Displaying items by tag: tennessee recycling coalition

The towering Space Needle in Gatlinburg offers views of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The city is host to the Tennessee Sustainability Conference set to begin Aug. 20.  Gatlinburg Chamber of Commerce

Conservation education event is hosted in part by Tennessee Chamber to address sustainability challenges

GATLINBURG — The annual Tennessee Sustainability Conference is scheduled to take place Aug. 20-22 at the Park Vista Hotel. The conference is a partnership among Tennessee Recycling Coalition, Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Tennessee Environmental Conference. It brings together environmental professionals from across the region.

Nearby Great Smoky Mountains National Park is an internationally known treasure trove of biodiversity and accompanying sustainability research. 

“The three-day event will provide attendees an accelerated learning opportunity featuring the latest trends and best practices in environmental sustainability,” said Tennessee Recycling Coalition Executive Director Amber Greene. “Staying on the cutting-edge of our ever-growing industry is essential to improving the lives of all Tennesseans. I encourage environmental leaders across the state to join us.”

According to organizers, the event will bring environmental professionals, decision-makers, government officials, business and industry leaders, attorneys, consultants, engineers, developers, architects, agribusiness leaders, energy experts, water planning districts, universities, public health officials, and solid waste and recycling experts, from across the region to learn about the latest trends and best practices in environmental sustainability. 

The Tennessee Recycling Coalition presented its ‘2023 Nonprofit Recycler of the Year Award’ to Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful at their annual conference held in Gatlinburg, Tenn. in August.  LEFT TO RIGHT: Amber Greene, Executive Director of the Tennessee Recycling Coalition; Edmond McDavis, Executive Director for the Tennessee Delta Alliance (who worked on the project when he was with Keep Tennessee Beautiful); Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director of Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful; Monica Kizer, Communications Director at Keep Tennessee Beautiful, and Lincoln Young, President of the Tennessee Recycling Coalition. 

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) was just named 2023 Nonprofit Recycler of the Year

Since the project launched at Dollywood in 2021, the program has led to the plastic getting recycled from approximately 350,000 cigarette butts. The project also made Dollywood the first theme park in the world to recycle the plastic from every cigarette butt collected in guest-facing receptacles on its property.

“We’re so proud of this honor, more than anything because of the commitment from Dollywood and the other supporting partners who worked to ensure that this trailblazing collaboration would protect the Tennessee River watershed from the harmful effects cigarette litter,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director.

“Taking the effort to the next step of recycling the plastic from otherwise discarded cigarette waste makes it all the more impactful and is yet the latest example of Dollywood’s reputation of working toward the greater good.”KTNRB was able to provide Dollywood with 26 art-wrapped cigarette receptacles through a collaboration of grants and sponsorships from Keep America Beautiful, Keep Tennessee Beautiful, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and the American Eagle Foundation.