Green Events-Time to act
Green events: Time to act
Is sustainability at the heart of your event? As the pressure to be “more green” grows, our team at Rentuu.com, the event equipment hire specialist, discusses event sustainability and takes a look at some of the great work being undertaken by events professionals
Friday (February 28), Greta Thunberg, the 17-year-old climate activist, joined Bristol Youth Strike 4 Climate, a Bristol-based youth group, on a climate protest. Thunberg’s imminent presence in the city has shone a huge spotlight on the march, placing climate change firmly on the agenda, with many people now declaring that the world is looking at a “climate emergency”.
Bristol — which was European Green Capital in 2015 — is an apt location for Thunberg to campaign in solidarity with young people. In 2018, the city council became the first local authority to declare a “climate emergency” and backed a commitment to be carbon neutral by 2030.
Such a move is not uncommon. Many cultural organisations and venues — such as Tate and Colston Hall — are now making a concerted effort to be carbon neutral or NetZero by 2030 too.
Hence, with companies, brands and governments making plans to cut greenhouse emissions, reduce, reuse and recycle and think about how their measures impact on the environment, it is only right that events professionals, including Rentuu.com, support these organisations in their quest to make a difference.
Sustainable production
At a recent summit hosted by Julie’s Bicycle, the London-based charity that supports the creative community to act on climate change and environmental sustainability, Richard Ashton, general manager of the Howard Assembly Room at Opera North, a national opera company based in Leeds, revealed that it is planning to create its first recycled performance in 2021. No new props, costumes or kit will be procured, its supply chain will be fully integrated and any other equipment required will be second-hand and sourced locally.
Ashton commented that a company has no future if it is not environmentally friendly. And with event sustainability and environmental issues gathering huge momentum, it’s hard to ignore the concerns being voiced across the globe.
Environmental policies and plans
This January, Julie’s Bicycle published the Arts Council England Environmental Report 2018/2019. It found that 47 per cent of organisations are now trialling sustainable production, 29 per cent of organisations have adopted an ethical partnership policy and 50 per cent of those questioned found a reputational benefit to being engaged in environmental action. This is all positive news and bolsters Ashton’s statement. But there’s even more great news to be found in the latest report by Powerful Thinking and Vision 2025.
This month, five years since its initial publication, a second edition of The Show Must Go On report has been unveiled, revealing industry figures, trends and best practice regarding event sustainability. It is free for events professionals to download and gives an insight into sector sustainability.
In addition, it showcases just how important sustainability is. For example, according to the report, two-thirds of events now have a sustainability coordinator or someone responsible for environmental initiatives in their team, one in four events have a dedicated sustainability budget and one in three events introduced a new environmental policy and/or action plan for their event in 2019.
What’s more, local authorities such as Brighton and Hove Council are now requesting that organisers include an environmental impact assessment in their event plan for all outdoor events with more than 5,000 people. The organisation also wants organisers of smaller events to use LED lighting, source local suppliers and products and re-use display materials.
Make a difference
Brighton and Hove Council was the first local authority to get the British Standard in Sustainable Event Management and has since been awarded ISO20121, the international standard for sustainable event management.
In January, Formula E, the electric racing car series, revealed that it had once again received third party ISO 20121 certification, also maintaining its position at the forefront of event sustainability.
Whilst some may view the large-scale racing series as a huge and un-relatable event, others view the behemoth as a bastion of best practice; an organisation to admire, as it strives to manage and deliver the needs of a large and complex event, as well as meet the needs of corporate sponsors.
By working in partnership with sponsors and contractors, the organising team has demonstrated that it is possible to successfully deliver an event with sustainability at its heart.
For example, Formula E has worked alongside CSM Live, which has developed new sustainable branding that has prevented more than 10 kilometres of waste from reaching landfill at each event.
That is a massive figure, but it has been achieved because both parties have worked together, with a shared vision.
You can do this too. By having honest and open conversations with your supply chain about your event sustainability goals, you could take positive steps towards making your events greener. For instance, a recent request on Rentuu.com saw an organiser insist that the furniture to be used at its conference must not be delivered to the event wrapped in plastic. Such a sustainable request did not cost the organiser a penny.
Green events require conscious thinking and effort; a task made easier if you work with responsible partners. Rentuu’s Request For Proposal’s form is not only free for organisers to use but also enables an organiser to make specific requests, such as LED lighting. All it takes is a little foresight, and you too could be contributing to the cause and making a huge difference.
