Painting the town green

Meetings and events industry emerging as a leader in decreasing its invironmental footprint

Story by Gina Mangan

It ain’t easy being anything but green these days.

From automakers to building contractors to food makers, environmental sustainability has slowly become the mantra of businesses across the globe. But nowhere has it caught on quite as quickly as in the events and meeting planning industry, which has long been notorious for producing tons of paper and other waste.

Now organizers are embracing practices such as paperless marketing, selecting venues and hotels that practice energy conservation, and turning their noses up at throwaway products such as plastic water bottles and paper sugar packets.

“The green movement has taken off like wild fire in the meetings industry,” said Marge Anderson, associate director of the Madison-based Energy Center of Wisconsin. “Of course, you would expect this from event planners, who tend to be happy extroverts who love to ignite and execute. You give them something to do and they’ll get it done.”

The movement, which has been steadily gaining momentum since the formation of the Portland, Ore.-based Green Meetings Industry Council in 2003, is beginning to spread into northeastern Wisconsin.

Anderson, who plans about 70 events a year for her organization, was a keynote speaker in April at one of the region’s greenest meetings of the year, the monthly meeting of the Meeting Professionals International state chapter. The meeting’s central focus was planning green meetings and events.

“Compared to other industries, the impact of meetings and events on the environment is pretty tiny, but if you ever walk a trade show floor after everyone packs up and goes home, you know it looks pretty much like a garbage dump,” Anderson said. “So there is this huge awareness building.”

More than 100 people attended the MPI meeting, held at the Goldwater Conference Center at the Experimental Aircraft Association Aviation Center in Oshkosh. In the interest of demonstrating environmentally sustainable practices, the event planning team – led by Oshkosh Convention & Visitors Bureau Director of Sales Diane Meyer – cut down on paper by using email to promote the event and encouraging online registration. The single flyer reminding MPI members of the event was printed on recycled paper using vegetable dye ink. Meyer handed out the flyer at a prior meeting instead of mailing it.

The luncheon, catered by the Hilton Garden Inn, featured organic and locally grown foods. Recyclable goodie bags contained energy efficient light bulbs and pencils made from recycled currency. Nametags and lanyards were made of recyclable materials. Participants were shuttled back and forth between their accommodations at the Hilton Garden Inn and the Aviation Center. Water pitchers were used instead of bottled water. Tables were set with reusable linens and china, instead of the paper products often found at events.

“We made sure everything was green from start to finish,” said Kat Hughes, an event planner with the Oshkosh-based Encore Event Planning, which assisted in the organization. “More and more, planners are requiring these things of their vendors and suppliers. They want to know the people they’re buying from and booking with are environmentally conscious. It’s becoming more important.”

Even the meeting destination marketing organization – the Oshkosh Convention & Visitors Bureau – is certified by the state Department of Tourism’s Travel Green Wisconsin program. The state agency certifies tourism-related organizations and businesses that have committed to reducing their environmental impacts. Event planners and organizers interested in environmentally responsible events are increasingly looking for that type of certification when selecting communities in which to hold their meetings, conventions and other events, Meyer said.

“Planners will probably look at us more closely than ever because we are certified by Travel Green Wisconsin, so it’s a great thing for us and the community,” she said.

Hughes said she was amazed to learn during the April meeting how many planners working for large corporations are now being required to think about environmental responsibility when planning business events. Although businesses in this region aren’t necessarily requiring green practices, she said she expects they will be in the future.

“Right now, it’s primarily the really big companies that are requiring their planners book these types of meetings and events,” she said. “But just like everything else, it will filter down. We’re prepared for it when it does.”

Green takes root
The greening of the events industry can be traced back to the Convention Industry Council’s Green Meetings Task Force, which in 2003 was charged with the task of outlining best practices for event organizers and suppliers to use as guidelines for implementing environmentally sustainable practices. It recommended best practices in categories that include selecting destination communities, event venues, and hotels and other accommodations, as well as practices related to food and beverage, communications, exhibits and transportation.

The resulting Green Meetings Report defined green meetings and events as those that incorporate environmental considerations to minimize the negative impact on the environment. Simple practices, such as not pre-filling water glasses at banquet tables during three days of served lunches for 2,200 people, can conserve 520 gallons of water. It also pointed out that minimum recommended guidelines can save event planners money.

