NYRR Sustainability
Introduction
At New York Road Runners, our vision is to build healthier lives and stronger communities through the transformative power of running, which also means doing our part to ensure future generations have access to clean air, green spaces, and a healthy world in which to be active.
NYRR Sustainability Pillars
Materiality Matrix
We aim to embed sustainability into everything we do at NYRR, from hosting events,
to maintaining our facilities, to giving back to the community.
We are committed to minimizing our impact across all areas of sustainability throughout all areas of the organization.
To determine NYRR’s sustainability focus areas, an exercise known as a materiality analysis. was conducted. This exercise evaluates sustainability areas based on their importance to the organization and their importance to stakeholders, which then prioritizes concepts that are most important to the organization both internally and externally.
The result of the materiality analysis is NYRR’s Materiality Matrix:
Sustainability Pillars
The results of this materiality analysis were then organized into key focus areas, forming NYRR’s Sustainability Pillars.
Climate Change & Energy
NYRR is committed to minimizing our contribution to global climate change by focusing on energy,
energy efficiency, renewable energy, and carbon offsets to reduce and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.
Communication
NYRR strives to be an environmental leader by inspiring and educating partners, stakeholders, and runners to commit to sustainability through transparent and effective communications and reporting.
Circularity
NYRR aims to minimize waste by prioritizing reuse, repair, and recycling.
Goals and Targets
We are excited to share that we’ve recently set our Sustainability Goals and Targets!
We are thrilled to share our main goal: New York Road Runners commits to net zero emissions by 2040 and to be a leader in sports sustainability.
Our goals and targets are centered around supporting the diverse communities we serve, focused on emissions, circularity, water, and transparency.
Sustainability Spotlight
Sustainability Initiatives at the 2025 RBC Brooklyn Half
- The 2 pace cars were the fully electric Volvo EX90s.
- >28,000 medals were made in the USA from 100% recycled steel.
- Finisher medal ribbons were made from PET recycled material.
- 990 pounds of discarded runner clothing at the Start was collected and donated to All of Us Clothing.
- 57 Green Team volunteers will be stationed at the 4 Start and 3 Finish Waste Diversion Stations sorting waste into separate categories (recycling, compost, Heatsheets, waste)
- 9,887 pounds of leftover food and recovery bags were donated to City Harvest.
- Gatorade and water cups were composted at a compost farm in upstate NY.
Read more, including race-week events and NYRR Team for Climate highlights, here.
Climate Change & Energy
Climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our time. Now more than ever, it is crucial for organizations to take decisive action to combat this global challenge. NYRR is committed to reducing our contribution to global climate change and is working to reduce energy use and improve energy efficiency across all areas of the organization.
NYRR Team for Climate
In 2024, NYRR made history as the first major marathon to introduce a guaranteed race entry method that supports sustainability initiatives. NYRR has partnered with Anew Climate, a global climate solutions leader, and committed to use a portion of the funds raised by NYRR Team for Climate to purchase verified carbon credits for improved forest management projects, a practice known as carbon offsetting. NYRR has also committed to using a portion of the funds raised by NYRR Team for Climate for projects within NYRR that reduce the total emissions generated within NYRR’s events and operations, a practice known as carbon insetting. Our aim is to balance the amount of greenhouse gases that are emitted, while taking steps to stop emissions from increasing, to deliver a more environmentally friendly racing experience for all our runners.
This program is available at the United Airlines NYC Half, the RBC Brooklyn Half, and the TCS New York City Marathon. After having completed a full year of fundraising, NYRR Team for Climate boasts a deep field of passionate individuals who care about the planet and are using their miles to support meaningful climate action.
For more information on the program, including details on the design of the official team singlet, please visit the website here.
Optional Carbon Offsets at Checkout
About the Initiative
Your travel to an NYRR event emits carbon dioxide into our atmosphere. To offset those emissions, we’ve launched an option for runners to donate toward carbon offsets at checkout in the race-registration process. One hundred percent of your donation will go to verified carbon offset projects from our partner, Anew Climate. All the selected verified carbon offset projects will comply with the American Carbon Registry Standard of ensuring the highest level of scientific integrity for every carbon credit purchased, as we move toward net zero emissions by 2040. See the NYRR Team for Climate page to read more on the carbon offset projects from the inaugural program at the 2024 TCS New York City Marathon.
Donation Guide
Please use the chart below to help guide your donations. The Donation Guide estimates the carbon emissions of your participation in an NYRR event, which are calculated based on travel to the event, the scale and impact of the event’s production, and the rates provided by our partner, Anew Climate. Rates for carbon credits are based on project type, vintage, location, co-benefits, market demand, and the specific project development cost including monitoring, reporting, and verification.
| *Donation Guide | ||
|---|---|---|
| Event | Traveling Domestically | Traveling Internationally |
| Weekly | $3.50 | $14.00 |
| 5 Borough Series | $7.00 | $28.00 |
| Marathon | $17.00 | $42.00 |
*To more specifically calculate how much you should be donating based on your travel to an NYRR event, feel free to use the Environmental Defense Fund’s travel carbon footprint calculator.
Disclaimer:
New York Road Runners acknowledges that offsetting alone will not tackle climate change and can only be credible while also avoiding, reducing, and substituting carbon emissions. NYRR follows the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Code of Practice by purchasing carbon offsets while:
- Measuring our greenhouse gas emissions inventory
- Working toward our goal of Net Zero by 2040
- Fulfilling our reduction efforts: Transitioning to electric vehicles and generators at our events, and Energy Star appliances at our facilities.
FAQs
Which New York Road Runners races will have optional carbon offset purchases available at checkout?
All events throughout the year will include the option for runners to offset their emissions at checkout.
