Texas Athletics wins College Sports Sustainability Makeover award
Texas Athletics sports club in the United States has won the prestigious College Sports Sustainability Makeover award
Texas Athletics sports club in the United States has won the prestigious College Sports Sustainability Makeover award.
The award was announced last week during the Green Sports Alliance Summit in Houston, and it received prizes and support packages valued at over $50,000.
The College Sports Sustainability Contest started last March and it ran until June; its aim is to enhance the impact on community sustainability that college athletics have, influencing fans’ sustainability behaviours notably.
48 campuses from 24 states with different athletics’ affiliations participated in the contest, and they were chosen on the basis of need, suitability, leverage, and likelihood of success.
Several companies and institutions take part in the project as sponsors and partners: Max-R, GreenDrop Recycling, Eco-Products, EcoSafe Zero Waste, the University of Colorado Boulder Environmental Center, the Green Sports Alliance, and the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
Sustainability being a high priority for Texas Athletics is what made them the big winner of the competition: sustainability is implemented across various sports and the campus is aiming at zero waste by 2020, demonstrating that the biggest athletics programmes can implement comprehensive, large-scale sustainability efforts.
Scott Jenkins, chair of the Green Sports Alliance Board of Directors said: "The makeover contest was an overwhelming success as proven by the number of high quality submissions, and the outstanding leadership of the two winning campuses... College sport has distinguished itself as a sustainability leader capable of using its cultural and market influence to promote healthy, sustainable communities. We all win in that game."
Huston-Tillotson University also received an award in the small campus category.
Green Sports Alliance promotes healthy and sustainable communities through the influence of sports, by inspiring sports leagues, teams, venues and fans to transition to renewable energy healthy food recycling water efficiency, species preservation, safer chemicals, and other environmentally preferable practices.
The Alliance counts members representing more than 370 sports teams and venues from 20 different sports leagues and 14 countries.