brighton has continuously strived for excellence within the tourism industry in Michigan. The resort has become a pillar in the Greater Brighton community while embracing environmental sustainability issues. The resort has eliminated single use plastics, reduced water consumption, implemented a robust waste reduction program and emphasized energy reductions within their facilities.
The festival was brought together with private, public partnerships that included support from the City of Muskegon, the Muskegon Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce, Visit Muskegon (Convention & Visitors Bureau), the Community Foundation for Muskegon County, the Muskegon Museum of Art and many local businesses. This collaboration was a conscious effort to help revitalize Downtown Muskegon through investment, environmental stewardship, supporting the arts and tourism. Bringing in 50,000 visitors at its peek before the pandemic. The festival has been able to divert 10,289 pounds of material from landfills while providing over $7 million dollars in economic impact.
To date, GTRLC has protected nearly 44,000 acres of land and more than 140 acres of shoreline along rivers, lakes, and streams.
The nonprofit’s conservation efforts focus on balancing the growth of the region by permanently protecting all that makes it special: fresh, clean water, working farms, lush forests, coastal dunes, trails for hiking and biking, scenic vistas, and wildlife habitat and corridors.
Since 2015, the Detroit Jazz Festival has worked to become the greenest jazz festival in the Midwest. Through their innovative partnership with DTE Energy Foundation on the Festival’s greening project, the festival is taking big steps to reduce its carbon footprint, educate attendees, and increase its waste diversion rate.
By working collaboratively with stakeholders, the Festival continues to support sustainable tourism and events taking place within the city by creating best practices for other Detroit events.
2018 - Michigan Cares For Tourism
Michigan Cares for Tourism received this award for their work as a100% volunteer, 100% give back non-profit organization helping restore Michigan’s historic, cultural and natural attractions. Their work to date engaged 2,000 volunteers and donated in excess $500,000 in labor and supplies to 15 Michigan destinations.
Their events occur throughout Michigan including Fayette State Historic Park in Garden, Sturgeon Point Lighthouse in Harrisville, CCC Museum and Ram Center in Roscommon, the Felt Estate in Saugatuck, Belle Isle State Park in Detroit (photo on left) and Mill Lake in Chelsea.
Headlands International Sky Park identifies the night sky as a vast and vanishing natural resource that is essential to today’s global conversation about habitat protection, energy resource management and tourism. Home to approximately 550 acres of woodlands, more than two miles of undeveloped Lake Michigan shoreline and many species of rare and endangered plant life, Headlands became one of the first ten International Dark Sky Parks in the world in 2011.
Inaugural winner of the Pure Award the Grand Haven Salmon Festival was selected as the recipient for its strong commitment to sustainability and zero-waste festival endeavors. In 2015, 96% of the festival’s waste was waste composted or recycled, and the remaining 40 pounds of trash were processed in a waste-to-energy incinerator.