A cross-industry task force has released a new report, 14 September, identifying key focus areas to support the B2B trade show industry’s transition towards a more sustainable, low-carbon economy.
The report, titled Finding the future, together: Towards a more sustainable B2B trade show industry in the US and Canada, creates a foundation of data and knowledge for decision-making, and action, highlighting the industry’s most significant environmental impacts. It also showcases steps the industry has already taken to address those impacts and identifies 30 near- and long-term steps to secure a more sustainable future. The full report can be downloaded here.
“The B2B trade show industry delivers enormous social and economic benefits,” said Heather Farley, chair, SISO (Society of Independent Show Organisers) Sustainability Committee and COO at Access Intelligence, “and is an essential engine for connection, knowledge transfer, trade, education, and employment. Like all industries, we know that our impact extends to the environment as well, and that, through working and partnering in a collaborative way, we can keep progressing towards a more sustainable, lower-carbon future. To support and inform these efforts, it was important to conduct authoritative independent research to evaluate the most material environmental impacts of the US and Canadian B2B trade show industry.”
The report’s two-year independent research programme identified the largest environmental impacts of the US and Canadian B2B trade show industry as:
- Carbon: Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from participant transport, particularly flights, as well as energy use at venues, and logistics, where the study focused on the shipping from the warehouses of general service contractors (GSC) to the venue.
- Waste: Generated at venues (e.g., show floor waste, catering waste) and at GSC warehouses where many of the materials and stands are built and supplied.
- Stand construction: Inclusive of stand materials (such as carpet), construction methods, transport, reuse, and other variables.
With these impacts identified, the task force explored 30 near- and long-term actions for industry-wide adoption that will help improve the industry’s collective sustainability, inclusive of:
- Transitioning to renewable electricity at all parts of the transportation supply chain
- Creating time-bound targets to reach net zero carbon and move to a more circular model by phasing out unsustainable materials
- Implementing industry-wide agreement on design and material specifications of stands and commonly used equipment and materials
- Optimising logistics, saving fuel, time, and money, and reducing air pollution
- Collaborating with host cities and key partner industries, such as airlines and hotels, to transition to a lower-carbon transport system and reduce generated waste
- Investing in infrastructure to support waste recycling and energy efficiency
- Optimising industry standards for sustainable design, data, and metrics.
“We are passionate about building a sustainable future for the industry and helping the markets we serve embed sustainable practice into their own communities and activities. Through collaborative efforts, we have made great progress,” said Charlie McCurdy, CEO of Informa Markets. “And through the task force, we now have a platform to showcase emerging best practices and continue to innovate and evolve together. This is only the beginning, and we look forward to more industry stakeholders joining this effort.”
The task force hopes that the report – and its foundational research – will prove a significant contribution to other collaborative programmes supporting transition to a net zero carbon, circular economy-led and responsible events industry. Early collaboration programmes of note include:
- Net Zero Carbon Events (www.netzerocarbonevents.org)
- EIC’s Centre for Sustainability and Social Impact (www.eventscouncil.org/sustainability)
- UFI’s Sustainable Development Group (www.ufi.org/susdev)
For more information and to read the full report, please click here.
The task force, created in 2018, is an informal collaboration between 14 organisations drawn from across the sector including event organisers, venues, general service contractors (GSC), and associations. The task force’s sponsoring organisations and their nominated representatives were:
Ben Wielgus, Informa; Cathy Griffith, Emerald; Christian Druart, UFI; Courtney Muller, SISO Board representative (left November 2020); Heather. Farley, SISO Board representative (joined November 2020); Helen Sheppard, RX (joined November 2021); Katarina Tesarova, Sands; Kevin Bird, Shepard; Mariela Mcilwraith, EIC; Marisa Heller, Freeman (joined July 2020); Melinda Kendall, Freeman (left June 2020); Nalan Emre, IMEX, (left February 2022); Nancy Drapeau IPC, CEIR; Rita Ugianskis, SISO Board representative (left November 2020); Roger Lehner, IMEX (joined February 2022); Scott Craighead, IAEE (joined February 2022); Sheila LeMaster, GES; Jyoti Chopra, MGM Resorts (joined 2021).
The report consolidates and simplifies a series of internal research reports into the environmental impacts of the US and Canadian B2B trade show industry. These reports were conducted by sustainability consultancy Little Blue Research with the support of strategic consultancy A Bird’s Eye View (referred to in the report as LBR). Their insights and evidence were supplemented by direct contributions from 40 industry stakeholders and by thousands of responses to two industry surveys conducted by CEIR and UFI. The report can be downloaded here.
In addition to the report itself, further background information and other resources are available from here.
