EVENT GREENING FORUM

Simple steps to help sustain our sector

The Event Greening Forum considers what we can do to help promote the sustainability of our sector while the pandemic wears on.

The use of the term ‘greening’ in our name, the Event Greening Forum (EGF), has often created a misperception that our non-profit organisation deals exclusively with the environmental aspects of hosting events. We have even discussed changing our name as a result, and perhaps we still will. But from the beginning we have defined ‘event greening’ as managing events in a sustainable manner, in which sustainability means social and economic considerations must be balanced with environmental ones. All three are critical to your event’s success.

Right now, the sustainability of the South African events industry hinges largely on social and economic factors, such as keeping people safe and healthy, while reopening as soon as possible so that we can all get back to work. This made us wonder: What ‘event greening’ practices can we all adopt to boost the sustainability of our industry, even if just in a small way? These are our ideas:

#1 Practice conscientious procurement

Purchasing decisions have the power to transform industries, as demand supports supply. It’s the same idea as ‘voting with your wallet’.

If you are in the fortunate position to be doing business right now, the best thing you can do is seek out products and services from local businesses – and preferably event industry colleagues who are striving to be sustainable. We recommend you look first to our membership base on www.eventgreening.co.za, as well as our free-to-use listing of sustainable solutions for events on www.greendatabase.co.za. Procurement guided by these principles supports responsible businesses and local jobs and keeps money in our economy.

If you’re not in a buyer’s position, you can still help these businesses by recommending them and endorsing them on social media. These actions could help them land their next sale.

#2 Treat people well

A huge threat to our sector is the loss of talent, knowledge and experience when people leave to find other jobs and start new careers. The concern is that when events can resume, who will be left behind to make sure they happen in a professional manner?

Holding on to your team might not be possible but treating them with dignity and respect is. They will remember this, and maybe in the future you will be able to tempt them back.

#3 Always be responsible

Last but not certainly least, if you are hosting or attending events, make sure you adhere to necessary health and safety protocols to limit the spread of Covid-19. Aside from being the right thing to do for yourself as well as the staff and guests, it is also the right thing to do for our industry. As we have seen, an increase in infections means a crackdown on all forms of gatherings. We cannot afford to jeopardise any progress towards a reopening. We all need to play our part, to protect our lives and livelihoods.

Together we can do this.

About the EGF

The Event Greening Forum (EGF) is a non-profit organisation that promotes sustainability within the business events sector. It does this by hosting educational sessions for industry and lobbying government in an effort to implement sustainability principles into the daily operations of the events industry. The EGF was established through dedication and support of eight industry associations who are recognised as founding members. The founding members are key industry associations working together to promote South Africa as a destination for various types of events.

Want to know more?

If you would like to know more about event greening, visit wwweventgreening.co.za where you can browse the free resources, sign up to the monthly newsletter, or contact them directly with any queries.

Contact: Lynn Mcleod

T: 082 891 5883 E: lynn@eventgreening.co.za