On Thursday, December 5^th, the Atlanta Hawks and Georgia Natural Gas teamed up to host a ‘Green Grocery Grab,’ a special sustainability event for local students. At the event, which took place at the Arthur M. Blank Family Youth YMCA, local students were joined by Hawks player Onyeka Okongwu as they decorated reusable grocery bags, learned about sustainability, and got a fun hands-on shopping experience. 

“We’re excited to partner with Georgia Natural Gas to educate students on the importance of sustainability and how they can implement practices into their everyday lives,” said Hawks’ Vice President of Community Impact and Basketball Programs Jon Babul. “The Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena are global leaders in the sports and entertainment industry when it comes to practicing sustainability, and sharing our knowledge with Atlanta’s youth can empower and inspire the adaptation of positive habits yielding generational impact.”

In a rotation of activities, students first learned about the environmental impact of single-use bags through fun games and how the power of making choices can impact sustainability. After reflecting how important it is to incorporate sustainability into everyday life, the youth in attendance decorated their own reusable grocery bags.

At the next station, the students had the opportunity to create a grocery list and budget before taking part in a mini grocery store shopping experience onsite with help from Goodr, an Atlanta-based company that focuses on reducing food waste. While shopping, volunteers helped teach the youth about how to make environmentally friendly choices while shopping. Following the shopping experience, each student was able to bring home three full bags of groceries.

“We’re thrilled to be part of this opportunity to teach these students that sustainability isn’t just about being responsible, it can also be fun,” said Aimee Henderson, Director of Retail Mass Markets for Georgia Natural Gas. “At GNG, we believe in empowering the next generation with the knowledge and tools they need to be successful. This event gives these kids a chance to express themselves while also learning how to practice small, but repeatable actions that are good for the environment."

The Hawks and Georgia Natural Gas have contributed to multiple efforts across various sustainability-driven initiatives. Prior to the start of the season, the organizations teamed up to host a Sustainability Summit inspiring local restauranteurs where those in attendance learned more about how to implement free and low-cost sustainability practices.

The organizations also teamed up to help State Farm Arena offset 100% of its natural gas usage by joining the Greener Life^® for Business program. Through the program, Georgia Natural Gas calculates the amount of greenhouse gases released from the venue’s natural gas usage and retires carbon offsets to balance 100% of those emissions. 

To learn more about the Hawks work in the community, visit Hawks.com/Community.

For more information on the Hawks and State Farm Arena’s sustainability practices, visit statefarmarena.com/sustainability.

To learn more about the Greener Life program and how easily Natural Meets Neutral^® can work for your business, visit gng.com/business/green. It’s not only the smart thing to do, it’s the right thing to do.