Meeting News - May 5, 2008 - (Page 31)

MN Webcast Report Put Your Foot Down: Reducing carbon footprints for events T he term “carbon offsets” has entered the other resources. planner lexicon of late, but very few people McKinley is also a proponent of recycling and have a good handle on what it means or how has achieved a nearly 96 percent diversion rate at to go about offsetting carbon emissions. Both off- past events, meaning only 4 percent of materials sets and carbon emission reduction were discussed end up in landfills. For her formally green events, during the April 17 Virtual Meeting World hot- delegates produced on average a half-pound of button panel on reducing carbon footprints. trash per day; at “brown” events, each delegate proSuzie Amer, managing editor of Successful Meet- duced an average 20 pounds of trash per day. ings, began by reminding planners that the easiest way to reduce a carbon footprint is to reduce emis- The Carbon Offset Question sions and keep meetings local to as many attendees After reducing emissions, planners can compenas possible. Also, keeping restaurants and off-site sate for the remaining carbon footprint of an event venues within walking distance can be a big help, as using offsets. Carbon offsets are tricky, though. is incorporating public According to Amer, $54 transportation. million was spent last Amer noted,“You have year on offsets, but planto play to your audience ners need to be aware here”—as no one wants and ensure that they are to ask an executive to getting what they pay wait for the local bus— for. She also cautioned but public transportation planners not to concan be a viable option for tribute to projects that —Parry Burnap, director of greening, Democratic National Convention many groups. And, out of would have happened host committee, on leaving behind an all the transportation whether you paid for it environmental legacy for all of Denver options, trains produce or not, and added, “It’s the least amount of emisimportant to remember sions and can be great for travel between such cities that carbon offsets are invisible” and thus possible as New York and Washington, DC. that unscrupulous companies are selling the same It’s also worth asking transportation providers offset more than once. about the availability of natural gas-powered vehiAmer recommended Clean Air-Cool Planet’s cles, hybrid vehicles, and other low-impact options. Consumer’s Guide to Carbon Offsets for Carbon Amer explained that hybrids will be best for groups traveling within one city, as they shift to gas use when driven on highways, thus negating an environmental advantage. “The carbon footprint of an event is incredibly Are you presently measuring the complex,” said panelist Shawna McKinley, project carbon footprint of your event? manager for Portland, OR-based green expert Meeting Strategies Worldwide. “The important thing to No realize is that our carbon footprints are not just about outputs, but also inputs,” she said. What goes 86.9% into the creation of the materials you use—in transportation, building operations, and manufactured products—is important, too.“A carbon footprint is 8.6% broader than our emissions and transportation.” 4.3% Yes McKinley advised being “paper picky.” For one recent event, printing a conference program on 50Not Sure percent post-consumer-recycled paper saved 12 trees, 4,305 gallons of water, 553 pounds of solid Source: MeetingNews and Successful Meetings waste, and 1,037 pounds of carbon dioxide, among Webcast poll of 198 responding participants the city, not just green the convention. the “We will usegreen convention to ” Neutrality (www.cleanair-coolplanet.org), which includes a ranking of offsetters based on transparency, public educational efforts, and other criteria. McKinley views offsets as a “Plan B” because they don’t immediately reduce a group’s carbon footprint. “It’s really a ‘buyer beware’ market out there,” she said, adding that “there are many ‘lowhanging fruit’ options out there” when it comes to lessening the environmental impact of events, so planners should get started doing something. Some are making serious headway greening events. When Denver won the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Mayor John Hickenlooper challenged organizers with the question: “How do we make this the greenest convention in history?” Parry Burnap, director of greening for the DNC host committee, said during her presentation that her team will “use the convention to green the city, not just green the convention” and leave a positive legacy for Denver’s residents, as well as for planners looking to hold events there.“It’s not just about your event but the whole constellation of people you work with,” said Burnap of the implications. Denver is in the enviable position of working with a slew of partners that include the Environmental Protection Agency, and Burnap said that details of Denver’s green efforts will be made available on the “Green Room” page of the website of the DNC, www.denverconvention2008.com. H —Kinley Levack Webcast Survey Says For planners looking to gauge the carbon emissions of their events, these online calculators can be the first step—they can calculate personal carbon footprints, too. MyFootprint.org CarbonCounter.org CarbonFootprint.com ZeroFootprint.net CarbonFund.org www.meetingnews.com May 5, 2008 MeetingNews 31 http://meetingnews.com/vmw http://www.denverconvention2008.com http://MyFootprint.org http://CarbonCounter.org http://CarbonFootprint.com http://ZeroFootprint.net http://CarbonFund.org http://www.meetingnews.com

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