World News - Road to net zero

Cooperation, commitment and consistency are the themes of the "Roadmap for the Events Industry How to Achieve NET Zero* Carbon Events" (A Net Zero Roadmap for the Events Industry) published at the United Nations COP27 Conference in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt this November. The Net Zero Carbon Events initiative was established in August 2021 and is currently supported by more than 400 organizations from 55 countries. Its goal is to achieve Net Zero by 2050 at the latest.

There is a lot of talk about climate change and the negative impact of human activities on the planet and the need to make changes here and now. The event sector is also responding and creating a guide based on which any company, large or small, can create its own plan aimed at reducing carbon emissions, as every event leaves a carbon footprint and generates different carbon emissions, whether it is an international conference or a corporate party.

The meetings industry sector is a complex network of stakeholders, all of whom will need to work to reduce carbon emissions, and this is where collaboration, commitment, consistency in action and also systemic change are essential. It is not enough for a single organization or group of organizations to take steps toward decarbonization. It is necessary to rethink the way we plan, design and organize our events. You can start doing this today by starting small and charting a path for your organization based on the guidance posted in Road to Net Zero.

The guidance is for use by individual companies and focuses on organizers, venues and service providers, and takes into account that there is no one way for all organizations, as it depends on the stage they are at and the environment in which they operate. It is also assumed that the primary goal is to decarbonize the in-person participation element of the event and not to propose digital or hybrid events as a solution.

The guide identifies the following five priority areas for action:

  1. Power events efficiently with clean, renewable energy

  2. Redesign events to use sustainable materials and avoid waste

  3. Source food sustainably and eliminate food waste

  4. Logistics - move goods and equipment efficiently

  5. Work with and influence travel industry partners to reduce emissions when traveling to events.

The Roadmap to 2050 is broken down into shorter timelines to inspire preemptive action before zero carbon and help the event industry organize more sustainable events. This roadmap is available as a full report with comprehensive information on implementing actions to achieve net zero. It also includes specific case studies and also ways to measure and evaluate the results of actions taken.

The plan is to download here.

*Net zero refers to the balance between man-made greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and their removal from the atmosphere. To achieve this balance, GHG emissions must be reduced and those that cannot be avoided must be offset or "neutralized" through long-term carbon capture solutions.

author: Anna Górska