Climate Pledge Arena, home to the NHL’s Seattle Kraken, WNBA’s Seattle Storm, and world-class entertainment, has made history by becoming the world’s first arena to receive Zero Carbon Certification from the International Living Future Institute (ILFI).
This certification is awarded to buildings that demonstrate exceptional energy efficiency and significant reductions in carbon footprint while offsetting the remaining embodied carbon and energy use through high-impact offset programs.
The achievement fulfills the ambitious sustainability pledge made by Oak View Group, Amazon, and the Seattle Kraken in June 2020 when they unveiled the arena’s name, which opened in 2021 after a major renovation.
“This is a significant undertaking, especially for a project as large and complex as Climate Pledge Arena. We are thrilled to see the arena become the first to achieve this,” says ILFI CEO Lindsay Baker.
The certification—offered by ILFI, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing sustainable building practices—required meticulous documentation and twelve consecutive months of performance data to meet the stringent requirements of the net zero-carbon standard set by ILFI. The arena eliminated all planned natural gas usage and converted to all-electric systems, including heating, the mechanical ice resurfacer, Zamboni, and dehumidification.
Notably, 100 percent of the arena’s energy comes from renewable sources, which was achieved through the installation of solar panels on the roof and the purchase of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), some of which are from Puget Sound Energy’s Lower Snake River wind farm. The arena has also pledged to join Seattle City Light’s Renewable Plus program, furthering its commitment to sustainable energy.
In addition to the zero-carbon certification, Climate Pledge Arena introduced several sustainability measures, including free public transit with every game or event ticket and the elimination of fan-facing single-use plastics.
The achievement aligns with The Climate Pledge, introduced by Amazon and Global Optimism in 2019, which urges signatories to reach net-zero carbon across their businesses by 2040. The arena’s naming as Climate Pledge Arena serves as a reminder of the importance of collective action to combat climate change.
Kara Hurst, vice-president of worldwide sustainability at Amazon, underlined the collaborative effort behind the achievement, stating, “The arena’s ILFI certification demonstrates the progress we can make when Climate Pledge signatories work together.”
