SANTA BARBARA BOWL
Santa Barbara local music favorite Jack Johnson has agreed to lend his support to the Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation by becoming the twelfth member of the Bowl’s Honorary Board of Directors. Johnson’s local popularity along with his commitment to Santa Barbara will aid the Bowl’s mission as it continues to grow into a model facility with respect to music, education, and sustainability.
“The Santa Barbara Bowl has always been a special place for me,” said Johnson. “So many of the best shows that I have experienced have been under the open sky at the Bowl; whether in the crowd or on the stage the Bowl is a magical and welcoming place. The staff has always made me feel at home, so I’m honored to become part of the Bowl’s family as an Honorary Board member.”
The Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation is a not-for-profit 501-c-3 organization that strives to make the Bowl the leading outdoor performing arts center in the country. The Foundation benefits from strong volunteer involvement and community leadership, and the addition of Jack Johnson to the Honorary Board will help pave the way for another generation of supporters.
Johnson’s dedication to the environment coupled with his innovative ideas, have already had a major impact on positive and forward-thinking changes for the Bowl. At Jack’s 2014 shows, the Bowl’s #MyPintAndMe campaign was launched to reduce single-use plastics at Bowl concerts.
On July 22 2015, Jack presented the Bowl with a custom Water Refill Station as part of the Johnson’s All At Once Sustainability Award, which recognizes venues making a strong commitment to green practices and the environment. Johnson honored the Bowl as a leader in venue greening and for implementing best practices, piloting new initiatives, and setting the stage for others to follow.
Most recently, as members of the Sustainable Concerts Working Group, Jack and Kim Johnson invited SB Bowl Program Director Eric Shiflett to join them on Pollstar Live’s Sustainable Touring panel. Panelists shared tips and resources from the newly developed EnviroRider and focused on the “Strive for 5” — the top five things the music industry can do to reduce its footprint, including encouraging fans to take alternative transportation, reducing waste and single-use items (especially plastic), sourcing local sustainable food, reducing emissions, and effective ways to communicate changes and initiatives to colleagues and fans.
“I’ve been really inspired by all of the work that the Bowl has put into making their venue one of the greenest and most progressive venues in the nation,” said Johnson. “It’s a beautiful place to watch a show, but I’ve learned to appreciate it even more as I’ve seen how they operate behind the scene.”
Jack’s relationship goes beyond Greening the Bowl. On May 27, 2001, Jack strummed an acoustic solo guitar as he opened for Ben Harper; it was to be Jack’s first show in a long run of Bowl performances. By the following year, on October 10, 2002, Jack headlined with G. Love & Special Sauce. Since that time, he has performed eight more concerts for the Santa Barbara community.
“We are thrilled that Jack is now a part of our Honorary Board of Directors,” said Rick Boller, executive director for the Bowl. “He is such a great friend, supporter and partner of the Bowl!”
