Good Sports Always Recycle – School Challenge Will Give More Than $10,000 to Tennessee Schools for Recycling Programs
Over the past 20 years more than $100,000 has been awarded to K-12 schools across the state of Tennessee to recognize and encourage their environmental programs.
This fall, the Good Sports Always RecycleTM (GSAR) program will celebrate its 20th anniversary, and the top 10 Tennessee school recycling programs will each be awarded $1,000 to recognize their efforts. In addition, one lucky school will win the Good Sports Always RecycleTM Sustainability Steward award, and bring home $1,500.
“When we launched the GSAR program two decades ago, before being ‘green’ was such a prominent part of our everyday lives, the goal of the program was to educate Tennessee students on the importance of recycling to reduce waste and our environmental impact,” said Anne Kilgore, director of Global Sustainability with Eastman Chemical Company. “Over the past 20 years, we have seen schools implement innovative recycling programs that have led to increased recycling rates and more environmental responsibility throughout communities in Tennessee.”
“With more than $10,000 up for grabs again this year, we hope that schools across the state will take a few minutes to enter the school competition and tell us what they are doing to help their environment and community.”
The 10 winning schools will also receive a special tailgate celebration at the University of Tennessee vs. South Carolina football game on October 19, as well as be recognized during an on-field presentation and presented with a commemorative plaque during the game.
All Tennessee K-12 schools are eligible to enter their environmental programs in the GSAR school challenge, which judges how the recycling program encourages faculty, staff and students to recycle, as well as the unique approach and overall investment applied to environmental efforts. Additionally, the Sustainability Steward award will be given to a school that approaches sustainability by reducing their overall waste footprint through energy and water conservation, recycling programs and the use of green space.
Along with the school challenge, the GSAR program has spent the past two decades focused on improving recycling efforts at one of the state’s most popular venues—Neyland Stadium. The stadium recycling portion of the program includes more than 1,000 recycling containers which are placed in and around Neyland Stadium and the other sports complexes at the University of Tennessee.
“During the 2012 football season we recycled, composted, and donated more than 67 tons, resulting in a 36 percent diversion rate from the landfill,” said Jay Price, environmental coordinator for the University of Tennessee. “In 2013, our goal is to reach a 50 percent diversion rate on our way to zero waste.”
Another component of the program involves providing educational materials to Tennessee teachers that can help educate students on the importance of being environmentally friendly, as well as ideas to help the student body implement a recycling program. Teachers have access to lesson plans and activities for specific grade levels, as well as recycling links and statistics that focus on environmental stewardship. Teachers can visit www.Eastman.com/GSAR and download the GSAR educational packet.
Tennessee schools that are interested in the GSAR school challenge should visit www.Eastman.com/GSAR to enter online and showcase their recycling efforts. Nominations need to be submitted by September 20.
The Good Sports Always Recycle™ program is sponsored by Eastman Chemical Company, Food City and Waste Connections, in conjunction with the University of Tennessee.
For more information about the Good Sports Always Recycle™ program, please visit www.Eastman.com/GSAR or contact Jennifer Wiggins at (865) 680.1457 or jwiggins@akinsps.com. The nomination deadline for the Good Sports Always Recycle™ program recycling challenge is September 20. Entries can be submitted online, faxed to (865) 483-8851, emailed to jwiggins@akinsps.com or mailed to Good Sports Always Recycle, 173 Mitchell Road, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830.
