Get Started Today Producing Sustainable Events
MeetGreen has developed a resource for you by distilling hundreds of hours of experience and knowledge into the MeetGreen® Sustainable Event Kit 2.0.
Designed to break down the planning process into manageable steps, the Sustainable Event Kit 2.0 is filled with tested, useful surveys, checklists, best practice guidelines and contract language to use with your vendors. With these resources at your fingertips, you’ll save time and gain confidence to ask the right questions and assess the information received.
Each module also helps to align your event’s goals and outcomes with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDGs are a set of 17 goals developed by the UN designed to address various past, current and future world issues. Several of these goals, such as clean water and energy, sustainable cities and communities, climate action and life on land and below water are actioned directly in our tools. As more governments, companies and events consider SDGs, our kit will help ensure that you are working towards and documenting progress against these goals.
The Kit also contains a template to develop your own Sustainable Event Policy. The template was designed using the ISO 20121: Sustainable Event Standards to assist your organization in the development of a sustainability policy. It lays out the elements needed to create your organizations’ sustainability policy broken into the following sections: Vision, Principles Important Issues, Commitment and Scope, Objectives and Reporting.
What’s Inside the Modules?
Best Practice Guidelines
Covering the key areas of event planning, these checklists help organizers effectively assess their sustainability practices.
Vendor Surveys
Asking the right questions is crucial to collecting useful data. Our comprehensive surveys have what you’ll need to measure the impact of your event and follow up with vendor commitments.
Contract Language
Contract language that addresses your sustainability expectations is critical to success. Our contract language has been used by our clients and suppliers in negotiating and implementing sustainability initiatives (these are offered as samples and should be review and approved by legal counsel).
Infographics
These infographics will assist you in telling the story and training your team members.
Sustainable Event Policy Template
This template was designed using the ISO 20121: Sustainable Event Standard Framework and will lead your organization through the process of developing its own policy.
Additional Resources
Each module has additional resources specific to the area of expertise.
Sustainable Event Kit 2.0 Modules
One of the most complex components of a sustainable event, food and beverage choices impact the health of attendees, planet and the event’s bottom line. Key decisions are made early in the planning process as organizers negotiate the freshest local food at no additional cost. Learn which food requires less water and carbon to produce and are often the most cost-effective. Service ware is another important aspect and all the decision points are covered in this module.
Selecting the meeting venue and accommodations are critical to the success of a sustainable event. The best place to start is with asking a series of questions during the RFP process: does the building have recycling, low energy fixtures, and water-saving policies? This module provides the tools to assist you from the fact-finding stage through final negotiations. It also includes resources to be used onsite and to collect data after the event has concluded.
The show floor is often the most waste-intensive area of an event. Consider the amount of aisle carpet, signage, print materials alone. This module covers all of the key stakeholders from the general services contractor to venue to exhibitors. Help is available in the form of surveys, guidelines and resources specific to trade show management.
Zero Waste Events don’t magically happen at the end of the show. It takes a well-developed strategy, onsite waste management plan, and diligent data collection. In addition, it is an opportunity for significant economic savings by rethinking the components of the event itself. Today’s hot topics of combatting food waste and producing zero-waste events are covered in this module.
Without partner vendors and suppliers, sustainability would be nearly impossible. Smart organizers learn early that enrolling vendors in the process early in the planning will assure success. Not only success, but innovation! This module includes resources such as vendor surveys and specific contract language designed to assess vendor compliance and negotiate for the best possible environmental and economic savings.
Without a solid event sustainability plan, incorporating environmental and social initiatives can become difficult. Key stakeholders are now requiring organizations to be good corporate citizens and nowhere is it more apparent than in the events it hosts. Social media and radical transparency are here to stay in a world where events are windows to an organization’s soul. This module is vital to organizations who are interested in walking the talk and will provide all of the tools.
While it’s not quite as good as having one of our talented team members working for you, it sure beats reinventing the wheel! Instead of spending your precious time figuring out what to do, tap into the resources we’ve provided. Greening your events and measuring the results is easier than ever!