For example, according to the report, collecting name badge holders for reuse at an event of 1,300 participants could save approximately $975 for the event holder. Serving condiments in bulk instead of individually packaged servings can save significant amounts of money. According to the Green Meeting Industry Council, serving cream from pitchers is about 60 percent less expensive than prepackaged creams, and bulk sugar is 50 percent less expensive than single serving packets.

“Green meetings can be more cost effective meetings if you’re thinking in a different way,” said Tamara Hill, executive director of the Green Meeting Industry Council. “For example, you can produce signage for an annual conference that can be reused for another event, which results in a long-term cost savings. Or rather than purchase individual bottled waters, you might have a sponsor provide water stations and reusable water bottles with their logos. There are a lot of opportunities for cost savings.”

The Green Meeting Industry Council, co-founded in 2003 by Green Meeting Task Force member and Meeting Strategies Worldwide owner Amy Spatrisano, is the lead organization focused on improving the environmental responsibility of meetings and events. Since its formation, the organization has gained membership and attracted interest worldwide.

“Just two years ago, there was still a lot of skepticism. While people are still asking questions, we’re getting to the point now where we have enough information and research that people are ready and willing to act,” Hill said.

Color it green
Establishing environmentally responsible meeting practices doesn’t have to be complicated, Hill said. In fact, Spatrisano co-authored a book designed to make it even easier, titling it, “Simple Steps to Green Meetings and Events: The Professional’s Guide to Saving Money and the Earth.”

In addition to the types of practices utilized during the MPI meeting in Oshkosh, the Green Meetings Council suggests that planners select destinations where the distance traveled can be minimized and to select venues and hotels within walking distance of one another. Select caterers that use locally produced and organic foods. Select hotels that practice energy and water conservation and use green cleaning supplies. Always consider the three “Rs,” reduce, reuse and recycle.

Hill said it’s a good idea to put meeting policies and requirements in writing, which helps them clearly communicate expectations to attendees, vendors, speakers, exhibitors and sponsors.

When planning events, Anderson said she and others on the Focus on Energy staff utilize venues and hotels that have adopted energy conservation practices, select speaker gifts that are consumable and manufactured locally, use electronic communications wherever possible, and have even eliminated paper handouts during meetings. The nonprofit organization goes as green as possible for its highest profile events, she said.

“For our standard meetings around the state, we’re mostly looking for partners who are willing to walk this path with us,” she said. “I’ve been working with energy programs for a long time, and we’ve traditionally had a hard time penetrating the hospitality industry. But they’re starting to wake up to it and are seeing the potential cost savings and the competitiveness issues.”

Kalahari Resort & Convention Center in Wisconsin Dells, for example, started by switching its light bulbs to more energy efficient bulbs, which resulted in a $22,000 savings the first year, Hill said. Now, the company has switched to all solar-heated water for its water parks.

“They’ve progressively done more and more in terms of environmental responsibility,” she said. “They may not see the cost savings of the solar heat as quickly as they did with their light bulbs, but at least they’re converted.”

The convention center’s efforts are also catching the attention of environmental-minded events planners, giving the resort a leg up on the competition, Hill said.

Meyer, who leads the Oshkosh Hotel Marketing Group, said she is working to spread awareness to area hotels of the advantages of becoming green certified through organizations such as Travel Green Wisconsin, or – at the very least – adopting some of the simplest practices.

“I truly believe people will be looking for those green hotels into the future,” she said.

Standards development
It will be easier in the future for event planners, vendors and suppliers to practice environmentally responsible practices once those practices have been clearly defined, Hill said.

The Green Meeting Industry Council is now collaborating with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s standards development organization and the Convention Industry Council to develop a voluntary industry-wide set of standards for green meetings and events.

“Right now, this is all still very new and there isn’t a single definition of green within the industry,” Hill said.

Those standards will define the practices required – and to what degree - and will enable planners and suppliers to make better decisions. It should also eliminate some of the confusion that exists among planners and suppliers. Standards will be outlined for the same categories identified in the 2004 Green Meetings Report, clarifying green practices for industries ranging from food and beverage to destination marketing companies to transportation.

“The exciting thing about this movement is that it touches a lot of different types of businesses and industries, and people seem excited about making changes in their own area,” Hill said.

Gina Mangan is a freelance writer based in Oshkosh and is raising three children. Readers can email her at gmangan@tds.net.