Earth First S U S TA I N A B L E E V E N T S O L U T I O N S Talking Garbage Six ways to reduce non-food waste at your events by Connie Jeske Crane With cities across Canada setting zero-waste targets, and the event industry working together to build more sustainable practices, there’s a clear end goal for meetings—zero waste. And while that’s a process, with more innovation to come, there are great, easy-to-implement steps planners can take right now: 1. SIMPLIFY SWAG In Vancouver, Ian Holliday, president of Sea to Sky Meeting and Association Management, says many of his clients are getting away from giving delegate bags every year and instead doing “maybe every third or fourth year.” Aside from fewer giveaways, Holliday recommends locally sourced, sustainable items. At one event, “We provided a reusable water bottle as the giveaway that had conference branding on it,” says Holliday, noting organizers wanted giveaways to have a sustainability theme. 2. GO DIGITAL Swapping in digital options—for registration, signage, etc.—reduces paper and plastic waste. With printed conference materials, Holliday suggests going as minimal as possible and using recycled materials. “Everybody has gone into conference apps… We do have some clients that still prefer a handout as well as the app, but instead of that 100-page book, we’ve gotten them down to a one-page, double-sided flyer.” And while most venues offer electronic signage, Holliday says if not, there are creative workarounds. With one association meeting, his company created reusable “signs with the association logo across the top and then we have an insert.” 3. NIX PLASTICS In Toronto, Laura Purdy, general manager, Exhibition Place, suggests avoiding single-use, non-recyclable plastics. With name badges, she says, “For smaller meetings where everyone knows one another, you could consider eliminating name badges.” Otherwise, recyclable or reusable badge elements are an option. Another step, Purdy says, is “making sure your venue isn’t using bottled water and using water stations instead, and encouraging your delegates to bring refillable water bottles.” 4. RETHINK TRANSPORTATION Holliday says pre-planning can cut transportation-related emissions during → Aligning with a venue that is already down that road will give you a big step up to having a green meeting. “ Winter 2023 | Ignitemag.ca | 13
