Any applicant who owns an active U.S. trademark registration and is using a registered mark in connection with products, services, or business practices that improve the environment is eligible. All types of registered marks are eligible, including trademarks, service marks, certification marks, collective marks, or collective membership marks.

Applicants are encouraged to think broadly about how their goods, services, or business practices improve the environment: Any meaningful, real-world contribution toward a cleaner and healthier environment can qualify.

For example, an applicant may be providing products and/or services that use recycled or environmentally friendly materials or that relate to renewable energy, green technology, water purification, reforestation, or reducing pollution and carbon emissions, among others. An applicant may license its renewable energy technologies or donate its profits to address humanitarian environmental problems.

Other examples could include a certification mark owner’s efforts to promote the authorized use of its mark by businesses that use environmentally friendly practices or materials, or a nonprofit organization’s educational and training services to encourage best environmental practices.

Applicants will be asked to describe how the trademark they use is related to, or has become associated with, the environment or an environmental cause. Applicants will also be asked to describe how the products or services they offer, or the business practices they use, contribute to improving the environment. Applicants may provide additional information to support their applications, such as a short video, brochures, advertising materials, or published articles.

Applications will be accepted from April 3 to July 14, or until 200 applications are received, whichever occurs first. The USPTO encourages applicants of all sizes, organizational structures, business focuses, geographic areas, and demographic backgrounds to apply.

The goal of the Trademarks for Humanity awards competition is to have a pool of applicants that reflects the diverse spectrum of brand owners working to help solve humanitarian environmental challenges.

Applications will be evaluated using the following criteria:

• Subject matter: the provision of the applicant’s goods and/or services in connection with a mark registered by the USPTO addresses a humanitarian environmental problem.
• Impact: the provision of the applicant’s goods and/or services in connection with a mark registered by the USPTO has made a meaningful impact in addressing a humanitarian environmental problem.
• Character of the mark: the registered mark the applicant uses on or in connection with its goods and/or services either creatively conveys the importance of the environment; the need to address a humanitarian environmental problem, or the manner in which the applicant’s particular goods and/or services (or the provision thereof) address a humanitarian environmental problem OR has become recognized through its use as being associated with addressing a humanitarian environmental problem