Dr. Allen Hershkowitz is the official Sustainability Advisor to the NBA Green program and also serves as Environmental Science Advisor to the New York Yankees and to Major League Soccer, the first person to hold any of those positions. Working with former MLB Commissioner Allan “Bud” Selig, former NBA Commissioner David Stern, and with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, Hershkowitz created the environmental programs at Major League Baseball, the NBA and the NHL. He also created the sustainability program at Major League Soccer and continues to serve as the sustainability advisor to that league. In 2008, at the request of Billie Jean King, he created the environmental program for the USTA.
In 2015 Sports Business Journal listed him as one of the “50 Most Influential People in Sports Business,” and in 2016 Worth magazine listed him as one of “The 60 Most Powerful People in Sports”. According to Green Sports Blog: “It is no exaggeration to say that Dr. Hershkowitz is the most consequential environmentalist in the history of North American sports,” and Yoga + Joyful Living magazine labeled him “The Godfather of Greening”. According to Greenwire, he “has long been among the most visible activists in the nation.” In 2022 Dr. Hershkowitz was listed by Sports Business Journal among its short list of “Executives To Know in Sports Sustainability.”
Dr. Hershkowitz is widely acknowledged to have created the movement to leverage sports to promote sustainability and, as the world faces its greatest climate emergency, he serves on the Steering Committee of UNFCCC Sport for Climate Action Framework. He led the effort to create the US-based Green Sports Alliance as well as Sport and Sustainability International, based in Switzerland. He also created the environmental program for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Oscars telecasts, as well as the environmental program for the Recording Academy’s GRAMMY Awards.
Dr. Allen Hershkowitz is an environmental scientist, visionary, activist, writer, lecturer and strategic sustainability advisor. For 26 years (1988 – 2016) he served as a Senior Scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and was the force behind some of the organization’s most effective and visible initiatives. Blending technical expertise with the influence of iconic cultural sectors, Dr. Hershkowitz leverages the cultural and market influence of sports and entertainment
