This year, Positive Impact and EIBTM teamed up to provide education for exhibitors and attendees around sustainability in the event industry.

We were on site at Stand G800 throughout the show at the dedicated Sustainable Events Corner, where both attendees and exhibitors could get practical advice and hear from industry experts on key issues and best practice relating to sustainability within the industry. See some of our feedback and updates!

Speakers

Sustainability experts Rebecca Saunders and Charlie Banks from Positive Impact were joined by a host of knowledgeable guests including Tamara Kennedy-Hill from GMIC, Roger Simons from MPI, Magdalina Yarichkova from Sustainable Event Alliance, Guy Bigwood from MCI and Andrew Walker from E3 Strategy. A variety of topics were discussed in short, interactive workshops, as well drop in sessions, for anyone looking for more advice and information.

This was the place to be for anyone wishing to learn more or ask industry leaders specific sustainability questions.

Find out more about the fantastic speakers who shared their expertise and ideas in the sustainability area, and see copies of the presentations. You will need to register for free in order to access them if you don’t already have a Positive Impact log in.

Sustainable Events Corner Schedule

Want to follow up on a session you saw, or catch up on one you missed? The schedule for the sustainability area is available to download by clicking on the link below and copies of presentations are also available.

Please note: on some of the materials there were two events listed at 16:00 on Tuesday 29th November. The correct session was: “Discussion: What is your biggest challenge with implementing sustainability at your events and/or your organization?”

Sustainable Events Corner Programme

Sustainable Stand Award

The EIBTM Sustainable Stand Award 2011 was given to Conventa, who showed a clear commitment to and understanding of sustainability. Find out more about the award below or read about Conventa’s win.

This year saw the return of the Sustainable Stand Award, with exhibitors rising to the challenge and implementing sustainability initiatives. Last year’s award was won by the San Marino Convention & Visitors Bureau, due to their sustainability commitment, including initiatives such as the re-use of the stand décor, renting of the furniture used and ensuring that staff travelled to and from the venue on foot.

Exhibitors wishing to participate in the award were required to show their dedication to sustainability through demonstrating that they had considered sustainability:

• In their organisation

• With their suppliers

• In the physical aspect of their stand design and manufacture

• In the content of their exhibition material

• In the travel of staff and materials

20 Sustainable Actions

The 20 Sustainable Actions initiative also returned this year to help get exhibitors engaged and ready for the event. The actions are available for any exhibitor to adopt, and include industry best practice and as well as acting as guidelines for organisations wanting to embrace sustainability in their events. Simple steps to take include:

• Consideration of stand give-aways

• Consideration of marketing and promotional materials

• Encouraging the use of public transport

Sustainability Initiatives Case Study

This year EIBTM are also working with us to create a case study to highlight and publicise the sustainable initiatives they are undertaking. This will include details of the sustainable support from suppliers and exhibitors as well as demonstrating industry best practice. It will also provide information on all the measurements from the event, which will be used as benchmarking data for future exhibitions. The case study will be released early next year and will help to educate others on what is achievable.

If you were an exhibitor at the 2011 show who is implementing sustainability initiatives, and interested in being featured within the case study then please contact dominique@sustainableeventsltd.com.