As well as the low-carbon strategy for your event, there are many other practices that you can incorporate to reduce the environmental impacts of the event as well as maximize its social and economic benefits.
Examples of event greening practices that can be integrated into various aspects of the event planning process to address environmental, social and economic impacts include:
Registration and Accreditation
- Electronic event registration.
- Lanyards made from recycled materials. Asking participants to return them after the event.
- Post-consumer recycled paper and vegetable-based inks for badges.
Transportation
- Providing shuttle service drivers with training in environmentally responsible driving practices.
- No idling at the venue and major transportation hubs, such as airports.
Venue Selection
- Ensure the venue is able to provide you with required data for the monitoring and evaluation of greening practices.
- If you negotiate environmental practices not currently in place at the venue, e
nsure them by including them in contracts.
Food and Beverage
- Organic, fairly traded coffee and tea.
- Leftover food donated to local charities.
- Seafood served is harvested responsibly.
- Vegetarian meals or vegetarian meal options.
Exhibition Production
- Provide exhibitors with guidance on sustainable design and construct of exhibit booths.
- End-of-show take-back and recycling program.
Marketing and Communications
- Electronic or paperless communication.
- Sustainable printing guidelines.
Procurement
- Consider the environmental, social and economic impacts of a good or service throughout its lifecycle. Favor goods and services that result in minimal environmental impacts and foster positive social and economic development.
- Use environmental criteria as well as quality and price.
- Develop contract riders to hold suppliers accountable to sustainability commitments.
Offices
- A sustainable procurement strategy for kitchen, office and cleaning supplies, furniture, office equipment and gifts.
- A recycling program for glass, metals, plastic and paper.
- Minimize paper use; encourage double-sided printing.
- Develop an environmental awareness program.
Further information on how to integrate event greening practices into the event management and planning process can be found in the Resources section below.
Resources**
Event Greening Resources
Environment Canada Green Meeting Guide
US EPA Green Meeting Resources
Icarus Foundation - Green Festivals and Events How-To Guide
Convention Industry Council’s Green Meetings Report
Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Conventions (CERC)
Green Meeting Industry Council
Global Urban Development - Producing Environmentally Sustainable Olympic Games and 'Greening' Major Public Events
Leaving a Greening Legacy: Guidelines for Event Greening
Sustainable Waves - Solar Powered Stages and Sound
Blue Green Meetings
World Resources Institute Working 9 to 5 on Climate Change
IUCN Responsible Tourism Handbook
Example of event brochure highlighting
event greening initiatives
Green Meetings in the Media
Meetings That Don’t Make an Impact (On the Environment, That Is) – Convene Magazine
Dr. David Suzuki on Green Meetings – Convene Magazine
Clean, Green Conferencing - Nature.com
Examples of Carbon Neutral Events, Tours & Conferences
Montreal Jazz Festival 2008
2010 Winter Olympics (David Suzuki Foundation Report)
The Academy Awards 2007
Turin Winter Olympics 2006
Super Bowl 2006
FIFA World Cup 2006
World Economic Forum
Democratic National Convention
Dave Matthews Band Tour
Barenaked Ladies Tour
History of GHG Management Programs at Olympics and Other Large Events (See Appendix A, page 29)
Examples of Green Convention Centres
Calgary TELUS Convention Centre
Oregon Convention Centre
David L Lawrence Convention Center
Green Accommodations
Green Hotels Association
Hotel Association of Canada ECOmmodation Rating Program
Green Leaf Eco-Rating Program
Fairmont Hotels and Resorts Green Partnership
Green Lodging News
Event Related Emission Calculators
TerraPass - Event and Conference Carbon Footprint Calculator
Bonneville Environmental - Foundation Event Calculator
STI/MyClimate - Accommodation Emissions Calculator
For other calculators (e.g., air travel), and a list of carbon offset and renewable energy certificate vendors, please see the ‘Resources’ section of ‘Going Carbon Neutral’.
** While listing these companies and organizations, the David Suzuki Foundation makes no
representation regarding the products, services or business practices of the
named companies or organizations.
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