At Disney, Lisa Tepe ('96) is helping turn sustainability into a way of doing business. As senior manager of the zero-waste sustainability program for Disney Signature Experiences, she works with chefs, procurement teams and operational leaders across Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Adventures by Disney, Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa and other experiences to reduce waste, rethink materials and find more sustainable ways to operate.
The impact is significant. In the last three years, Disney Cruise Line has eliminated 99% of guest-facing single-use plastics and 93% of all nonessential single-use plastics across its ships and island destinations. Tepe's team is also testing artificial intelligence to find new ways to reduce food waste.
But for Tepe, the biggest measure of success is what happens when sustainability becomes part of how people naturally do their jobs. "That's when we know it's gone from a sustainability effort to just a way of business," she said.
Tepe, originally from a small town in Minnesota, first discovered UW-Stout during a high school visit with her DECA teacher. She returned later with her parents, and the decision became clear. "It felt like home," she said. As a first-generation college student, finding a place where she felt comfortable was important.
At Stout, she found leadership opportunities and experiences that extended well beyond the classroom. During her sophomore year, she earned a spot in the Disney College Program and spent the summer working attractions at what is now Disney's Hollywood Studios. That opportunity led to an opportunities in Disney's employment division, followed by roles in guest relations and food and beverage management.
Tepe credits longtime professor Dr. Carol Mooney with helping her navigate an unconventional college path. When Tepe was offered an extended internship with Disney, Mooney found a way for her to receive academic credit while away from campus, allowing her to remain an active student. "I don't regret a minute of it," Tepe said. "I had all of these life experiences and career experiences before I actually graduated."
Outside the classroom, Tepe served in residence hall leadership, the Stout Student Association, DECA and her sorority. Those experiences taught her how to lead meetings, build relationships, navigate difficult conversations and mentor others, skills she still relies on today.
After graduation, due to her years of experience with the company Tepe joined the Disney as a salaried leader and spent the early part of her career in operations, eventually helping open Disney California Adventure. She later spent more than a decade at Disney University, leading orientation and leadership development programs for thousands of Disney leaders around the world. Along the way, she helped open Aulani in Hawaii and worked internationally to prepare crew members for the launch of the Disney Dream. Each role added to her understanding of operations, leadership and how to help people navigate change.
After moving into a human resources leadership role supporting Disney's Animal Science and Environment division, a mentor asked if she would consider a role in sustainability. The move brought together the skills she had developed throughout her career: understanding operations, building relationships, leading through change and teaching. "There is not a day that goes by that I don't think I use my education degree," she said. "You are always teaching. You are always learning."
Today, Tepe works with teams to find solutions that reduce environmental impact without sacrificing the guest experience or the needs of the business. Whether she is helping chefs reduce food waste, working with procurement teams to identify alternatives to plastics or helping leaders rethink long-standing processes, her goal is to give people the knowledge and tools to make better decisions themselves.
That approach is helping drive broader change across Disney. The company's waste strategy includes reducing food waste, increasing recycling and reuse, reducing single-use plastics and moving toward zero waste to landfill by 2030.
For Tepe, the most successful projects are those that benefit everyone by improving the guest experience, supporting cast members, strengthening business operations and reducing environmental impact. She calls them "win-win-win-wins."
After 30 years with Disney, Tepe says the accomplishment she is most proud of isn't a promotion, an award or a single project. It's saying yes to new opportunities. That willingness to embrace the unknown was shaped in part by her experiences at Stout, where she learned to put herself out there, take on leadership roles and make the most of opportunities beyond the classroom.
Tepe’s impact can be seen in the millions of plastic items eliminated and the waste reduction efforts taking place across Disney's travel and leisure operations. Just as importantly, it can be seen in the leaders who are beginning to make more sustainable choices on their own.
