Recently Marti forwarded me a newsletter from The Convene Green Alliance that included tips for green meetings. I‘d like to share these with you, along with some other tips that I’ve found that can assist you during you next planning session. Be sure to check out my Online Guides and Resources section at the end of this article.
As you read the following tips, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with all of the suggestions, but try to incorporate a few of these tips during you next events and add a few more each year, so that you’ll make consistent, positive changes. You’ll also find that your attendees are happy to comply with your green initiative. They may even have suggestions of their own, so be sure to ask them for their “green opinions.”
Meetings Technology has a list of 50 Tips for Going Green, where they break down their tips in to categories, including site selection, transportation, air travel, food and beverage and on site.
Easy Ideas to Incorporate From Their List:
- Ask if the hotel staff is instructed to shut blinds, turn off lights, and turn down the heat/air conditioning when guest and meeting rooms are vacant.
- Ask if the hotel staff has a recycling program that includes paper, plastic, metal, and glass.
- Do the guest rooms have dispensers for soap, shampoo, and lotions, or does the property donate unused amenities to charity?
- Arrange for shuttles, rather than cabs, to transport attendees to and from the airport and the event venue.
- Provide a public transit pass and map in attendees’ registration packets.
- Ask that condiments, beverages, and other food items be provided in bulk instead of individually packaged and that any packaging is recyclable and recycled.
- Ask them to use locally produced seasonal and/or organic food and beverages when possible.
- Ask that left over foods be donated to local food banks or soup kitchens, or composted.
- Have attendees bring a conference bag from home and have a contest for the most unique or creative bag.
- You could also have a contest for the most creative bag that is made out of recycled material, such as, the juice pouch bag.
- Oldest Conference bag or Vintage Conference Bag contest, since the bags usually have a date printed on them.
- Try to use locally grown/made products for giveaways.
- Choose decorations and display materials that can be reused or ones that are made out of recycled materials.
- Consider opening each plenary session with a green tip of the day.
- Reuse nametags by providing collection bins for them.
- Use in-room TV or hotel telephone message service for on-site meeting announcements instead of printed materials.
- Are some attendees staying off site? Ask for their cell phone number to provide text message alerts. Or, use a twitter stream or hashtag for the event so that people can receive communications on their phones, laptops, or wherever they tweet.
- Set up collection stations for any printed materials or collateral so that they can be recycled.
Additional Ideas:
- Establish a Green Team to brainstorm ideas and promote green practices at your next event
- Provide water in coolers or in bulk coolers.
- Use Twitter, Texting and/or Four Square as marketing tools for your conference events and for event surveys.
- Ask your exhibitors to use eco friendly marketing materials, such as, pens, t-shirts, reusable water bottles, etc. You can also provide your vendors with a list of suppliers from the Fair Trade Federation.
- Add a community service event to your next conference. I’m a member of NTEN, and they have been incorporating a Day of Service into their annual conference for years. Your volunteers could focus on ways to help local organizations “Go Green.”
“Show Me The Money”:
According to a Meetingsnet.com article, you can save $50 for every 100 name badge holders you reuse. If you have 10 meetings a year, you’ll save $500. Read their article for more money saving facts.
Online Guides and Resources:
- Bridging The Gap Green Event Manual – Section III for Business Meetings
- Green Hotels Association’s Meeting Planners’ Questionnaire includes a list of 43 yes and no questions, which tell the event planner what effective the hotel is on being environmentally conscience. You can also use Meetingsnet.com’s Be Green: 14 Questions for Your Hotel.
- List of Green hotels and More Green Hotels
- Measure your success: Calculate your meeting’s carbon footprint.
