Sporting event attendees generate about 39 million pounds of trash every
year
in the US, based on US Environmental Protection Agency data. That’s a lot of
waste — but it’s also a ton of potential for engaging huge crowds in recycling
and reuse.
Eastman has done this successfully; and we see the
potential for your brand to do the same. The results include, first and
foremost, a win for environmental sustainability — while helping build awareness
and reputational benefits for your brand.
First, let’s look at the replay
Eastman is headquartered in East Tennessee, home of the University of
Tennessee Volunteers. (We love our Vols!)
Partnership with the university has been an important channel for Eastman to
engage local communities in environmental sustainability initiatives. Since
1993, in fact, Eastman and supporting partners have called on Vols fans to
participate in our Good Sports Always Give
Back program by depositing
plastic cups and bottles in the orange recycling bins located throughout
Neyland Stadium.
During the 2022 football season, we issued an epic challenge to Vols fans and
Neyland Stadium vendors: We called on them to recycle every piece of plastic,
aluminum and paper product (plus behind-the-scenes boxes and pallets) used on
campus during a single game day.
Cleaning up beauty's ugly impacts
Join us at SB'24 San Diego as Victor Casale — co-founder of Pact Collective and co-founder and CEO of MOB Beauty — shares insights from ongoing collaborations with materials innovators to create fully compostable, refillable, plastic-free, and easier-to-recycle packaging alternatives for beauty and wellness products.
Together with more than 100,000 Vols fans, we set the record for World’s
Largest College Recycling
Event.
Over one great day of football, we collected more than 38,450 pounds of waste.
Eastman and other local partners then turned that waste back into valuable,
useful materials through both mechanical and molecular recycling
technologies.
The total weight also included food that was donated to local food banks or
composted.
New season, new strategy
We didn’t want this to be a one-time win for recycling — so this year, we’ve
recruited new partners to heighten the competition and increase the impact. Vols
fans at Neyland Stadium will compete against University of Michigan fans at The
Big House to see who can recycle the most waste on one game day this
fall.
How can your brand get in the game?
Whether your venue is a high school track meet, a college football showdown or a
sold-out professional basketball game, you can launch your own recycling
challenge that drives results.
How do you get a recycling challenge up and running? Based on our own
experiences, we recommend this game plan for brands that are ready to give
recycling a sporting chance.
The game plan
First, identify partners with diverse capabilities, resources and
communication channels. Sports teams (including competitors) and their
venue managers are a good starting point. Consider whether to invite
sustainability leaders at partner (or even competitor) brands to join you,
especially if they have local facilities or standing team/venue sponsorships.
Continue building your team with …
-
Waste management and recycling companies
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Producers of plastics and other recyclable materials
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Local municipalities, community leaders and local event leaders
-
Sustainability offices at nearby colleges and universities or relevant
nonprofits
-
A record-setting company
Once you’ve identified partners, host introductory conversations to describe
what you want to do and cast the vision for why this is important. This is the
time to define hurdles that need to be cleared and brainstorm how you can work
together so that each partner (even competitors) can benefit.
Next, it’s time to build a simple, streamlined plan for execution. Leverage
the resources and expertise of each partner to determine what materials you can
and will recycle, reuse and donate. Learn what recycling infrastructure is in
place — or, on the other hand, what needs to be in place — to recycle those
materials. Plan ahead for how you will track and report on results.
Bring in the volunteers! Volunteers will help make the challenge possible.
Plus, this is a great way to put your brand in front of new audiences. To find
volunteers, tap into your partners’ existing volunteer bases and call on other
key audiences for each partner. Be sure to get event vendors involved, too —
empower them to champion this cause.
Issue the challenge before and during the event. As a companion to the
execution plan, you need a promotional plan that makes use of each partner’s
media channels. Consider local news and radio, websites, onsite signage, video,
social channels, etc. Spread your reach by using hashtags that are already
popular for the sports teams, brands and colleges involved. Use video to capture
the action and excitement before and during the event.
Enjoy the big day! There’s not much to say about this step, except to carry
out your agreed-upon role — and have fun watching the crowd participate.
The challenge doesn’t end on game day. As partners transport, sort and recycle
or reuse the waste that was collected, your role is to keep engaging fans and
your key audiences by telling the story. In addition to more general
messaging, don’t forget to communicate the outcomes to volunteers, partners,
your own employees and the venue. Keep talking about it on your social media,
using the same hashtags. Feature additional videos that capture the why behind
the challenge, report your results and clearly explain the record you set.
Last but not least, leverage the momentum over time. See if you can beat your
recycling record again next year or issue a challenge to your “cross-town
rival.” Doing this more than once will help cement the public’s association of
your brand with successful recycling initiatives and community involvement.
Ready to get started?
The new football season has already kicked off, but it’s never too late to find
new ways to turn waste into potential. Visit
info.eastman.com/HowToWinBig
to learn more about the insights we’ve learned through Good Sports Always Give
Back — and get inspired about what you can do!
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Eastman
Published Sep 8, 2023 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST