What to consider when planning an eco-friendly event?
Events being eco-friendly and sustainable is becoming increasingly important. Events can produce a lot of waste and use a lot of power, so it is important to consider your environment footprint. Here are some quick things we recommend thinking about when planning an eco-friendly event:
1) Choose a green venue
Not all venues are created equal.
When choosing a venue, try to prioritize those with renewable energy and green initiatives. This information may not alway be readily available on their website - so it is worth asking them and doing your research.
The Sustainable Wedding Alliance has a fantastic directory of venues & suppliers that are committed to sustainability. This can found here 1
2) Limit food waste
Events create a lot of food wastage - between 10 to 15% of the food served at an event is wasted 2. Choosing a sustainable cater who minimizes food wastage always helps. Or you can choose to cater for less attendees then are attending - so for example catering for 75% of the guests attending.
3) Do you need swag bags?
Everyone loves leaving an event with a swag bag with a free pen, notebook or highlighters. But these are usually plastic and are often thrown away. Let’s be honest we all typically keep the items for a while and then give them to a colleague or throw them away.
4) Electronic notes over paper notes
Can you send an electronic invitation to the event over a paper one? If the answer is yes, then that will help you reduce the environmental impact of the event and be more eco-friendly. Now this doesn’t always work for all events as some do require formal invitations.
Or have you considered not offering paper at your meetings and asking your attendees to bring their laptop or their own notebook. Whilst getting a new notebook is always lovely, often these are used for a short while and then thrown away. A great way to prevent this wastage, is to ask everyone to bring their laptop, or if you want them to not use their laptops during the meeting then bringing their own notebook helps.
References
https://sustainableweddingalliance.com/for-conscious-couples/supplier-directory/
https://www.drpgroup.com/en/blog/sustainable-live-events-are-in.-are-you-doing-enough-to-reduce-event-waste#:~:text=There's%20also%20food%2C%20which%20the,figures%20aren't%20cutting%20it.
