Measure
These resources have been curated by Positive Impact to support event sector small to medium enterprises acheive a net zero carbon target. Positive Impact is an Accelerator for Race to Zero.
These resources will be regularly updated. They were inspired by the goal to create a climate action framework for events and include resources from the SME Climate Hub tailored to the event sector.
At each step, we will provide you with a checklist of 2 hours worth of action.
Here is your checklist for MEASURE.
This step’s checklist is a balance between reading and being in action.
READ
1. About emission reporting, and understand:
Key terminology
What emission reporting is
How reporting can help your organisation
2. Five Things to Know About Emissions and Events, and understand:
How to talk to your corporate colleagues, clients or peers about event emissions
The role of offsetting and the challenges of greenwashing
Five Things to Know About Emissions and Events
Events are usually scope 3 emissions and scope 3 emissions have not been a business priority until now! Scope 3 emissions could be described as everything that happens outside a company eg how the customer uses their product or the footprint of items purchased or any events which happen outside the office meeting rooms.
Over the next few years as corporates look to reduce their scope 3 emissions they could identify staff travel to events as an opportunity to reduce emissions.
Some of the event supply chain are already measuring and are waiting for you to ask for their measurements. For example hotels and conference centres (especially government owned properties). Don’t be scared if you receive the measurements in an imperfect format (eg the footprint of the entire venue when your event only used 50% of the venue) you can always share the assumptions you made.
It is impossible to compare event carbon footprints. Imagine this: It is the general meeting of company Y, they hold it every year on the same date, in the same location and for the past 3 years the same people have attended the event, eat the same food and do the same activities. Those who do not work in events would probably think this is an event where you could compare the footprint year on year? However those of us working in events understand there are still so many variables. For example the public transport strike one year which meant everyone had to drive or the unseasonably bad weather which meant more heating was needed or the advances in technology which means the AV changes annually! Comparison is useful however so breaking down parts of an event and comparing each part will provide insight.
Marketing your event as ‘offsetting’ without providing measurements and data is an example of greenwashing. As of summer 2021 some of the world’s most high profile events were marketing themselves as “carbon neutral or carbon positive’ and providing information on their approach to offsetting without sharing information on their measurements or actions they had taken to reduce their carbon footprint. As of Summer 2021 the world’s media was starting to question this approach and starting to label it as greenwashing.
Carbon emissions can be measured and reduced throughout the planning of an event. This may require a new approach to the planning of an event and international standards such as ISO 20121 will support this approach.
ACT
1. Choose one of the following measurement tools and spend the next two weeks using them to measure something (it could be as simple as your daily commute or as detailed as an event). The point is to try measuring and learn from that.
Trying one of the measurement systems below will give you ideas and insight and get you ready for when the event sector has its own measurement system.
2. UNFCCC is creating a measurement system for events including a carbon calculator.
Learn about UNFCCC's carbon measurement tool launched at COP26 and how and when you can access it:
3. Answering the following questionnaire will help us understand the event sector’s concerns, opportunities, questions and more.
The questionnaire should take approximately 20 minutes to complete:
The following Carbon Calculators are taken from The World Travel and Tourism Council A net Zero Roadmap For Travel and Tourism Sector launched Autumn 2021 and depending on your main activities could be useful.
WATCH
Watch our webinar on Measurement
Access all the education steps
