Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Center for Sustainable Tourism is proud to present our Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Wednesday, March 6th 10:00am ... tourism industry whether

The Center for Sustainable Tourism is proud to present our

Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar

Wednesday, March 6th 10:00am - 11:00am EST

Gathering Green: Energy Efficiency and

Sustainable Practices at Meeting and

Convention Venues

The Center for Sustainable Tourism at East Carolina University is an interdisciplinary research center

comprised of many diverse university academic and non-academic units.

The goals of the Center are to promote and support the adoption of sustainable practices throughout the

tourism industry whether business, government or individual traveler behaviors.

This is done through graduate level education, academic research, and community engagement and

outreach.

• Session 1: Research Featuring Guest Speaker Dr. Kim Severt, Associate Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management at the University of Alabama

• Session 2: Case Study Featuring Guest Speaker Rebecca Stoddard, owner of Shade of Green Events in Charlotte, NC

The Center for Sustainable Tourism


Research Dr. Kim Severt, Associate Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality

Management at the University of Alabama

Sustainability and Events

Dr. Kimberly Severt

University of Alabama

Department of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management

Agenda

What is sustainability?

How does sustainability relate to the

event industry?

Areas of Impact

◦ Energy

◦ Transportation

◦ Waste Management

◦ Materials

Available resources

Introduction

There are millions of events each year

from cultural heritage festivals, corporate

meetings, association conferences,

sporting events to exhibitions.

The common thread within each event is

that they all use natural resources which

produce waste and emissions.

What is sustainability?

According to the World Commission on Environment

and Development…

“Sustainable development meets the

needs of the present without

compromising the ability of future

generations to meet their own needs.”

So how can sustainability be applied

to the event industry? Due to the sheer size of the event

industry worldwide with millions of

people attending events each year, the

way events are planned and executed

have a enormous impact on sustainability.

If the event industry does not implement

changes, it will be playing a vital role in

diminishing resources.

Areas of Impact from Events

Energy

Transportation

Waste Management

Materials

Energy

The goal is to find solutions to minimize the impact of energy used at events.

Reducing power consumption and looking for alternative ways to provide power are the trail to sustainability.

Power and light your events in a more

sustainable way. Check the venue’s energy

rating and ask what they are doing to be sustainable.

Plan power consumption efficiencies at outdoor events.

Reduce demand for power through technology and usage.

Audit and usage patterns during the event for future planning.

Reduce other greenhouse gas emissions.

Events that have taken the challenge of reducing

their energy use and emissions impact.

Splendour in the Grass-

An annual music festival in Australia.

2 day event

17,500 attendees

Objectives: 1) To completely offset all emissions associated with the hosting of the event and 2) to encourage the audience to voluntarily sign up to offset their personal average daily emissions while attending the event.

Results: ◦ Over 23 % of ticket

holders purchased a green ticket to offset carbon emissions.

◦ A total of $28,637 was invested in renewable clean wind farm energy.

◦ Together Splendour and the attendees who purchased green tickets neutralized over 1000 tons of CO2

Transportation

Transport is the

largest CO2

contributor for live

events.

Moving people,

goods and equipment

are all necessary for

events.

Waste Management

Events create waste.

People buy stuff, eat

stuff, and throw stuff

away.

How you manage

this waste will have

an effect on the

overall sustainability

or your event.

Things to consider…

Do your attendees separate their waste and recycle?

Identify what waste could be produced at your event and come up with alternatives so it is not produced in the first place.

Consider re-usable food service ware.

Get attendees involved in separation of recyclables.

Put deposits on cups or bottles.

Offer incentives or rewards for recycling

Promote your sustainability programs to your attendees to get them involved.

Pack-up , store, and re-use everything possible.

Start tracking percentage of waste recycled, composted, or salvaged.

If you can’t measure it you can’t fix it.

Purchasing and Resource Use

Questions to ask when you are deciding

to buy something for your event:

◦ Where did the product come from?

◦ Who made the product?

◦ What is it made of?

◦ What does it come packaged in?

◦ How will it be disposed of or could it be used

again?

Create a purchasing policy including:

For one time events your policy could be

as simple as posting a sign to remind

everyone working on the event to

purchase recycled paper, eco paint, and

green cleaning products.

For those of you who plan multiple events

and large year-around purchasing a more

thorough policy should be considered.

Sustainable Event Standards

http://www.conventionindustry.org/standa

rdspractices/apexastm.aspx

https://www.globalreporting.org/reporting

/sector-guidance/event-

organizers/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail?cs

number=54552

http://www.conventionindustry.org/standardspractices/apexastm.aspx



https://www.globalreporting.org/reporting/sector-guidance/event-organizers/Pages/default.aspx







http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail?csnumber=54552



Conclusion

The meetings and event

industry has an

enormous impact on

our society.

