On Wednesday, March 27th, 2024, Isabelle Schummers, representing Oekozenter Pafendall, and Marlène Gigant from Mediation SA delivered a keynote address at a LAMA Academy workshop.
Launched by MARKOM, the association of marketing and communication consulting agencies in Luxembourg, the LAMA Academy workshop series focuses on marketing and communication, as well as offers an excellent platform to connect and interact with (future) communication professionals, event organisers, and CSR representatives in a corporate environment.
It is within this context that Isabelle Schummers brought attention to the Green Business Events project, an initiative aiming to reshape the business event landscape by reducing its environmental footprint and promoting sustainability.
During the workshop on March 27th, Isabelle Schummers emphasised the significance of addressing the environmental impact of catering. She highlighted two key points:
- The importance of incorporating organic, local, and fair-trade foods and beverages into events. This not only reduces transportation emissions but also supports local economies (especially farms) and biodiversity.
- The use of reusable food and beverage utensils to minimize waste and decrease resource consumption associated with single-use packaging.
While Isabelle Schummers provided examples within the context of the Green Business Events project, Marlène Gigant from Mediation SA expanded the discussion to include the implications of the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) on events. This directive mandates companies to report their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices. Conversations centred around various topics, including measuring CO2 emissions, strategic site selection (to ensure accessibility by public transport and efficient energy consumption, among others), and strategies to reduce food waste during events. Given the significance and intricacy of these factors and associated procedures, Marlène Gigant emphasised the criticality of planning an event as a Green Event right from its inception.
Following their presentations, both Isabelle Schummers and Marlène Gigant addressed inquiries from participants enthusiastic to learn more about how to organise green events. We would like to extend our gratitude to LAMA Academy and those involved for providing the aforementioned speakers with the opportunity to share their knowledge and reaffirm their collective commitment to promoting sustainability and environmental responsibility in the realm of business events.
The growing interest in organising Green Business Events (42 since its launch in February 2023) heralds a paradigm shift in event management practices. While much remains to be done, the availability of – and demand for – environmental guidance in event organisation as provided by the Oekozenter Pafendall in the context of the Green Business Events project, is sure to further drive sustainability efforts within the business community.