When I donate toward the purchase of carbon offsets at checkout, where exactly does the money go?
One hundred percent of the money goes to purchasing verified carbon offsets, similar to the improved forest management projects in our NYRR Team for Climate inaugural portfolio. Click here to read more about the projects with our partner Anew Climate, a global climate solutions leader.
How do I know how much to purchase to offset my travel emissions?
At minimum, we encourage you to donate enough to offset the emissions from your travel to and from your attendance of our event, but any amount over this is more than welcome to offset the footprint of overall event operations. To calculate how much you should be donating, feel free to use the Environmental Defense Fund’s travel carbon footprint calculator.
Reuse and Recycling
After fulfilling donation needs and coordinating with New York City, the next priority is reuse. Items that can be saved for use at future races are being identified and set aside. Finally, items that cannot be donated or reused are being evaluated for recycling potential.
Communication
So much of our work at NYRR extends far beyond the organization itself. Without our partners and our runners, we simply would not be able to do what we do. Those relationships offer a unique opportunity for NYRR to share our commitment to sustainability. We strive to serve as an environmental leader by encouraging all those we work with to uphold the same sustainable values.
Sports For Climate Action
New York Road Runners is a proud signatory of the UNFCCC’s Sports for Climate Action Framework.
The Framework calls on sporting organizations to acknowledge the contribution of the sports sector to climate change and our responsibility to strive towards climate neutrality.
As a signatory, NYRR will prioritize the initiative’s emphasis on undertaking systemic efforts for greater environmental responsibility, reducing overall climate impact, educating,
and sharing knowledge, promoting sustainable and responsible consumption, and advocating for climate action.
Circularity
Circularity refers to systems that prioritize reuse, repair, and recycling to create a closed-loop process that minimizes, or even eliminates, waste.
By applying this more holistic way of thinking to everything that we do, we are working to make our operations more efficient. This means fewer resources being consumed and less waste being sent to the landfill.
Check out some of the ways that we are already working to promote circularity and reduce waste.
Waste Management and Recycling
Throughout the year at weekly and premier races, including the TCS New York City Marathon, New York Road Runners works with vendors and city agency partners to divert waste. We work with our hired waste removal provider, in conjunction with the New York City Department of Sanitation, moving from the start line to the finish line, collecting waste and sorting recyclables.
At many flagship races, finishers are awarded a finisher medal and provided with a Heatsheet. Leftover medals and Heatsheets are carefully sorted and either reused or recycled if they cannot be reused.
Reusable Cups at Races
Building on a successful 2024 pilot, NYRR continues its collaboration with Cup Zero to reduce single-use waste. Reusable hydration cups will be available at select 2025 races. Runners are strongly encouraged to return their cups to the designated receptacles in the post-finish area. Returning the cup ensures it can be cleaned, reused, and kept from the landfill—supporting both the environment and the program’s success.
Food Collection and Donation
At all NYRR races, leftover pre-race, course, and post-finish food and beverage items are collected and donated to City Harvest, New York City’s first and largest food rescue organization, where they help feed more than 1.2 million food-insecure New Yorkers.
Clothing Collection and Donation
Before runners take off at the start of the United Airlines NYC Half, RBC Brooklyn Half, and TCS New York City Marathon, many discard their warm-up gear. Since 2012, NYRR has collected and donated the discarded clothing to divert the textiles from local landfills. The total amount collected over the multiyear initiative exceeds 1 million pounds.
NYRR collaborates with several local organizations to donate extra race premiums – including T-shirts and hats – that provide clothing to young athletes in underserved communities. More information is available on our Community Donations page.
Community
As committed as NYRR is to providing access to the sport of running, we are equally committed to bettering the communities that play host to our races, community events, and youth programs throughout the year. Through comprehensive sustainability initiatives, our hope is to work with our partners and vendors to leave city streets, parks, schools, and community centers better than the way we found them.
NYRR’s Commitment to Plogging
What on earth Is plogging? The fitness sensation from Sweden is the environmentally conscious runner’s activity of choice.
A combination of the word “jogging” and “plocka upp,” the Sweden phrase for picking up,
plogging is picking up litter while you are out for a run or walk.
Not just a problem in urban areas, litter is an issue globally in our communities, waterways, and natural spaces. Its damaging effects on our health and the health of wildlife are immense, but with plogging you can take direct action against it! It may be a cliché, but one person really can make a difference. And just imagine how much you can do if you get your whole running crew involved!
Plogging is also a great way to introduce new body movements into your run such as bending, squatting, stretching, and even lunging while you pick up trash. When you plog, you aren’t running for time, you are running to help heal the earth and improve your own strength.
NYRR hosts public plogging events prior to all 3 of our marquee races: the United Airlines NYC Half, the RBC Brooklyn Half, and the TCS New York City Marathon. Don’t forget to look out for these interactive opportunities on our events calendar and sign up through the links provided.
We also encourage runners and walkers to bring plogging back to their own neighborhoods in New York City and around the world!
NYRR’s Commitment to Service
Each year, NYRR hosts a Day of Service, where all staff members are encouraged to participate in beautifying, cleaning, and supporting a New York City park where NYRR also hosts Open Runs. In August of 2024, more than 95 staff members joined forces in St. Mary’s Park where they spread 8 yards of
mulch, painted 16 benches, 168 feet of retaining wall, 180 feet of railing, removed 20 bags of leaves, and 5 bags of litter.
Official Charity Partners
Official Charity Partners
NYRR is committed to helping nonprofits change the world for the better through the TCS New York City Marathon and United Airlines NYC Half Official Charity Partner Programs. More than 500 official charity partners are represented in the programs covering a vast and diverse set of causes, including those that are committed to sustainability/the environment.