BYOBottle Winter 2023 Highlights

BYOBottle Partners: O’land fill & wash station, fans BYOBottle at Outside Lands, Plastic Pollution Coalition at Greek Theatre, reusables at Levitate Music & Arts Festival, r.Cup at Fiddler’s Green, reusable cups on Jack Johnson tour, Green Music Australia with Music Victoria Awards, Plastic Free July hosts Plastic Free Tea with BYOBottle partners

Greetings BYOBottle Partners!

We are thrilled to report that momentum to reduce plastic pollution in the music industry is growing! Artists are joining venues, festivals, and fans to rally around BYOBottle and rock reusables to reduce single-use plastic waste. BYOBottle Non-Profit Partners are sharing out valuable resources and plastic-free messaging, and our Business Partners continue to expand innovative solutions for the events industry. We hope you enjoy these BYOBottle updates and highlights!

➤ BYOBottle – Highlights:

  • BYOBottle founding artist Jack Johnson is promoting plastic free initiatives throughout his Meet the Moonlight Tour, and shared recent highlights in this North American Impact Report. While in Australia, Jack and fellow BYOBottle Artist Ziggy Alberts gathered with BYOBottle Non-Profit Partners Tangaroa Blue, Plastic Free July and Green Music Australia for a beach clean-up to raise awareness about solutions to plastic pollution. In association with Jack’s show in Sydney, Plastic Free July and Take 3 hosted a “Plastic Free Tea” bringing together music industry efforts with local non-profits, concluding with a backstage tour of Jack’s greening initiatives with Green Music Australia.
  • Green Music Australia continues to spread the BYOBottle message throughout Australia, connecting with music audiences and industry members at events ranging from stadium shows and festivals to beach cleanups and awards nights. They have hosted BYOBottle activations as part of the Lost Paradise festival, Music Victoria Awards, and multiple concert tours.
  • BYOBottle Business Partners continue to promote innovative reuse solutions. r.Cup expanded reusable cup operations to venues and festivals in Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco, eliminating over 2 million single-use cups. Effect Partners implemented a BYOBottle program for the Roger Waters 2022 Tour, providing stainless steel coffee cups and water bottles for the production crew. O’land fill & wash stations have provided over 700,000 refills at events and music festivals, helping to reduce plastic waste.
  • Live Nation made incredible headway in 2022 in reducing single-use plastics across U.S. venues and festivals. Highlights include: 7.7+ million single-use plastic water bottles avoided by providing water refill stations and alternatives to single-use plastic water bottles. 38,000+ signature drinks were sold in reusable stainless steel pint cups. 1.2M+ single-use cups were displaced through the TURN Reusable Cup program – stacked end to end these cups would reach the top of the empire state building over 340 times!

➤ BYOBottle Suggested Post: 

Sample Social Media Post:  I’m excited to support #BYOBottle to help turn the tide on plastic pollution in the music industry! The momentum to rock reusables is growing. Join the effort at byobottle.org

Please Tag BYOBottle – FB: @byobottlecampaign / Insta: @BYOBottle / Twitter: @BYO_Bottle 

➤ BYOBottle Features: 

💧Featured Campaign: Green Music Australia’s Party with the Planet

💧Featured Festival Sustainability: Cali Vibes 2023

💧Featured Resource: Julie’s Bicycle Resource Hub

💧Featured Podcast: Upstream Indisposable Podcast

💧Featured Tour Impact Report: Jack Johnson North America Impact Report

💧Featured Webinars: Plastic Pollution Coalition webinar series

BYOBottle Summer 2021 Highlights

BYOBottle Partners: Plastic Pollution Coalitionʻs #RefillRevolution at Bonnaroo (photo: Brandise Danesewich), 
Zach Gill (photo: Nikki Michail), Jade Imagine, HydroFlask & Ohana Festival, Vapur, Rob Machado Foundationʻs Water Refill Stations at BeachLife Festival, Max Wattʻs House of Music, REVERB #RockNRefill at Cali Roots, Steelys Drinkware

Greetings BYOBottle Partners! 

Join fellow BYOBottle partners and millions of people around the world in reducing plastic waste this Plastic Free July! It’s a great time to share your BYOBottle commitment to rock reusable water bottles and help the music industry turn the tide on plastic pollution. Plastic Free July is full of ideas and inspiration to reduce single-use plastic and help shape reusable habits, throughout the month of July and beyond! 

