Zero waste. Hand drawn vector illustration

To reach its goal of zero waste in its owned and operated amphitheater venues by 2020, Waste 360 reported that entertainment company Live Nation created an employee education program and expanded its sustainability staff. A zero waste e-learning course has been made available to all employees, plus Live Nation has created a seasonal position of "venue sustainability coordinator" at 14 venues.

The company's sustainability efforts began two years ago, when it did a waste sort and waste characterization study in collaboration with GreenBlue, which is part of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. The exercise taught the company much about its overall — very large — waste footprint.

Live Nation ultimately launched pilot programs at six venues to test waste reduction tactics. Having a dedicated sustainability staff person at the venue is key, the company found.

The position's responsibilities include working with concession partners and sub-vendors to ensure all foodservice ware is either reusable, compostable or recyclable and assisting with training venue staff in enhanced post-show waste sorting protocols, the article said.

The sustainability coordinators also organize the post-show waste sort with the team of zero waste captains. These zero waste captains are existing venue employees who volunteer to stay after their shift to sort materials into the proper waste streams.

Also part of the sustainability program: Live Nation's amphitheaters banned plastic straws in April.

For more information on the program, click here for the full article.