Since 2002, the Hayden Homes Amphitheater has led the local outdoor live music scene. Situated along the Deschutes River in scenic Bend, Oregon, the amphitheater’s location within a sensitive riparian ecosystem creates a unique experience for concertgoers and performers alike. However, without intentional management of concert season activities, human impact on the surrounding ecosystem can be damaging. As stewards of this ecosystem, we are purposeful in our approach to protect precious resources such as water, soil, and wildlife.
The amphitheater launched its sustainability program in 2017, initially focusing on waste management within the venue. Over the years, the program has become a core part of our operations, with the Green Team now recognized as a leading example for venues nationwide. In 2022, the venue diverted 76.85% of its waste from the landfill—equivalent to approximately 24 tons of material—a rate that increased to 78% in 2023. Continuing this upward trend, waste diversion in the summer of 2024 surged to 87%. This improvement demonstrates that increased venue activity can coexist with stronger environmental stewardship. Each percentage point represents tons of material kept out of landfills through careful sorting, innovative reuse solutions and partnership with local recycling facilities.
Our local Green Team are the true superstars of our efforts. They ensure we reduce our environmental impact in various ways; including, the use of water fill stations for reusable water bottles, compostable cups and utensils, cashless points of payment, solar phone charging stations, separate receptacles for recycling, compost and trash as well as 150+ bike racks, courtesy of Visit Central Oregon and our official sustainably partner, OnPoint Community Credit Union. Our Green Team pulls anything and everything out of the waste bins to be sorted and sent to the proper waste or recycle stream. They sort through every single landfill bag, compost bag and recycle bag, up to their shoulders in concert goer waste day in and day out. In 2024 they sorted through 224,377 pounds of waste and were able to repurpose, recycle, compost, or donate 194,867 pounds of that waste – a 87% diversion rate!
We want to thank the dedicated supporters of our Green Team: OnPoint Community Credit Union, Hayden Homes Amphitheater staff and management, Live Nation, Visit Central Oregon, and all patrons who have enthusiastically embraced our vision of an environmentally friendly venue in an industry often associated with excess. The Green Team’s achievements reflect a collective commitment to sustainability, demonstrating what’s possible when an entire community works together toward a common goal.
View our 2024 Sustainability Report Here.
As a result of these efforts, the Hayden Homes Amphitheater Green Team has received the following awards:
- 2018 Jack Johnson All At Once Sustainability Award
- 2023 Visit Central Oregon Sustainability Award
- 2023 Highest Scrap Value Returned - Live Nation
- 2023 Innovation Award - Live Nation
- 2023 Third Place Diversion Percentage Overall - Live Nation
- 2024 Jack Johnson All At Once Sustainability Award
- 2024 Dave Matthews Band Zero Waste Tour
The Hayden Homes Amphitheater Green Team and staff at large are all about creating a safe space for the community to gather, and we recognize that with more than two hundred and fifty thousand people passing through our gates each summer, it’s up to us to set not only the stage, but a great example. We strive to show up bigger than the fans who come for the music – it’s our responsibility to protect the river, the health of the greater ecosystem and to ensure the next generation of Bend residents and concertgoers have a healthy environment to thrive in.
