Inside the Phoenix Convention Center’s Green Revolution

Reporter: Macie Logan

PHOENIX — When someone walks towards the Phoenix Convention Center entrance they’d see green bushes with orange and red flowers popping out of the top for monarch butterflies looking for sanctuary. They’d also see crystals on the ground shining light into the lower levels of the center. But what most people don’t see is the numerous other sustainability efforts in place by the convention center to help save the planet. 

Bob Fingerman, the convention center's assistant director, said it’s all about being a good steward of the community. 

“We’re making sure we are as thoughtful and conscious of our output and that's really what sustainability is,” he said. 

The Phoenix Convention Center seems to be leading Downtown Phoenix with its sustainability efforts by collaborating with the city of Phoenix, refining their efforts and keeping customers happy, said sustainability coordinator Sarah Bentley, who is recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy for outstanding energy efficiency with LED lighting during the NCAA Men’s Final Four Fan Fest.

This includes capturing sunlight from crystals for the lower levels of the convention center to reduce light pollution by using LED lights where they can. 

The Phoenix Convention Center said the new LED technology will save over $12.6 million over the next 20 years. 

In addition, the convention center is collaborating with city departments like the Parks and Recreation Department to compost the material into plant soil for public parks, Bentley said. 

In 2023 and 2024 the convention center composted 64 tons of organic waste, keeping tons of food out of the landfill, according to the Phoenix Convention Center’s sustainability guide. 

“The waste reduction involves all the players in the game,” Bentley said, “and it takes kind of a communal effort to make sure that these things happen.” 

Furthermore, the Convention Center is always adapting its sustainability efforts, Bentley said, and making updates to how it collects and disposes of its compost.

“If there's ways to do something better, if there's ways to reduce your footprint, and it doesn't impact the quality of service or the quality of the experience that you're getting, why not do it?” Bentley said. 

Bentley said that if these efforts aren’t put into place they can have negative consequences. 

Food goes to the landfill, Bentley said, it creates more methane gas and is worse for the environment, which is why it’s better to compost as much food as possible. 

“For the past several years, we've been using a certain type of system, and it hasn't really worked great in terms of the cleanliness of the pickup,” Bentley said. “Sometimes things get caught cross-contaminated. So this month we're actually switching to different bins.” 

However, being more environmentally friendly doesn’t always cost less, Fingerman said. 

“We take ideas, and a lot of times we make them into reality,” Fingerman said. “It can be rather costly, but there is a net positive gain to that.”

For tourists of Phoenix, it’s possible to have an amazing experience while creating a social impact that protects the environment and also contributes to the economy, Bentley said. 

“Three of those things can kind of exist at the same time,” Bentley said, adding that a number of measures are in place to reduce strain on the environment. 

Wyatt Rasmussen, who frequents Phoenix anime conventions, said he appreciates when organizations support good causes. 

“A lot of cons I’ve been to have a lot of plastic waste going into trash cans, so I think it would be beneficial for cons to use more paper items and have easily accessible recycling bins,” Rasmussen said. 

Bentley said sustainability is important because it's important to be mindful. 

“The events industry is so huge and so impactful that I foresee this being a more common practice down the line.”

The main return on the convention center’s contributions is that there's an environment here for the people of Phoenix to continue to live, Bentley said.