What exactly is a green event?
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Green events: the events industry goes green
Sustainable event management began with the 1992 conference on sustainable development in Rio. As sustainability found its way into consumption and production, event marketing was drawn in at the same time. In the events sector, though, the idea caught on more slowly than elsewhere.
Sustainable events are called green meetings, green meeting events or, for short, green events. Organising a green event presents a challenge because organisers must take social, environmental and economic sustainability into account. The areas to consider range from the travel that is needed (and its impact on the climate), through the use of energy, water, paper and so on, to ways of keeping waste to a minimum.
Fulfilling your corporate social responsibility (CSR) through a green event
The events industry felt compelled to address sustainability at events and to organise the events themselves sustainably. Traditional events such as trade fairs, concerts and conferences are organised using sustainable methods and following the relevant requirements and guidelines. To bring sustainability to end consumers, trade fairs or similar events are held where visitors are made aware of sustainability and experts in the field give talks.
In recent years, more and more organisers have been running sustainable events. According to the Europäischer Verbund der Veranstaltungs-Centren (EVVC), 40 per cent of event venues in Germany (as of 2013) had already put a sustainable management system in place. Labels that mark out green events have also been introduced, for example Green Globe.
Since 2013, the EVVC and the GCB have also presented the Meeting Experts Green Award. It honours sustainable projects from the meetings and conference sector in the categories of energy management, conservation of resources, sustainable event, venue, hotel, sustainable human resources management and sustainable company. Green events are the future of the events industry, and they give organisers further scope to combine entertainment with environmental awareness.
You can find out about our approach to sustainability here: One Event – One Tree!
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Tell us the occasion, group size, preferred place, date and the goal of your event. We’ll recommend suitable activities and work out together which option will work for your team.
