Arenas from across the UK and Europe have demonstrated their commitment to sustainability and successfully certified events in 2024. These include ABBA Voyage London and The O2 Arena In London, Glasgows’ OVO Hydro, Uber Arena in Berlin and Forest Green Rovers Football Club.
AGF (A Greener Future) is a pioneer in helping the global live sector become greener. AGF Certification is the world’s first and most comprehensive standard for sustainability in the live events sector, for festivals, events and arenas, reducing waste, emissions, and enhancing equality and biodiversity.
AGF CEO Claire O’Neill said:
“We’re really happy to see the increasing uptake of venues aspiring to be greener. What is most important are the actions these venues are taking to improve touring and their impacts on the local and global environment. These venues have a significant platform which can influence and speed up the green transition of the event sector, something that we so urgently need to do.”
To be certified, venues undertake a thorough assessment based upon the AGF Framework, including self-assessment, site visits, and post-event evidence and data submitted to AGF assessors for an independent auditors’ report. The AGF Framework includes 11 key themes, including local environments & community, travel, food, energy, water, waste, EDI, and governance.
Dale Vince, Chairman of Forest Green Rovers said:
“Forest Green Rovers are pleased to have once again achieved Outstanding in our annual AGF certification – which is surely the toughest standard in the world today. We were the first to achieve this level and are still the only one – we encourage all other arenas to up their game and join us in the stratosphere of greenness….:)”
Sam Booth, Director of Sustainability at AEG Europe commented:
“Finding sustainable ways to execute live events, that don’t compromise on the fan or artist experience, is essential to the future of our industry. AEG Europe has made huge strides in driving the sustainability agenda in the live industry forward on a global scale, from hosting the world’s first carbon removed arena events at The O2, to rolling out an in-house reusable cup system across our three German venues. We’re so proud to have our achievements across London’s The O2, Berlin’s Uber Arena and Uber Eats Music Hall, and Hamburg’s Barclays Arena recognised by A Greener Future, and are committed to innovating and building on this work as we continue on our path to net zero.”
Kerryn Duckworth, Head of Operations, first direct Arena commented:
“It has been a hugely rewarding process working through AGF’s A Greener Arena certification. The detailed application process has helped all teams within the arena evaluate our approach to environmental sustainability. It has provided us with a better understanding of what we do well and what areas we can focus on to reduce our emissions and waste further. We can’t wait to get further initiatives in place in 2025 to help towards a more sustainable future.”
Arenas making the grade in 2024 are:
Greener Arena certifications – ‘Outstanding’
Forest Green Rovers – The New Lawn (UK)
Greener Arena certifications – ‘Commended’
The O2 Arena (UK)
OVO Hydro (UK)
Greener Arena certifications – ‘Improvers’
ABBA Voyage London (UK)
Barclays Arena (DE)
First Direct Arena (UK)
Uber Arena (DE)
Uber Eats Music Hall (DE)
More will follow soon from others who are currently completing their assessments, which will be announced in due course.
The International AGF Awards 2025 ceremony will take place during the Green Events & Innovations (GEI17) Conference, in partnership with ILMC, on 25th February in London.
The event is sponsored by Skydiamond and will feature the most innovative and green-aspiring global events, venues, organisations, and individuals from the last 12 months. Awards will include the Greener Catering Award, supported by Peppermint Events, the Circular Festival Award, supported by Ryans Cleaning and the Greener Transport Award, supported by KB Event.
Last year’s roll call included 27 nominees from 12 countries, with nine taking home one of our prestigious awards. There are more arenas, festivals and events currently completing their assessments, which will be announced in due course, and applications for 2025 assessments are open. Find out more and apply here.
Author: Adam Parry
Adam is the co-founder and editor of www.eventindustrynews.com Adam, a technology evangelist also organises Event Tech Live, Europe’s only show dedicated to event technology and the Event Technology Awards. Both events take place in November, London.