As festivals announce line-ups and concerts roll out in the coming months, it’s important we focus on supporting an equitable and sustainable music industry for everyone. BYOBottle will continue to serve as a resource to promote engagement campaigns, partner innovations, and best practices for the safe use of reusables and water refill stations at live events. Please enjoy these BYOBottle resources and highlights!

BYOBottle – Highlights:

BYOBottle Suggested Post: Plastic Free July

Sample Social Media Post: We support #BYOBottle to help turn the tide on plastic pollution in the music industry.  This @PlasticFreeJuly we are rocking our reusable water bottles to reduce plastic waste!   #PlasticFreeJuly

Please Tag BYOBottle – FB: @byobottlecampaign / Insta: @BYOBottle / Twitter: @BYO_Bottle 

BYOBottle Features: 

💧Featured Campaign: Plastic Free July

💧Featured Event: Reopen with Reuse Rally July 1st

💧Featured Resource: BYOBottle Reusable Vendor List

💧Featured Case Study: Rewash Revolution: Zero Waste with Strawberry Fields

💧Featured Report: UPSTREAM Report: Reuse Wins

💧Featured Video: BYOBottle Artist Tavana – Plastic Island ft Paul Izak

Music Video: BYOBottle Artist TavanaPlastic Island featuring Paul Izak. This incredible stop motion video features unaltered plastic pieces collected from beaches in Hawaii to bring attention to the global issue of plastic pollution.

Are you innovating? Are you working to address safety at live events by creating touchless or contactless refill options? Please reach out and share so we can highlight your reuse and refill innovations! Send updates and photos to info@byobottle.org and we will aim to feature your BYOBottle efforts on our socials and in future promotion & newsletters!

Download the BYOBottle Communications Library and explore BYOBottle.org. Stay Connected by following and tagging BYOBottle on Facebook, instagram and twitter

Rewash Revolution: Getting to zero waste at Strawberry Fields Festival in 2019

Reusable cups at Strawberry Fields. Photo: Duncographic

In 2019, Strawberry Fields Festival launched a new reusable crockery system, Rewash Revolution.

Born out of a desire to solve the problem of disposable culture, Rewash Revolution combined the determination and expertise of a group of event professionals to create, fund and manage a reusable crockery system. The aim was to remove all single use crockery from the festival, hire all necessary equipment at a low cost and develop a deposit system to make it cost neutral.

The first step was to create a sustainably sourced inventory which was adaptable to the needs of all vendors. It was decided that the best solution would be a 10 inch plate, 30oz bowl, 6oz cup and 12oz cup that were dishwasher safe and could handle hot and cold contents. 

BYOBottle Fall 2019 Highlights

Photo collage

The BYOBottle momentum is growing and we are proud to share out these highlights, tips, and resources.

BYOBottle – Recent Highlights:

  • BYOBottle Non-Profit Partners Countercurrent and The Plastic Pick-Up teamed up to create the #ForetheWaves sculpture made with 20,000 golf balls removed from the ocean floor below Pebble Beach, and showcased it at the Ohana Festival to engage festival goers. Ohana Fest partnered with Rob Machado Foundation to provide water refill stations, and HydroFlask contributed reusable bottles as prizes for fans who pledged to reduce plastic waste. Stories of sustainability were woven into the Storytellers Cove including BYOBottle Non-Profit partners WSL PURE and Wyland Foundation. BYOBottle Artists Lukas Nelson & Promise Of The Real, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, and John Craigie rocked the stage with reusables.
  • The Live Nation Sustainability Rocks initiative eliminated 350,000 plastic water bottles by providing refill stations to fans at nearly all of their venues. Live Nation is also piloting a BYOBottle effort backstage encouraging stagehands and staff to refill reusables.
  • BYOBottle Festivals BottleRock and Sonoma Harvest Music Festival took steps to reduce plastic waste, promoting the BYOBottle message and providing water refill stations for fans.  Artists & staff were given custom reusable bottles and encouraged to refill backstage. Sisters Folk Festival pledged to go plastic free and created souvenir reusable cups, and KAABOO partnered with #RockNRefill to promote water refills.
  • C3 Presents is tracking environmental impact at festivals including Sea.Hear.Now, ACL and Voodoo, offering additional water stations for fans, and expanding refill options for artists backstage. Prize tickets were offered to promote BYOBottle and they’ve teamed up with Non-Profit Partner Surfrider to support greening initiatives. BYOBottle Business Partner r.Cup created custom reusable cups for Sea.Hear.Now.

