Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Wednesday, March 6 th 10:00am - 11:00am EST

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1 The Center for Sustainable Tourism is proud to present our Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Wednesday, March 6 th 10:00am - 11:00am EST Gathering Green: Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Practices at Meeting and Convention Venues

2 The Center for Sustainable Tourism at East Carolina University is an interdisciplinary research center comprised of many diverse university academic and non-academic units. The goals of the Center are to promote and support the adoption of sustainable practices throughout the tourism industry whether business, government or individual traveler behaviors. This is done through graduate level education, academic research, and community engagement and outreach.

3 Session 1: Research Featuring Guest Speaker Dr. Kim Severt, Associate Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management at the University of Alabama Session 2: Case Study Featuring Guest Speaker Rebecca Stoddard, owner of Shade of Green Events in Charlotte, NC

4 The Center for Sustainable Tourism Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Research Dr. Kim Severt, Associate Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management at the University of Alabama

5 Sustainability and Events Dr. Kimberly Severt University of Alabama Department of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management

6 Agenda What is sustainability? How does sustainability relate to the event industry? Areas of Impact Energy Transportation Waste Management Materials Available resources

7 Introduction There are millions of events each year from cultural heritage festivals, corporate meetings, association conferences, sporting events to exhibitions. The common thread within each event is that they all use natural resources which produce waste and emissions.

8 What is sustainability? According to the World Commission on Environment and Development Sustainable development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

9 So how can sustainability be applied to the event industry? Due to the sheer size of the event industry worldwide with millions of people attending events each year, the way events are planned and executed have a enormous impact on sustainability. If the event industry does not implement changes, it will be playing a vital role in diminishing resources.

10 Areas of Impact from Events Energy Transportation Waste Management Materials

11 Energy The goal is to find solutions to minimize the impact of energy used at events. Reducing power consumption and looking for alternative ways to provide power are the trail to sustainability.

Power and light your events in a more Check the venue s

Reduce demand for power through technology and usage.

12 Power and light your events in a more Check the venue s energy rating and ask what they are doing to be sustainable. Plan power consumption efficiencies at outdoor events. Reduce demand for power through technology and usage. Audit and usage patterns during the event for future planning. Reduce other greenhouse gas emissions. sustainable way.

13 Events that have taken the challenge of reducing their energy use and emissions impact. Splendour in the Grass- An annual music festival in Australia. 2 day event 17,500 attendees Objectives: 1) To completely offset all emissions associated with the hosting of the event and 2) to encourage the audience to voluntarily sign up to offset their personal average daily emissions while attending the event. Results: Over 23 % of ticket holders purchased a green ticket to offset carbon emissions. A total of $28,637 was invested in renewable clean wind farm energy. Together Splendour and the attendees who purchased green tickets neutralized over 1000 tons of CO 2

14 Transportation Transport is the largest CO 2 contributor for live events. Moving people, goods and equipment are all necessary for events.

15 Waste Management Events create waste. People buy stuff, eat stuff, and throw stuff away. How you manage this waste will have an effect on the overall sustainability or your event.

Consider re-usable food service ware. Get attendees involved in separation of recyclables. Put deposits on cups or bottles.

16 Things to consider Do your attendees separate their waste and recycle? Identify what waste could be produced at your event and come up with alternatives so it is not produced in the first place. Consider re-usable food service ware. Get attendees involved in separation of recyclables. Put deposits on cups or bottles. Offer incentives or rewards for recycling Promote your sustainability programs to your attendees to get them involved. Pack-up, store, and re-use everything possible. Start tracking percentage of waste recycled, composted, or salvaged. If you can t measure it you can t fix it.

17 Purchasing and Resource Use Questions to ask when you are deciding to buy something for your event: Where did the product come from? Who made the product? What is it made of? What does it come packaged in? How will it be disposed of or could it be used again?

18 Create a purchasing policy including: For one time events your policy could be as simple as posting a sign to remind everyone working on the event to purchase recycled paper, eco paint, and green cleaning products. For those of you who plan multiple events and large year-around purchasing a more thorough policy should be considered.

19 Sustainable Event Standards rdspractices/apexastm.aspx /sector-guidance/eventorganizers/pages/default.aspx number=54552

20 Conclusion The meetings and event industry has an enormous impact on our society. It doesn t matter how small or how large the events are, we all need to implement sustainable practices into our events. This is not a fad but a necessary business practice. Make a commitment.

21 References and Resources Jones, M. (2010). Sustainable Event Management: A Practical Guide, Earthscan, London. Zavada, N., Spatrisano, A. and McKinley, S. (2011). Saving Green by Going Green: Simple Steps to Sustainable Meetings.MeetGreen

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30 The Center for Sustainable Tourism Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar Case Study Rebecca Stoddard, Owner of Shade of Green Events Charlotte, NC

32 Gathering Green:Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Practices at Meeting and Convention Venues Sustainable practices: Venue selection Food/beverage Decor Copyright All rights reserved Shade of Green Events LLC

38 Food/beverage Basic criteria How was it produced? Where did it come from? Is it natural? (be careful with this one) What is available seasonally? Copyright All rights reserved Shade of Green Events LLC

Thank you! rebecca@shadeofgreenevents.com 704.299.1009 www.

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Dr. Kim Severt Associate Professor of Human

Outreach Center For Sustainable Tourism Office of

53 Dr. Kim Severt Associate Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management University of Alabama Rebecca Stoddard Owner of Shade of Green Events, Charlotte, NC Alex Naar Director of Outreach Center For Sustainable Tourism Office of Innovation and Economic Development East Carolina University

54 We would like to thank all of our partners: National Renewable Energy Lab NC Division of Environmental Assistance and Outreach Media Sponsorship by Miles Media

55 Free White Papers & Research: eg: Green Publishing for Destinations State of American Traveler Research

For information on purchasing Renewable Energy

57 For more information on the Renewable Energy in Tourism Initiative, please visit We will be posting the slides from our presenters, speaker contact information, and a recording of this webinar at Webinars.cfm And to join our mailing list, visit

58 Thank you for participating in our Renewable Energy and Tourism Webinar And please join in for our next webinar in September on Carbon Offsets for the Tourism Industry

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