This Saturday is Earth Day, and the National Basketball Association is launching an online and in-arena campaign aimed at promoting energy-use reduction in collaboration with the National Environmental Education Foundation.
The Energy All-Stars “Time Out Tips” promotion will run online through May 22 and will feature animated 3-D bobbleheads of former NBA players Bill Walton, Dikembe Mutombo, Jason Collins and Felipe López and former WNBA players Swin Cash and Ruth Riley.
The characters will play an animated co-ed game, stopping occasionally to share energy-saving tips with viewers. The NBA hopes to inspire one million energy-saving actions by fans during the month-long promotion.
The Sports Business Journal shared a preview of six simple actions anyone can take at home to reduce energy usage and the associated costs. The following are similar to the advice fans can expect to get from the avatars of their favorite players:
1. “Block drafts by weatherproofing windows and doors”
2. “Unplug electronics when they’re not being used”
3. “Switch from warm- to cold-water washing”
4. “Set computers and other electronic devices to sleep mode”
5. “Replace the five most-used light bulbs with more efficient Energy Star or LED bulbs”
6. “Install a programmable thermostat, or adjusting the settings a few degrees”
Fans will also be able to opt-in to receive tips via text message by sending the word “TIMEOUT” to 49767. Fans will have the ability to report acting on the tips via text as well, contributing their actions to an estimated total environmental impact.
At campaign’s end, the NBD and NEEF will tally the total estimated financial and environmental impact inspired by the initiative. NEEF has predicted an end result of tens of thousands of tons in greenhouse gas emissions savings, as well as a total savings of tens of millions of dollars.
Sport and Sustainability International’s Allen Hershkowitz wrote, “The NBA’s energy-efficiency campaign was conceived in order to creatively engage people individually and collectively on how they can take small steps to make a helpful difference on the environment.”