It doesn’t matter how

small or how large the

events are, we all need

to implement

sustainable practices

into our events.

This is not a fad but a

necessary business

practice.

Make a commitment.

References and Resources

Jones, M. (2010). Sustainable Event

Management: A Practical Guide, Earthscan,

London.

Zavada, N., Spatrisano, A. and McKinley, S.

(2011). Saving Green by Going Green: Simple

Steps to Sustainable Meetings.MeetGreen

Questions?

Source: http://www.dwmmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/greenbuild2010.jpg

Source: http://www.iisd.ca/biodiv/bs-copmop5/pix/2cop-recycle_1338.jpg

Source: http://media.mlive.com/kzgazette_impact/photo/k0416charge2jpg-198b153104ffa96f.jpg

Source: http://bcc.ua.edu/

Source: http://www.travelinggreener.com/hotels/sweet-ritz-carlton/

Source: http://bcc.ua.edu/

Source: http://www.ncat.edu/research/events/green2012/green2012-hotel.html

The Center for Sustainable Tourism


Case Study Rebecca Stoddard, Owner of Shade of Green Events

Charlotte, NC

Gathering Green:

Energy Efficiency and

Sustainable Practices at

Meeting and Convention Venues

Copyright © 2013. All rights reserved Shade of Green Events LLC

Rebecca Stoddard Owner, Shade of Green Events

Gathering Green:Energy Efficiency and

Sustainable Practices at

Meeting and Convention Venues


✦ Sustainable practices:

✦ Venue selection

✦ Food/beverage

✦ Decor

Sustainable practices


✦ Venue

✦ Large driver of event’s footprint

✦ Green mission statement

✦ LEED certification

✦ Measure/track/communicate

Venue


✦ Green mission statement

✦ Do they have one?

✦ Areas to cover

✦ Are they walking the walk?

Venue


✦ LEED certification

✦ Goals

✦ Process/levels

✦ Use their point system as a tool/guideline

Venue


✦ Measure, track and communicate

✦ Need baseline figures

✦ Set incremental goals each year

✦ Tell your story, communicate to

stakeholders



✦ Food/beverage

✦ Basic criteria

✦ Menu creation

✦ Presentation/packaging/disposal

Food/beverage


✦ Basic criteria

✦ How was it produced?

✦ Where did it come from?

✦ Is it “natural”? (be careful with this one)

✦ What is available seasonally?

Food/beverage


✦ Menu creation

✦ Prioritize & determine commitment level

✦ Chance to get creative

✦ Be flexible

✦ Vegetarian options

Food/beverage


✦ Presentation, packaging & disposal

✦ China/flatware/glassware

✦ Bulk vs. individual size

✦ Water

✦ Disposal



✦ Decor

✦ Signage

✦ Floral

✦ Lighting

Decor


✦ Signage

✦ Keep generic for reuse

✦ Material type

✦ Upcycling

Decor


✦ Floral

✦ Live plants vs. cut flowers

✦ Sourcing locally (when possible)

✦ Veriflora certification

✦ Post-event options

Decor


✦ Lighting

✦ Sourcing gear

✦ Monitor usage

✦ LEDs


✦[email protected]

✦704.299.1009

✦www.shadeofgreenevents.com

Thank you!

mailto:[email protected]

Source: http://www.phoenixconventioncenter.com/planner/sustainability.php

Source: http://shadeofgreenevents.com/gallery/


Source: http://www.sharepointfest.com/Denver/venue

http://madefromscratch.co.nz/organic-sustainable-wedding-inspiration/


Source: http://inhabitat.com/first-green-convention-center-in-pittsburgh/

Dr. Kim Severt Associate Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management University of Alabama

Rebecca Stoddard Owner of Shade of Green Events, Charlotte, NC

Alex Naar Director of Outreach Center For Sustainable Tourism Office of Innovation and Economic Development East Carolina University

We would like to thank all of our partners:

National Renewable Energy Lab

NC Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach

Media Sponsorship by Miles Media

Free White Papers & Research: eg: Green Publishing for Destinations State of American Traveler Research www.milespartnership.com/library

http://www.milespartnership.com/library

Copyright © 2013, NC GreenPower Corporation. All rights reserved.

For information on purchasing

Renewable Energy or Carbon Offsets

for your place of business or events,

visit NCGP.org/events online.

For more information on the Renewable Energy in Tourism Initiative, please visit www.renewabletourism.com

We will be posting the slides from our presenters,

speaker contact information, and a recording of this webinar at www.sustainabletourism.org/RETI-

Webinars.cfm

And to join our mailing list, visit www.sustainabletourism.org/listserv.cfm

Thank you for participating in our


And please join in for our next webinar in September

on Carbon Offsets for the Tourism Industry

Documents

Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Center for Sustainable Tourism is proud to present our Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Wednesday, March 6th 10:00am ... tourism industry whether