Australian BYOBottle artist Kasey Chambers announced their tour has eliminated single-use plastic bottles backstage, and Rhythm and Vines just signed on from New Zealand. Caloundra Music Festival, one of the original BYOBottle festivals working with Green Music Australia, just celebrated 7 years promoting BYOBottle. BYOBottle artists Ben Lee, Kate Miller-Heidke, Sahara Beck, & Missy Higgins rocked the stage.

Live Nation’s Sustainability Rocks Continues to Clean Up Sheds in Second Year

Recycling containers
Recycling containers

Photo: Courtesy of Live Nation.

“As businesses of all ilks have increasingly integrated sustainability with their offerings, Live Nation has continued to lead the way in the concerts sphere with its Sustainability Rocks initiative.

Launched in 2018, the program is part of the concert promoter’s broader sustainability charter, Green Nation, and has emphasized green initiatives at amphitheaters owned and operated by the live entertainment behemoth.

“I’m looking for ways that we can reduce the environmental impact of our concert venues,” says Lucy August-Perna, Live Nation’s manager of venue sustainability. “Obviously we’ve been super focused on waste production the last few years, but also things like energy use, water and, of course, fan, artist and community engagement.”

August-Perna has been at the forefront of a sustainable concert industry for some 15 years, dating back to her time at Effect Partners, a leading organization in uniting prominent clients with salient social causes, including the environmentalist movement.”

BYOBottle Summer 2019 Highlights

BYOBottle Partner Photos – From top left: Steelys, Guster, Event Water Solutions. From bottom left: Nalgene prize at Lollapalooza, Wax’o Paradiso w/ Green Music Australia at Splendour in the Grass, Outside Lands Steelys pints

230 million people around the world celebrated Plastic Free July by committing to reduce single-use plastic. It’s become crystal clear that plastic waste is a global issue and music fans want to be part of the solution. A new study from Ticketmaster shows that waste reduction at festivals is the number one concern for fans this summer

BYOBottle – Recent Highlights:

•BYOBottle celebrated Plastic Free July around the world! Explore our Plastic Free July instagram story featuring BYOBottle Partners – HYDY, SQUAD Bottles, Effect Partners, Kokua Hawaii Foundation, Mahina Mermaid, UPSTREAM, and the Rob Machado Foundation. BYOBottleArtists Didirri and SWMRS rocked their reusable bottles on stage and Live Nation venue staff refilled reusables at work saving over 10,000 single-use plastic water bottles! For more info, check out this Plastic Free July blog by Plastic Pollution Coalition.

Splendour in the Grass provided water refill stations in Australia and encouraged fans to #BYOBottle. Green Music Australia worked with 3 venues in Melbourne to install refill infrastructure and eliminate plastic bottles, released the Lost Lands Refill Revolution case study, and is promoting BYOBottle artists from down under –  Kasey Chambers, In Hearts Wake, Severins and Parkway Drive. We-Refill has been busy providing water refill stations in Australia with outreach support from Tangaroa Blue, and we welcome the War Memorial Theatre, the first BYOBottle venue in New Zealand!

Lollapalooza teamed up with Flume to offer a lucky BYOBottle winner premium viewing during their set. The festival provided free water refill stations for fans and invited REVERB to promote BYOBottle and RockNRefill, rewarding fans who refilled with Nalgene bottle prizes and hip packs. Also in Chicago, our new BYOBottle non-profit partner Shedd Aquarium is promoting solutions to plastic pollution and engaging with artists and music events.

Outside Lands provided reusable water bottles to staff, expanded a reusable cup program with Steelys and Plastic Pollution Coalition, and hosted Event Water Solutions water stations for fans. BYOBottle artists Altin Gün, Flume, Nahko, and The Lumineers rocked the stage throughout the weekend.

The Green Stop launched a water refill station model at several festivals in Canada, cross-promoting #BYOBottle and #HydrateLike – a campaign raising awareness about alternatives to plastic water bottles, run by our non-profit partner Lonely Whale.


r.Cup is partnering with artists and venues to expand their rentable, reusable cup program for live events, including the inaugural Miami Beach Pop Festival this November with BYOBottle artists Jack Johnson and Magic Giant featured in the lineup.

