News
UK – Benefit from Sustainable Events
A simple tag line offering empty promises of a green event is no longer credible. Showing a company’s wealth and integrity alongside its green perception has become a delicate balance. Contracted event planners and hotel venues that have their own methods can mar the search for a low-impact event. Green events are not just green because of the moral agenda of the MP; it’s also become a platform to show clients that a sustainable world is important to you. Despite the changes in green MICE events, lots of people remain skeptical, that being environmentally friendly is going to hurt their wallet, but as people get more and more creative, the bottom line continues to erode. For example, it’s actually cheaper to have water fountains to reuse cups than to distribute water bottles during a conference. 
Some hotels around the world are earning a green certification, so do some extra work finding a venue that uses green cleaning products in their hotel rooms, maximizes natural lighting and utilizes hand pump soap and hair products dispensers as opposed to tiny bottles that inevitably pile up in the dump. Certain venues even donate uneaten food to charitable organizations or even fertilize. Hiring a green MP that uses bulk packaging as opposed to tiny packets of sugar will reduce the waste which ends up in the bin. Almost everything nowadays comes in a recyclable form, including delegate badges, and paper products can be replaced with a myriad of materials, such as corn plastic, durable starch options, recycled plastic, and the more obscure pressed leaf and bamboo. Have your attendees insert their business cards into reusable name tag holders. Search for green promotional gifts and corporate gifts websites and offer to email the guests the handouts rather than printing copious amounts of copies, and use both sides of the paper when you do offer handouts, eventually moving to simply emailing all pertinent documents to the attendees. An obvious solution is to provide recycling bins; some less evident but just as easy solutions are to try to use hotels near the airport. Have you looked into public transportation instead of sending drivers to meet your guest at the airport or at their hotel? Plan an event nearer to your company’s base to reduce both your carbon footprint and the costly price of plane tickets. Luckily for Mother Earth, the world is going technical, so email notifications, online booking forms, and PowerPoint presentations have easily replaced the need to stand in front of the copy machine for hours.
The common misconception that going green is hard on your wallet is being discredited by successful environmentally conscious meeting planners and event coordinators. Though room for improvement persists, the emphasis on low impact MICE events is now readily available to everyone. Going green makes breathing easier on two fronts- helping out the environment, plus the image given off to clients will be a socially responsible one.
(bedouk.com)