In many areas of life, the word "sustainability" is used quite often nowadays. However, sustainable event management is a relatively new field and needs to be explored. Join us in four articles to look at possible ways to organize events more sustainably.
We address sustainability in transport for event visitors, performers, and the organizing team. Of course, it all depends on the scale of the event and the location. What can sustainable travel look like?
EVENT VISITORS
Suggest ways to your visitors that are more environmentally friendly than driving.
For events that take place in cities, it is possible to use public transport, a walking route to the venue can also be suggested, or perhaps a bicycle ride. In larger cities, there are now bike-sharing options.
For events organized outside the city, train transport can often be used or bus transport to the location can be arranged. Out-of-town destinations can be suggested to visitors as a destination for a cycling or walking tour.
Alternatively, visitors can be encouraged to use carpooling, for example through the BlaBlaCar platform. This can limit the number of cars that arrive at the event. More restrictive solutions include not offering visitors parking at all or charging fees for parking. In addition to this, you can negotiate with local transport operators to boost public transport to the location at the time of your event. If event organizers decide on such a solution, they can save space that can be used in other ways instead of parking, or, for example, can use their workforce someplace else.
PERFORMERS
Performers from different parts of the country or even from abroad may come to your event. The ideal option is to reach out to local personalities who live close to the event and transportation to the venue may not be as difficult for them.
For performers who live in other counties and cities, railway or similarly friendly modes of transport may be recommended. Another option is to connect performers to the program online, this can be a workable and environmentally friendly solution for artists from abroad.
Suppose your performers are traveling from abroad. In that case, it is possible to communicate with other events they might attend and involve these personalities in multiple events in a similar timeframe so they don't have to fly in just for one opportunity.
It is common practice to pick up performers at the airport by car, but an option is to have a volunteer pick up the performers at the airport and escort them to the venue or hotel by public transport. The volunteer can personally advise or explain to the artists how to find their way around the location, answer questions, or provide a contact for the artists to turn to with any questions. This type of guest care has recently become increasingly popular.
ORGANIZING TEAM
Of course, we can also motivate the organization team to use public transport or cycling, but when it comes to transporting materials and necessary items, the use of automobile transport is probably unavoidable. At that point, it is possible to focus on carpooling and plan journeys so that cars are used most economically. That is, to keep the cars as full as possible and to drive as little as possible. In this way, it is achievable to save not only time but also fuel and, in addition, produce fewer pollutants in the atmosphere.
Don't be afraid to find your path to sustainability. Invent your ways and be creative. Even small changes can make a big difference. In the next blog post, we'll look at a sustainable approach to dealing with catering and waste at your events.