Caloundra Music Festival Encourages All Attendees to Keep It Clean and Green

Festival guests at a water station
Festival guests at a water station

“In 2019, Caloundra Music Festival (CMF) continues to be a beacon of environmental consciousness as it works toward creating a sustainable and responsible event.

Now in its 13th year, Caloundra Music Festival remains committed to achieving its vision of environmental sustainability, introducing new initiatives and encouraging all festival-goers, artists and crew to play their part.

In 2013, Caloundra Music Festival set out to be the first Australian festival to eliminate the single-use plastic water bottle. The festival introduced the #BYOBottle campaign and has had overwhelming success with the initiative.”

At Outside Lands, Not a Plastic Bottle or Straw in Sight

As the crowds milled throughout Outside Lands on the festival’s first day, the grass was trampled, but not untidy.

San Francisco’s largest summer music festival is making a push for a greener festival, with plans to eliminate nearly all plastic water bottles and straws, and offer reusable cups for beer and wine.

The effort coincides with the city and state’s recent war on plastics. Last month, local officials enacted a ban on the sale and distribution of plastic straws and other plastic dining items, following similar ordinances in Alameda, Berkeley and Oakland in recent years. Other regulations are still rolling out. Starting next year, the San Francisco Department of the Environment will require organizers of events on city property with more than 100 people make reusable cups available to at least 10% of attendees.

You Can’t Bring Water Into Lollapalooza Any More, But It’s Never Been Easier to Refill That Empty Bottle

Filling a water bottle at a water station
Filling a water bottle at a water station

“A festival goer gets a water container filled at Lollapalooza Thursday, August 1, 2019, in Chicago. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)

Some things about Lollapalooza never change: the crowds, the snaking lines for beer and hot dogs, the music pumping from all corners. But regular Lolla attendees have noticed at least one change this year. It’s never been easier to fill a water bottle, and never more encouraged; “Hydration Stations” line the park, blue-colored booths staffed with volunteers and ambassadors from Love Hope Strength, who man stations in three different shifts and promote registration for their bone marrow database.

This year, according to Farid Mosher, senior crowd services manager of C3 Presents, Lollapalooza’s sustainability efforts were placed in the spotlight. The goal was to improve hydration in order to reduce single-use water bottles and focus on “what we can do to keep our fans hydrated and focused on the experience, which is the music.”

There are 32 hydration units overall, each with four spouts. The units, which were increased by 20 percent this year, are in six separate locations throughout the park (including the field surrounding the T-Mobile stage and adjacent to Buckingham Fountain).

New this year is the fact that there are two separate “super stations,” each with 12 units, amounting to 48 total faucets on all sides of the booth. One is near the Perry’s stage, which, according to Mosher, was a strategic choice.

“People congregate in certain areas, and it sounds like with Perry’s specifically, we have a lot of people who need that,” Mosher laughed, referring to the stage’s size and rambunctious nature.”

Q&A with Rebecca Prince-Ruiz, Founder of Plastic Free July

Rebecca Prince-Ruiz, Founder and Executive Director of the Plastic Free Foundation, a nonprofit organization that organizes the annual Plastic Free July challenge, has more than twenty-five years’ experience in the world of environmental and waste management, community engagement, and sustainability behaviour change. In 2011, Prince-Ruiz started the Plastic Free July Challenge, where, what started as a grassroots campaign with a handful of participants in Western Australia has now grown to millions of people across 170 countries taking up the challenge to refuse single-use plastic every year.

What motivated you to start the Plastic Free July challenge? 

It really started with the challenge but I’ve always been mindful of how the changes on land have an impact on our waterways. I lived on a farm when I was younger, where we had to lose the farm when I was eight. This small farm was in Southwestern Australia, where we cleared natural brush. As the clearing happened, salt rose to the surface and there had to be clearing bans. I was so devastated, because we loved our farm and didn’t want to move.

Seeing the amount of plastic that exists really spurred me to start the challenge. When I visited a recycling facility and saw the volume of waste we produce, and understood the complex process of what happens to our waste once we throw it away, it made me realize that I wasn’t doing the planet a favor by filling up the recycling bin.

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