Erin Cooke, San Francisco International Airport sustainability and environmental policy director, has won the Airports Going Green Award for 2023.
Cooke was honoured by Airports Going Green (AGG), the aviation industry forum on sustainability led by the Chicago Department of Aviation and co-hosted by the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE). Cooke was recognised in the “Outstanding Individual Leadership” category of the Airports Going Green Awards 2023.
“Being an industry leader in sustainability takes dedicated individuals who constantly push for the extraordinary,” said airport director Ivar C Satero. “Erin Cooke has guided a series of groundbreaking initiatives at SFO, paving the way for a true transformation in the environmental impact of air travel. We applaud her for this recognition, and we thank our entire team for continually advancing SFO’s sustainability efforts.”
Erin Cooke joined SFO in 2016 as the airport’s first sustainability and environmental policy director, with responsibility for creating, implementing, and reporting on the SFO’s strategic, sustainability, zero waste, resilience and decarbonisation plans. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure, LightHawk and the Airports Council International (ACI) World Environment Standing Committee. She is a LEED Accredited Professional and holds a master’s degree in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University.
During Erin’s tenure, SFO has launched the “SFO Unites Against Hunger” food donation programme and worked with airlines and fuel suppliers to advance the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). It also became the first airport in the world to prohibit the sale of water in plastic packaging, and the first to earn airport-wide certification at the Platinum level under the LEED for Communities programme.
Image: San Francisco International Airport
