Executive Summary
Home to the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, the award-winning State Farm Arena is a next-generation sports and live entertainment venue focused on experience, sustainability, and service. State Farm Arena showcases the core values of the organization: inclusiveness, authenticity and innovation. Community and sustainability are at the core of the arena as they prioritize energy efficient facility upgrades, partnerships, community service and focusing on a circular economy.
In 2022, the downtown venue was the first venue in the world to earn TRUE (Total Resource Use and Efficiency) Platinum certification for zero waste. As a zero-waste facility, the arena shifted from single stream to multi-stream recycling. This means that all materials picked up from the recycling area are separated into these specific streams: plastic, aluminum, cardboard, glass and scrap metal.
In addition, State Farm Arena has adopted many practices that help minimize their carbon footprint. For example, all lighting fixtures were upgraded to LED fixtures which result in more sustainable operation. Many of the existing plumbing fixtures were upgraded to more energy efficient ones, reducing potable water by 40% annually.
State Farm Arena has an on-site Resource Recovery Room (R3) where all waste generated from events is manually sorted. The venue has partnered with other organizations that align with their sustainability goals, including SmurfitWestRock, the name partner for R3, Georgia Natural Gas, Novelis and others.
Submitting Organization: Atlanta Hawks/ State Farm Arena
Photo Credits:
https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/billie-eilish-overheated-climate-conference-atlanta-1235811114/
https://www.si.com/nba/hawks/news/state-farm-arena-takes-home-medals-at-2024-goal-invitational-01jabbm0w81h#:~:text=We%20hope%20that%20every%20person
Detailed Nomination
State Farm Arena is an industry leader in sustainability. The downtown venue was the first sports and live entertainment venue in the world to receive TRUE Platinum certification for zero waste. When they started their zero-waste journey in 2019, they were only diverting approximately 10% of waste from landfills. Since 2021, they have consistently diverted more than 90%. They continue to prioritize sustainable practices and initiatives and have created partnerships that align with their goals.
In April 2024, the Hawks and State Farm Arena announced a partnership with Kimberly-Clark Professional. As part of the multi-year partnership, the arena will use Smart Restroom Technology and Product Recycling to Improve Environmental Footprint and Customer Experience.
In September 2024, the arena, in partnership with Georgia Natural Gas, hosted a Sustainability Summit for local restauranteurs. At the event, participants learned how to implement free and low-cost sustainability practices directly from industry leaders through various panels, presentations, and workshops.
In October 2024, State Farm Arena earned nearly 30 medals as part of the 2024 GOAL Invitational, making it number 1 among NBA venues. There were three (Environmental, Social and Governance) submission categories that were broken down into the following 10 sub-categories:
• Environmental
o Energy & GHG Emissions
o Water Efficiency & Quality
o Water Reduction
• Social category
o Health & Wellness
o Food & Nutrition
o Diversity & Inclusion
• Governance
o ESG
o Community Resilience
o Guest Experience & Education
o Sustainable Partnerships
The venue received gold medals throughout each of the primary categories. GOAL is Green Operations and Advanced Leadership, a sustainability-driven membership and support network for sports and entertainment venues.
On November 3, 2024, State Farm Arena collaborated with singer and activist Billie Eilish and Support + Feed President and Founder, Maggie Baird to host the Overheated Conference. Support + Feed is a non-profit organization that focuses on providing plant-based food access to underserved communities. This was the first time the conference had ever been hosted in the states.
In January 2025, the Hawks and State Farm Arena partnered with Smurfit Westrock, a leading provider of sustainable paper and packaging solutions on a new multi-year sustainability-focused partnership. The organizations work together on a variety of initiatives intended to reduce waste, preserve biodiversity, and support the well-being of local Atlanta communities. Smurfit Westrock is the official entitlement partner for the arena’s Resource Recovery Room (R3).
In February, the organization announced a partnership with Honeywell. As part of this multi-year deal, Honeywell will implement a series of high-tech upgrades to State Farm Arena’s building operations systems to help decrease energy consumption and emissions while increasing visibility and control of the indoor environment.
Also in February, Atlanta Hawks, State Farm Arena, and Novelis announced that they extended their sustainability-focused partnership. Since 2021, with Novelis, a world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena have developed an industry-leading initiatives, community service projects and in-game activations aimed at promoting sustainability, responsible recycling and a circular economy. As part of the partnership, State Farm Arena’s premium suite level carries the name of ‘The Novelis Sustainable World Veranda Level.’
The arena invites fans to use the recycling and compost receptacles placed around the venue and incentivizes their participation through the Recycle and Win (RAW) program, presented by Novelis. RAW an event-driven initiative that rewards fans with Hawks or concert merchandise for correctly recycling or composting while visiting State Farm Arena. This initiative is tailored to provide a ‘surprise and delight’ experience, aimed at motivating fans towards responsible recycling and composting, while heightening their awareness of our sustainability practices
The Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena also continued their partnership with Georgia Natural Gas. The two organizations teamed up to help State Farm Arena offset 100% of its natural gas usage through the “Greener Life for Business” program. Georgia Natural Gas is also the entitlement partner on the Georgia Natural Gas Loft Level, premium suites at the venue.
Since 2019, State Farm Arena has accomplished the following:
• Recycled over 4 million pounds (4,090,082) of materials including: aluminum, plastics, cardboard, glass and more.
• Composted over 3 million (3,233,169) pounds of food and organic material. Any food that could not be donated was composted. Composting is the natural process of turning organic matter into a valuable fertilizer used by local farmers.
• Reused or donated nearly 3 million pounds (2,634,409) of materials like food, electronics, clothing, crates, pallets and more.
• Reduced waste by 651,209 pounds by eliminating paper tickets, individual condiment packets, disposable service ware and more.
