Super Bowl XLII & University of Phoenix Stadium gear up to “Go Green” at this year’s game

Guest blogger - Hannah

Both the University of Phoenix Stadium and Super Bowl XLII are working to make this year’s game the greenest yet. For the second year in a row the Super Bowl will run on 100 percent renewable energy provided by the Salt River Project. Super Bowl XLII is also working to make the overall event more sustainable by promoting “Super Forest,” an initiative to plant thousands of trees to counterbalance greenhouse gas emissions produced by Super Bowl events. Recycling containers have been placed along all event areas including the show floor, club lounges, concourses and lofts inside the University of Phoenix Stadium. More than sixty recycling bins dot the stadium and, on game day, recycling bags will be placed throughout tailgating areas for fans to recycle aluminum cans, plastic and glass bottles, and cardboard.

For information visit:
University of Phoenix Stadium Recycling Programs
Superbowl XLII’s green initiatives

Environment and Games

I have posted before about how I would love to have a COOL on-line game about recycling and how it relates to jobs and energy conservation. I recently talked to someone at the North American Association of Environmental Educators conference about Web quests. This is an option but I was thinking of something a little more jazzy.

An October 18, 2007 article in AdAge had a headline titled “Serious Gaming Starts at 6, 'Critical' Age Group Plays 75% Longer, Migrates From Kid Systems.”

According to the article: NPD Group's annual survey on children and video games, released this week, found that while older kids still dominate in time spent per week on gaming, the most significant spike in hours played occurs between the 2-to-5-year-old and 6-to-8-year-old groups. First-, second- and third-graders spend 75% more time than they used to on gaming, adding an average of three hours per week to their playing time.

"At 58%, personal computers have the highest percentage of personal use for gaming among kids age 2 to 17," NPD Group Director David Riley said. "Not only is the PC the most accessible, but because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, it tends to be less expensive for marketers than console and portable platforms."

American Marketing Association Report

On America Recycles Day (November 15) the American Marketing Association put out a report about the increase in consumer traffic to the Web and the importance of cause marketing. The info about cause marketing is very interesting:

- 45% of women versus 30% of men were more likely to buy a product or service if they knew that a certain amount of the purchase price was being donated directly to a cause or campaign.

- 46% of respondents ages 18-24 versus 31% of respondents 45-64 were more likely to buy a product or service if they knew that a certain amount of the purchase price was being donated directly to a cause or campaign.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK – Music and Recycling

- Ever heard of Norwegian Recycling? ? This is a 23-year-old DJ in Norway that remixes songs. Really doesn’t have anything to do with recycling but I love his remixes. Maybe we could get him to create a rif for RE3.org? He has a MySpace page.

SOCIAL MARKETING TIPS - Social Marketing Blogs

I haven’t been keeping up with my favorite social marketing blogs lately but I recently found some time to review past posts from the Getting Attention blog.

In a recent post Nancy summarizes a report put out by Trendwatching. Good news for environmental groups. Trends are emerging called “Eco Sphere” and “Eco-Iconic” where people want to support green initiatives. Yeah! Another post from October summarized a report called “2007 Digital Future” from the USC Annenburg School’s Center for the Digital Future. It described the different media habits of 12-24 year olds versus 25-54 year olds. Imagine this . . . a 12 year old will probably never use a land-line. They will rarely read a printed newspaper and don’t know what it is like ‘having’ to watch commercials during a TV program. This is why it is so important RE3.org keeps up with changing communication ideas.

Check out this video post on the Canadian online channel called iCAN about the Getting Attention blog and a few other social marketing blogs.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK – Commercial Contests

I have posted before about user generated content. It is all the rage.

Earth 911 and Quantum Shift are sponsoring a commercial contest. What's your eco-resolution for 2008? Make a short video, max 2 min, about what you plan to do for the earth this year. It could be personal, political, local or global. Any action you can think of that moves us closer to a sustainable future. Hurry up and finish your project; the deadline is Jan. 31, 2008.

The Smart Power Clean Energy Ad Challenge winner can be found here. The winning ad is good, but still not as good as our “Tag” RE3.org commercial.

Messaging and graphics for an older demographic

NC DPPEA is helping the Town of Pinehurst create a new recycling truck ad. I applaud them for this because I think it is a great economical way for a local government to get the recycling message out. The demographics of Pinehurst are very different from other NC towns. Go to MyBestSegments.com and put in the zip code - 28374. See what I mean?

Let us know what you think of the draft ads in the comments section.

So how is the RE3.org blog doing?

Check it out for yourself. Isn't Google Analytics cool.

So how is RE3.org doing on YouTube?

Our recycling campaigns attempt to increase recycling (actually change behavior). However, this is really hard to track as a state agency that doesn't provide a collection service. So the few things that I can track (at this time) are Web site hits and YouTube views.



This graph shows the total number of times people have viewed one of our RE3.org commercials on YouTube over the last 3 months.

Most of these commercials have been posted for 12 months but we have only been tracking them for the last 3.









This graph shows the number of views per month for the top 8 RE3.org commercials. As you can see "Epiphany" is a real hit on-line.












This graph shows the total number of times people have viewed one of our Recycle Guys (companion campaign to RE3.org) commercials on YouTube over the last 3 months.

These commercials have only been posted for 6 months.











This graph shows the number of views per month for the top 5 Recycle Guys commercials. As you can see "In the Rollcart" is everyone's favorite.












