GLASGOW, Scotland — On November 10, the entire global events industry took to the world stage at COP26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, to provide details on the Net Zero Carbon Events initiative and the recently launched commitment under the Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC). Industry leaders from venues, organizers, suppliers and associations came live to the COP26 stage in Glasgow, Scotland, to discuss the commitment and illustrate the progress the events industry has already made to combat climate change by reducing carbon emissions by 50% by 2030.
The commitment to net-zero carbon events
The message from the global stage at COP26 was clear: whether you are a major independent or association trade show organiser, a venue hosting exhibitions, a supplier serving the industry or a small family-run salon planning small events such as weddings, you can be a key player in driving the innovation that will reduce carbon emissions and help bring the world to the net-zero carbon emissions levels that climate scientists say are essential to limiting the impact of climate change.
Representing JMIC on stage, Kai Hattendorf, CEO of UFI, the global association for the exhibition industry, led the discussion. Introducing the session’s speakers, he said, “We have the commitment of the largest and most influential organizations in our industry, and we are confident in our ability to drive change to meet the challenges ahead.” More than 150 organizations, including some represented on stage, have already signed the pledge. More importantly, they have also already begun taking steps to put their commitment into practice.
JMIC, with the advice and support of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and with representatives from across the industry, developed this commitment.
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Kathleen Warden, Conference Sales Director at Scottish Events Campus, said: “By committing to a carbon-free future for events, we can galvanise the industry to take responsibility.” She outlined the four pillars of this commitment:
- By the end of 2023, the organizations commit to publishing their trajectory to reach net zero by 2050 at the latest, with an interim target consistent with the Paris Agreement requirement to reduce global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% by 2030.
- Collaborate with partners, suppliers and attendees to drive change across the value chain and become champions of net zero events.
- Measure and track Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions in accordance with industry best practices — “If we don’t measure, we don’t know if we’re making progress,” she said.
- Progress report every two years, at a minimum.
“We are not starting this race to absolute zero from zero,” she added. “A lot of great work has been done, but we are all at different stages of a journey to the same destination.”
Progress report: the point of view of the place
Alan Steel, president and CEO of the Javits Center in New York, outlined some of the initiatives already underway at the center. For example, as part of a 2014 renovation, Javits now has a 6.75-acre green roof that reduces surrounding temperatures by about 16 degrees Celsius, retains about 7 million gallons of stormwater each year and serves as a sanctuary for birds, bats and bees. “With our new energy-efficient heating and air conditioning units, we were able to reduce our energy consumption by 26 percent through this renovation,” Steel said. The center reports its results to New York state, which has its own ambitious climate goals. “This report holds us accountable and makes sure we report on our progress as we go,” he said. The center created an energy dashboard to help track progress and report that progress to the state.
Javits also replaced 95% of its light bulbs with LEDs, set up a recycling program to distribute unused display materials to local nonprofits and has a food recycling program that donates about 100,000 pounds of food to local charities each year. A new diversion plan is expected to increase the rate from 50% to 80% by 2024, he said. Also in the works is a new truck yard, which will have a rooftop farm, a new solar farm and a flood resilience plan, as well as a sustainability clause in the center’s vendor bids.
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While not every center can or should do what Javits does, “I would encourage every convention center to look at how they do things and what they could do differently,” Steel said.
Monica Lee-Müller, general manager of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, also outlined some of the centre’s initiatives to reduce energy consumption. These include upgrading the HVAC system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, replacing light bulbs with LEDs, upgrading kitchen refrigeration units to reduce electricity consumption, eliminating plastic bottles and serving utensils, and using intelligent robots to clean floors to save water.
The supplier side
Bob Priest-Heck, CEO of global manufacturing company Freeman, said his company focuses its zero-waste initiatives on four major impact areas: resources, energy, air and people. The company reduces its environmental footprint by minimizing or eliminating waste throughout its supply chain, he said. “And we’re looking at how we can use materials, time, talent and space to create business models where sustainability is built into every part of our strategy.” Freeman was the first manufacturing company to achieve ISO 14001 and ISO 20121 certifications, he said, “which guide us and measure our actions and our approach to sustainability. In addition, we’ve also designed sustainability standards that are truly integrated into our service offerings, ensuring that sustainability is part of every project we produce.”
The Trade Show Organizer’s Perspective
Charlie McCurdy, CEO of Informa Markets, explained why it is important for an independent trade show organiser like Informa Markets to accelerate its efforts to tackle climate change. “Our clients, colleagues and investors all want to work and invest in companies that take sustainability seriously,” he said. “For example, 80% of our clients tell us they want to work with companies that are proactive on climate change. Our investors want their investments to be more responsible when it comes to sustainability. Our colleagues expect this too, and more and more future talent is looking for sustainable companies.”
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He presented Informa’s Faster Forward initiative on sustainability, which targets areas where exhibition organisers can make a real impact. Three of the key areas are:
- Reducing the direct carbon impact of shows by eliminating the use of disposable or single-use stands and working with venue partners to use renewable energy to power their shows. “We are working with exhibitors around the world and expanding the use of reusable stands,” he said. “Informa has a goal (by 2022) to have at least 90% of venue electricity consumption be renewable, while continuing to work with them to reduce our collective carbon footprint,” he said.
- Reduce the carbon impact of business travel by concentrating commercial activity in a single location: the trade fair. In a survey of 20,000 Informa Markets event attendees, “our show attendees saved between two and five flights for each trip to an exhibition,” he said.
- Accelerate the adoption of sustainable practices in the markets and regions served by the show. “We are a real force for change in our markets as an industry that is helping many regions around the world accelerate their own carbon reduction plans by highlighting the challenges they face and promoting potential solutions.” Informa Markets is one example, having launched a popular sustainable sourcing pavilion at its major fashion shows in the US. The company also hosts gatherings across the maritime and aviation value chains, where it provides content and discussion forums on the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Also present to present their progress and perspectives on how to achieve the commitment goals were: Stephanie Dubois, Event Operations Manager at SAP; Miguel Alejandro Naranjo Gonzalez, Programme Officer at the UNFCCC Secretariat; Cristina Pace, Chair of the Sustainability Working Group at the eSkootr Championship (eSC); Mike Seaman, CEO of Raccoon Events; and Barbara Weizsäcker, Secretary General of the European Association of Major Exhibition Centres.
As Hattendorf said: “If humanity could find an effective vaccine against COVID in a matter of months, we could find ways to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050 if we put our minds to it. But we need to… bring together the entire sector, the entire value chain.”
Watch the recording of the COP26 session here; sign the pledge at netzerocarbonevents.org.
Contact Kai Hattendorf at +40 171 5441198 or [email protected]; Alan Steel at (212) 216-2000 or [email protected]; Monica Lee-Muller at +852 2582 8888 or [email protected]; Bob Priest-Heck at [email protected]; Charlie McCurdy at +440 20 7017 5000 or [email protected]