The global events industry has presented a roadmap for a net zero carbon future for events. Industry leaders from venues, organisers, suppliers, and associations, were live on stage at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, 10 November, demonstrating the commitment of the events industry community to fight climate change.
The Net Zero Carbon Events pledge
At the time of the official launch of the Net Zero Carbon Events pledge, there were already 109 businesses from around the world committed to taking action.
Signatories commit to:
- Publish their organisation’s pathway to achieve net zero by 2050, at the latest, with an interim target in line with the Paris Agreement’s requirement to reduce global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% by 2030 – before the end of 2023
- Collaborate with partners, suppliers and customers to drive change across the value chain
- Measure and track Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions according to industry best practice
- Report on progress every two years, at a minimum.
The pledge presented was developed through a broad industry collaboration hosted by the Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC), with the guidance and support of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and with representatives from across the sector.
Events are a strategic tool used by governments, institutions, and industries to drive developments and implementations in a sustainable way. As an example, COP26 itself is the meeting place on one of the most critical issues of our time, and people from around the world are meeting to share their thoughts, find answers, and to get support.
Being together face-to-face is critical to making connections and finding solutions, and as an event brings together an entire community in one location, the need for one-off travel throughout the year is significantly reduced.
Watch the COP26 session recording here
