On Wednesday evening, June 19, 2019, the Green Sports Alliance presented its annual Environmental Leadership Award to the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
The Environmental Leadership Award is among the most prestigious of sports greening awards and is given to an individual or organization that has demonstrated extraordinary leadership towards sustainability, environmental stewardship, and community engagement.
The Green Sports Alliance recognized tennis legend Billie Jean King, whose trailblazing efforts helped spur on the greening movement at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (home of the US Open), as well as similar efforts throughout tennis and the sports world. Lauren Tracy, the USTA’s Director of Strategic Initiatives and current director of the USTA’s greening program, was also recognized for her work in successfully building the program.
With the development of the “Our courts may be blue, but we’re thinking green” campaign in 2008, the USTA educated fans about environmental stewardship using the faces of legendary tennis players to educate and encourage fans to make eco-friendly choices. Tracy has continued to grow the greening program and is instrumental in the USTA’s success, from implementation to measurement, and beyond.
“It is a great privilege for the USTA to be named a recipient of the Environmental Leadership Award and join an impressive list of past honorees,” said Gordon Smith, CEO and Executive Director, USTA. “As owners and operators of the US Open, one of the highest-attended annual sporting events in the world, we felt it both an obligation and opportunity to bring about measureable changes, and continue to do so across the board — including at the USTA National Campus. A special thank you goes to all who have helped the USTA make green the color of choice.”
In 2007, King, along with Pam Derderian and Nancy Becker, founded and launched GreenSlam, an environmental initiative for the sports industry aimed at inspiring sports venues, promoters and manufacturers to declare their commitment and actions to a greener approach.
“With the renaming of the National Tennis Center in 2006, we worked with the USTA to launch year-round greening efforts for the home of the US Open,” said King. “The significant action taken almost 13 years ago has served as a springboard to positively impact the environment for the US Open, and the National Tennis Center, and has set an example for other tennis and sporting events to emulate.”
The USTA’s commitment to environmental sustainability is exemplified in all aspects of their work. Key examples include:
– Greenhouse gas emissions have been reduced by over 100,000 metric tons through waste diversion, recycled paper use, and renewable energy certificates since the US Open Green Initiatives were established in 2008.
– Since 2008, over 4,500 tons of waste generated during the US Open has been diverted from landfills, saving over 4,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
– In 2018, the USTA added a third LEED certified structure at the home of the US Open with Armstrong Stadium receiving LEED Silver status. It is the first naturally ventilated stadium with a retractable roof in the world.
– The USTA has been offsetting the energy used on site during the US Open, the carbon emissions generated by the estimated 3.5 million miles the players travel to compete, as well as the miles traveled by the employees to work at the US Open for several years. For those offsets in 2018, the US Open focused on climate-intelligent humanitarian initiatives by investing in improved cookstoves in Malawi.
– Since the start of the US Open Green program in 2008, almost 700 tons of food waste has been converted to nutrient rich compost for gardens and farms and over 100 tons of food has been donated to local communities.
– The USTA has worked with its maintenance companies to develop a green cleaning policy to ensure that at least 50% of all cleaning materials used on site at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and the National Campus are Green Seal Certified or equivalent.
– 2018 US Open waste diversion rate of 97% achieved.
“The Green Sports Alliance is thrilled to present the USTA, Billie Jean King, and Lauren Tracy with this honor. They are exemplary leaders in the sports greening movement and serve as an inspiration to the entire sports industry,” said Roger McClendon, Executive Director of the Green Sports Alliance.
