Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 61.63
Liaison Leslie North
Submission Date March 1, 2024

STARS v2.2

Western Kentucky University
IN-16: Green Athletics

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.25 / 0.50 Leslie North
Director of Sustainability
Geography and Geology
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution’s green athletics program include the following?:
Yes or No
Zero waste and/or carbon neutral athletic events No
A stadium or arena certified under a green building rating system No
A sustainable food and beverage purchasing program that includes athletic event vendors and concessions Yes
A program to minimize the sustainability impacts of turf management (e.g., by installing low input turfgrass or environmentally preferable artificial turf) Yes
A program to support more sustainable transportation options for athletic events ---
Community engagement efforts, e.g. to educate students and fans/supporters about the institution’s sustainability initiatives Yes
An athletic team certification program No

A brief description of the institution’s green athletics program:

WKU's Resource Conservation and Restaurant Group have made significant strides in making WKU's Athletics program more sustainable. In 2018, the WKU Restaurant Group transitioned to Kentucky Proud popcorn on the concessions menu. In 2019, they also transitioned to KY Proud hot dogs and hamburgers. The concessions stands compost all leftover food as a part of the university wide composting program.

Resource Conservation has invested significant effort in increasing community engagement within the stadium. Annually, an informational recycling video play in the stadium to educate fans on what is/isn't recyclable. With grant funding, they purchased 6 stationary column wraps to show pictures of what is recyclable. They also had on on-the-field/court game during each home game. One fan was selected to come onto the field to play "Score with Recycling". In this game, the selected fan pitched recyclables into a recycling bin with a hoop on it. As the fan tossed the recyclables, the announcer shared information about the program. This activity captured the attention of fans.

In 18/19, Resource Conservation shifted their focus to composting education. They had a 1:30 minute video outlining WKU's composting program. This video played prior to a "Helmet Shuffle" on-the-field game. This game engaged the stadium in guessing which helmet a football was hidden under. This game was not as educational, but it attracted and held the attention of all fans. While the helmets were shuffling, the announcer verbally promoted composting. For the Football Stadium, Resource Conservation installed and operated a "Conservation Station". This space had a trash can, recycling bin and a composting bin. It was equipped with an educational attendant to walk fans through the sorting process. This station also had printed information about how to purchase WKU's finished compost and how to compost at home.
WKU Athletics has 2 artificial fields: Baseball and Football. These fields do no require the irrigation, pesticides or herbicides that are used on the other athletics fields. WKU plans on continuing to develop our green athletics initiatives, but we are very proud of the work that has been done thus far. The video is still utilized today.


Website URL where information about the green athletics program is available:
https://www.wku.edu/facilities/sept18monthly.pdf

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.