TOP COLLEGIATE SPORTS PROFESSIONALS TO GATHER AT PAC-12 SUSTAINABILITY CONFERENCE
Former UCLA student-athlete Bill Walton to give keynote address at inaugural event on June 26 at
Golden 1 Center in Sacramento

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -– As part of the 2017 Green Sports Alliance Summit, the inaugural Pac-12 Sustainability Conference will take place on June 26, signaling an elevated approach to enhancing sustainability efforts within collegiate athletics departments, designing new collective initiatives, and sharing best practices to transform college sports into a platform for environmental progress. Consistent with its reputation as the "Conference of Champions," the Pac-12 is the first collegiate sports conference to convene a high level symposium focused entirely on integrating sustainability into college athletics and across college campuses.

Sustainability and athletics professionals from universities nationwide will convene at the nation’s greenest arena, the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento to help the Pac-12 reach the next level of sports sustainability. More information, including registration information, can be found at pac-12sustainabilityconference.com.

Themes covered at the conference will include:

• Funding college sports sustainability: working with rights holders and sponsors
• Integrating with campus sustainability: how to use the platform of athletics to broaden and deepen campus engagement, fan experience, and community partnerships
• Expanding collegiate athletics departments’ spheres of influence: how to incentivize and coordinate critical staff members in dining, custodial, venue operations, and sustainability
• Harnessing the power of student pride and emerging values and interests to increase influence of green game impact

Speakers to present at the conference include:

• Bill Walton, former UCLA student-athlete, NBA player, and ESPN and Pac-12 Networks on-air talent. Bill has had a prominent career in the NBA with the Trailblazers, Clippers, and Celtics. He was a league MVP, holds multiple NCAA and NBA titles, and was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame.
• Rick George, Colorado Athletic Director. Rick came to Colorado from the Texas Rangers baseball club where he was named COO in 2010 and President of Business Operations in 2013. He also served as Executive Vice President and Chief of Operations for the PGA Tour.
• Jamie Zaninovich, Pac-12 Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer. Jamie is responsible for the Pac-12’s administrative operations, including television administration, sport management, championships, and football bowl relationships.

Event Details:

The Pac-12 Sustainability Conference will take place June 26, 2017 at the Golden 1 Center, home of the Sacramento Kings, in Sacramento, California. Registration is now open online at pac-12sustainabilityconference.com/register. Early Bird Registration rate of $100 is valid through May 19, 2017. Regular registration rates are $150.

Those in attendance will include:

• Sports media rights-holders, sales teams, and marketing professionals
• Athletics leadership and operations staff
• Campus sustainability professionals
• Pac-12 students, faculty, and staff

About the Pac-12 Conference:
Recognized as the 'Conference of Champions' for its unequaled NCAA Championships, the Pac-12 Conference comprises the 12 leading universities located in the Western United States: The University of Arizona, Arizona State University, the University of California-Berkeley, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Colorado, the University of Oregon, Oregon State University, Stanford University, the University of Southern California, the University of Utah, the University of Washington and Washington State Univ