Ohio State Celebrates Fifth Consecutive Play to Zero Recognition
5/22/2026 2:27:00 PM | General
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State University Department of Athletics and Business Advancement continues to set the standard for sustainability in collegiate sports, earning its fifth consecutive Green Sports Alliance Play to Zero Waste Champion Award.
The award, presented at the 2026 Green Sports Alliance Summit, honors sports organizations demonstrating leadership in waste diversion and sustainable operations. Meredith Laidly, Resource Stewardship Coordinator, and Logan Gould, Zero Waste Coordinator, accepted the award on behalf of Ohio State during the summit.
Ohio State remains one of the few collegiate athletic programs in the nation to consistently achieve and maintain zero waste standards at the scale of Ohio Stadium. During the 2025 football season, Ohio Stadium once again surpassed the university's zero waste benchmark by achieving a 92.73 percent diversion rate and diverting more than 257,000 pounds of material from landfills through recycling, composting, and reuse efforts. In addition, Ohio Stadium, the Jerome Schottenstein Center, and other athletic venues support year-round waste diversion efforts across a wide range of events and daily operations.
The Ohio State Athletics' sustainability leadership was also recognized earlier this year when Ohio State earned first place in the 2025 Campus Race to Zero Waste GameDay Football Zero Waste Touchdown Challenge stadium category. More information about the recognition can be found here: https://ohiostatebuckeyes.com/news/2026/2/4/general-ohio-state-wins-2025-gameday-football-zero-waste-touchdown-challenge
"This recognition reflects years of dedication from staff, students, volunteers, and collaborators who have worked together to build a culture of sustainability at Ohio State," said Meredith Laidly.
"Receiving this recognition for the fifth consecutive year reflects the strong foundation and collaboration that have helped Ohio State become a leader in sustainability and zero waste," said Logan Gould.
The Zero Waste Program is supported by Ohio State Athletics and Business Advancement, Facilities Operations and Development, Levy Restaurants, Ohio Penal Industries, Price Farms Organics, Rumpke, Naval ROTC, LYFE Savers, Ohio State student interns, and thousands of Buckeye fans working together to reduce landfill waste.
About Green Sports Alliance
The Green Sports Alliance leverages the cultural and market influence of sports to promote healthy, sustainable communities where people live and play. The Green Sports Alliance convenes professional sports leagues, sports governing bodies, colleges, teams, venues, their partners, and millions of fans around meaningful change toward a more sustainable future. Through the Play to Zero® program, it leads the embrace of renewable energy, waste diversion, water efficiency, and environmentally preferable practices. Through its marquee event greening division, The Green Sports Alliance delivers best-in-class sustainable productions to minimize environmental impacts and maximize community legacies, driving scalability and replications across the industry. The Green Sports Alliance is committed to sharing best practices, visit greensportsalliance.org for more information.
The award, presented at the 2026 Green Sports Alliance Summit, honors sports organizations demonstrating leadership in waste diversion and sustainable operations. Meredith Laidly, Resource Stewardship Coordinator, and Logan Gould, Zero Waste Coordinator, accepted the award on behalf of Ohio State during the summit.
Ohio State remains one of the few collegiate athletic programs in the nation to consistently achieve and maintain zero waste standards at the scale of Ohio Stadium. During the 2025 football season, Ohio Stadium once again surpassed the university's zero waste benchmark by achieving a 92.73 percent diversion rate and diverting more than 257,000 pounds of material from landfills through recycling, composting, and reuse efforts. In addition, Ohio Stadium, the Jerome Schottenstein Center, and other athletic venues support year-round waste diversion efforts across a wide range of events and daily operations.
The Ohio State Athletics' sustainability leadership was also recognized earlier this year when Ohio State earned first place in the 2025 Campus Race to Zero Waste GameDay Football Zero Waste Touchdown Challenge stadium category. More information about the recognition can be found here: https://ohiostatebuckeyes.com/news/2026/2/4/general-ohio-state-wins-2025-gameday-football-zero-waste-touchdown-challenge
"This recognition reflects years of dedication from staff, students, volunteers, and collaborators who have worked together to build a culture of sustainability at Ohio State," said Meredith Laidly.
"Receiving this recognition for the fifth consecutive year reflects the strong foundation and collaboration that have helped Ohio State become a leader in sustainability and zero waste," said Logan Gould.
The Zero Waste Program is supported by Ohio State Athletics and Business Advancement, Facilities Operations and Development, Levy Restaurants, Ohio Penal Industries, Price Farms Organics, Rumpke, Naval ROTC, LYFE Savers, Ohio State student interns, and thousands of Buckeye fans working together to reduce landfill waste.
About Green Sports Alliance
The Green Sports Alliance leverages the cultural and market influence of sports to promote healthy, sustainable communities where people live and play. The Green Sports Alliance convenes professional sports leagues, sports governing bodies, colleges, teams, venues, their partners, and millions of fans around meaningful change toward a more sustainable future. Through the Play to Zero® program, it leads the embrace of renewable energy, waste diversion, water efficiency, and environmentally preferable practices. Through its marquee event greening division, The Green Sports Alliance delivers best-in-class sustainable productions to minimize environmental impacts and maximize community legacies, driving scalability and replications across the industry. The Green Sports Alliance is committed to sharing best practices, visit greensportsalliance.org for more information.
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