M3F: Starving the Landfill and Education for a Greener Future

4/17/2025

March 7th-8th, 2025, marked another successful year for M3F, not only as a premier music and arts festival but also as a leader in sustainable event practices. With a commitment to environmental responsibility, M3F's sustainability efforts focused on waste diversion and environmental education, making a significant impact on the festival's sustainability efforts.

By the Numbers: A Community Effort

18,000 Event Attendees enjoyed the festival, experiencing both incredible music and an eco-conscious event environment.
193 Volunteers and Staff worked tirelessly to maximize the recycling and composting efforts.
$25,955 Value of Volunteer Hours contributed to making M3F a green festival.
HDR Corporate Volunteers played a key role in supporting sustainability efforts on-site.

Waste Diversion Success: 56% Kept Out of Landfills

One of M3F’s primary goals is to StarvetheLandfillandfill, and this year, the Green Team achieved a 56% waste diversion rate, ensuring that 3.5 tons of waste were redirected from the landfill through proper waste
management channels.

Composting: 4,520 lbs Thanks to our partners atWaste Management, giving organic waste a second life.
Comingled Recycling: 2,161 lbs Thanks to our partners at Waste Management, reducing waste sent to the landfill.
Soft Plastics Recycling: 275 lbs Thanks to our partners at Goodman’s, further preventing plastic pollution.

Educating for a Sustainable Future

Beyond waste diversion, M3F emphasized environmental education and raising awareness for sustainability, ensuring attendees understood the importance of responsible waste disposal and sustainable practices.

Volunteer “Bin Guarded” which means they stood at the waste stations to engage with festival goers, educating about what items belong in each bin.
Our staff collaborated with the 16 food truck vendors to educate them about composting and provided buckets for their compost.
Our CEO made a stage announcement to share how the festival goers can participate in the festival’s sustainability efforts.
Information about the festival’s sustainability efforts was provided at the festival Info Booth.

Thank You to Our Partners!

This success would not have been possible without the collaboration of our dedicated partners and sustainability champions. A huge thank you to our sustainability champions!

Partners: Rachel Blanchard, Don McDougald, Robin Martin, Kirsten Red, Terry Gellenbeck, Mackenzie McGuffie, Catherine Callaway, Jonathan Torres, Josie Kohlan, Penny Czebotar.

Green Team Volunteers & Staff: Aimee, Brennan, Eduardo, Emily, Kourtney, Tynan, Muhammad Luthfi, Sumedh, Robert, Tre, Erica, Nic, Hayley, Corey, Chelsey, Jennifer, David, William, Nicoletta, Jenna, Clayton, Ashley, Maya, Nathan, Julia, Tova, Sophia, Samantha, Matthew, Danny, Nicholas, Alexander, Josh, Ava, Jude, Anthony, Xavier, Ryder, Kate, Kat, Whitney, Joseph, Madisen, Alexis, Asa, Ema, Allison, Hailee, Delainey, Dominique, Alyssa, Meghan, Cierra, Nick, Luke, Ribhu, Hitesh, Sana, Aaron, Paris, Paulina, Andrew, Rachel, Wyatt, Carson, Issabelle, Daniel, Priscilla, Kyla, Katherine, Alexandra, Madison, Angelica, Kenna, Ena, Noah, Jenny, Henry, Jullian, Jean, Juan, Jolene, Sarah, Melissa, Evan, Sierra, Borislav, Emeral, Felicia, Gerald, Oliver, Sandra, Wayne, Christopher, Kyleigh, Grace, Sierrah, Blaise, Maria, Jose, Vivica, JennyLynn, Zoe, Makayla, Ryan, Adam, Elizabeth, Valentin, Amber, Alex, Paul, Aurelia, Taryn, Cody, Amin, Shawn, Eric, Kayla, Jarec, Kiel, Milton, Mckenna, Morgan, Mikaela, Demetra, Darian, Waverly, Anne, Anna, Samual, Deja, Chloe, Travis, Jennifur, Alana, Allen, Zach, Courtney, Lyle, Sophie, Lilly, Jonathan, Zitlally, Olivia, Domenic, Noelle, Kaylah, Lou, Megan, Giovanni, Meagan, Miguel, Phillip, Terrilynn, and Erika.

Looking Ahead

M3F continues to set the standard for sustainability in the festival world, proving that large-scale events can be both entertaining and environmentally responsible. With continued support from volunteers, corporate partners like HDR, and dedicated waste management services, we aim to further increase waste diversion rates and educate even more attendees in the coming years. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making M3F 2024 a greener, cleaner, and more sustainable experience!

Author: Clark is a Sustainability major at ASU with an emphasis on energy.
Connect with Clark on LinkedIn.

1 Comment

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8/19/2025 05:04:02 pm

It’s inspiring to see a festival like M3F put just as much energy into sustainability as it does into music and art. The fact that they diverted more than half of their waste from landfills shows what’s possible when a community comes together with a shared goal. Beyond the numbers, it’s really about setting an example showing thousands of attendees that enjoying a great time and caring for the planet can go hand in hand.