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Sports in Society

Hershkowitz shifts ‘green’ focus to Europe

Allen Hershkowitz, co-founder of the influential Green Sports Alliance, has resigned as the group’s president to focus on expanding its mission internationally.

His departure becomes official Thursday, the final day of the Green Sports Summit, the group’s annual conference, which is in Houston this year.

Co-founder Allen Hershkowitz built Green Sports Alliance membership to 375 teams and venues.
Photo: COURTESY OF ALLEN HERSHKOWITZ
Hershkowitz, an environmental scientist who spent 26 years at the Natural Resources Defense Council before forming the alliance in 2010, will continue to advise leagues and teams in the U.S. He’s also interim president for an organization forming in Europe focusing on green practices in sports.

Members of the European group include the International Olympic Committee, multiple governing bodies in soccer and rugby, and facilities such as Roland Garros, home of the French Open tennis tournament in Paris.

Domestically, the nonprofit alliance, whose mission is to push for greener stadiums and arenas, has grown from an initial group of five teams in the Pacific Northwest to 375 teams and venues across 20 leagues, and extends to architecture firms, concessionaires and corporations.

Justin Zeulner, a founding board member who was then with the Portland Trail Blazers, now serves as the Green Sports Alliance’s executive director, and he will remain in charge of the group after Hershkowitz leaves the organization.

The alliance’s platform evolved from the early 2000s, when the major sports leagues first created environmentally friendly programs to serve as best practices for individual teams and facilities.

Hershkowitz was principally involved in those efforts, and as the “green” movement continued to expand as awareness grew of recycling, water conservation and energy reduction at arenas and stadiums, the result was the Green Sports Alliance.

“When we created the GSA, it was a tool to help disseminate information about environmental responsibility,” he said. “Our studies showed that only 16 percent of Americans follow science, but 75 percent of them follow sports, so it became a great platform to reach more people.”

Scott Jenkins, another founding board member, met Hershkowitz in 2004. At the time, Jenkins ran Lincoln Financial Field and Hershkowitz helped the Philadelphia Eagles initiate their “Go Green” program for better environmental practices at the stadium.

“Allen’s fingerprints are on every part of the green sports movement … and what it means to act more responsibly in sports,” said Jenkins, who later managed Safeco Field and is now at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. “He displays great leadership and an ability to motivate people.”

Over the past five years, though, as the alliance’s membership grew quickly, Hershkowitz found himself spending more time on administrative duties tied to his role as president, which took him further away from his passion for developing and carrying out green practices in sports.

“I didn’t feel like it was the best use of my skills,” Hershkowitz said. “It was flattering and nice to be acknowledged, but what I like to do is work side by side with the teams and leagues. It’s part of what I’ve been doing for 30 years as an environmental scientist. My heart is in the ground work.”

The European group’s home base is in Lausanne, Switzerland, home of the IOC. Hershkowitz could potentially move to Europe, but he has not yet made that decision.

“The GSA is in good shape and its revenues have tripled,” he said. “There is still work to be done internationally. I told the national governing bodies that I would help grow their organization and be on the board. It’s exhilarating work, but I don’t want to get caught up in the institutional stuff.”


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