This graph depicts the number of unique visitors to RE3.org. I was trying to show how paid media might be driving people to our Web site. I think the incentive program we conducted with Time Warner and MTV caused the number of hits to increase in September 2007.








This graph shows the number of unique visitors to the Recycle Guys Web site. We can only assume the spike each year in October is due to our interactive, fun, skeleton craft page we put up for Halloween. This is why we now have a new craft page each month.

Cool recycling blogs and posts

Looking for good recycling blogs to spend some time reading? Check out these below.
- No impact man
- Green as a Thistle
- These come from Trees Campaign
- Container Gardening

The next two posts seem similar but are different.
- 10 tips on how to green your recycling – Being in an extreme drought in N.C., the idea of “recycling water” is important.
- 8 tips on how to green your recycling – From this post I like the idea of “Recycle in Groups” and “Pass along the message.”

Training: March 25-28 - CRA

Carolina Recycling Association Conference and Trade Show Recycling’s Many Shades of Green The Hilton North Raleigh Educational sessions to look forward to:

-- Monday, March 24 – Where is “away?” - A Municipal Solid Waste workshop featuring Project Learning Tree Everyone knows our waste goes "away" when we dispose or recycle it. But where is "away?” This workshop will give you a hands-on look at "away." You will also receive multiple lessons about solid waste and recycling, hear from experts in the field, and walk away with recycling freebies you can use with your school or organization. Participants will also receive the PLT Pre K-8 Activity Guide and the PLT Secondary Module Municipal Solid Waste to help implement what they have learned into their classroom/programs. Workshop qualifies for Criteria I of EE Certification and CEU renewal credits.

-- Tuesday, March 25 – Sustainable Schools Learn about school recycling (easy and difficult materials) via different communities, gain insight into funding these green programs and help your transportation and custodial department become sustainable. Information will be provided about performance measures, data tracking and engaging students. Group discussion/networking time will also be available so you can learn from others in the room.

-- Wednesday, March 26 – Social Marketing experts from across the nation Come to this session to learn about the most cutting-edge social marketing strategies from national experts. We will answer these and other questions: How does social media differ from social marketing? How do I talk to different demographics about recycling? Where can I find online resources to help me with my recycling campaigns and educational material?

-- Wednesday, March 26 – Recycle Guys What can the Recycle Guys do for you? Plenty. The Recycle Guys campaign, created and improved here in the Carolinas, is used throughout the country. And now they're stars on Earth 911. Come see the new South Carolina material, the new North Carolina Web page and the new material other states are using. Learn from others and provide feedback to what you would like to see.

CAMPAIGN UPDATE - Sponsors Welcome

The success of the Recycle Guys and RE3.org outreach campaigns depend on partnership – by pooling resources and working together, we can build effective outreach programs at an efficient cost. None of us could do something on the scale of the Recycle Guys and RE3.org campaigns alone. Through shared effort we can give your community valuable educational materials while providing a foundation of targeted advertising that “brands” recycling with the public in every community.

We are working hard to expand the statewide recycling educational programs and to deliver the materials people want. The state’s level of commitment is very high. But we need everyone’s help. We encourage every community/organization to contribute to this partnership. No amount is too small. Please contact me if you would like more information about being a sponsor of the campaigns.

I would like to thank our current 2008 sponsors:
Asheboro Recycling Center
Catawba County
Container Recycling Alliance
Environment@RTP
Envision Plastics
Iredell County
Lee County
Mecklenburg County
NC State
Orange County
Raleigh
Recycle America

RE3.org SURVEY QUESTIONS – Message in a bottle

N.C. DPPEA has partnered with Land-of-Sky and the Glass Packaging Institute to provide educational resources to bars and restaurants about recycling.

Tell us what you think of this graphic. Please answer the questions below in the comment section.

Do you think bars and restaurants will use this?

Which of the following describes your general reaction to this graphic:
- I really like it - It’s OK - Don’t like it much

Is it attention-getting? - Very Much - A little - Not at all

Is it interesting? - Very Much - A little - Not at all

Is it direct/to the point? - Very Much - A little - Not at all

What about this graphic do you like?

What about this graphic don’t you like?

Training: Upcoming Webinars

**UPDATE - Sorry the EPA link wasn't working. I have fixed it and it now directs to the correct place. Thanks for the comment.**

- Thursday, January 17 – 1:00 pm
Venue Recycling Webinar
Recycling and Solid Waste Management Educational Series hosted by EPA Regions 1, 4, 7 and 10. Register On-line

- Friday, January 18 – Noon to 1:00 pm N.C. Division of Public Health, 5605 Six Forks Rd, Raleigh, NC Building 3, Robin Room (3-2-C9)
Clear Bags Increase Diversion Webinar
During the past few years a number of municipalities in the province of Nova Scotia have significantly increased the volume of recyclables and organics diverted from landfill, by switching to clear bags for garbage collection. Learn what they did, how they overcame citizen concerns about privacy, fairness and increased costs and what they achieved.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK – Have you read “The Wartville Wizard?”

Check out this recycling ad. It totally reminded me of the book “The Wartville Wizard” where all the trash that someone litters ends up sticking to them. This video has a recycling twist though. What did you think of the tag line “Before your bad habits catch up with you?” It also reminded me of the “Bottles” commercial that we created for RE3.org.