First steps
TAKING ACTION
Sustainability can be very daunting – and knowing where to begin can seem impossible. Here are a few ideas for first steps:
Look at where you are and what’s already being done. The first step is to evaluate where you are – and how you can leverage that. Train and engage staff. People don’t all have the same definition of sustainability. You need to make sure everyone understands what sustainability is in your company’s context. What does it mean for you? That will determine how you train people. Identify sustainability issues depending on the format of your events. The sustainability conversation will be different based on whether you’re holding roadshows, virtual events, conferences, etc. You have to decide which impacts you’re trying to address. Don’t try to do everything at once. Pick just one or two of the most important issues to begin with. Work it out incrementally. Allocate roles and responsibilities, engage people by making them responsible for what you want to achieve. Talk to suppliers. Suppliers are waiting for clients to ask about sustainability. A lot of them already do sustainable things, but perhaps don’t know how to communicate it. If you talk to suppliers you can find new solutions, you don’t have to start from scratch.
Be persistent. You might feel reluctant to engage with suppliers, but you’re not going to be the first to ask them about sustainability. And the more people ask them, the less they will be able to resist. Not achieving your objective is ok – as long as you know why you’re not achieving your objective. Some people never get started with sustainability because they’re afraid of not doing well. Remember: doing anything is good, as long as you’re willing to learn. Once you get going it’s not as hard as it seems. You have the power. Event planners have the power to introduce green policies and influence stakeholders. If we push the message out to leaders, to supply chains, to associations, we can make it work. Some people never get startedwith sustainability because they’re afraid of not doing well. Remember: doing anything is good, as long as you’re willing to learn
mitmagazine.co.uk MAY 2021 13
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