Events Industry: ‘Do more, act earlier’ say global Climate Change Ambassadors

0
2492
Pictured: Andrew Griffith

The event sector is being encouraged to take more, and earlier, action on climate change, ahead of the vital COP 26 conference, taking place at the SEC in Glasgow later this year. The call came at a special event, which took place last week, and involved representatives from the UNFCCC, the UK government and SME Climate Hub.

The meeting talked about the importance of the sector showing evidence of action ahead of the global conference on climate change, and present a proactive industry taking on its responsibilities around climate change. Speakers at the event included Sir David King, Government Chief Scientific Advisor, 2000-2007, UK Government Permanent Special Representative for Climate Change, 2013-17;

Miguel Naranjo, Programme Officer, UNFCCC; Andrew Griffith, UK’s Net-Zero Business Champion for COP 26; Johan Falk, Co-Founder and Head of the Exponential Roadmap Initiative, A Founding Partner of the SME Climate Hub; Kerrin McPhie, Head of Business Events, VisitBritain / VisitEngland; and, Richard Shackleton, Deputy Head of Mission, British Embassy, Budapest.

Miguel Naranjo, Programme Officer, UNFCCC, commented, “We have similar initiatives already in place within the fashion and sport sectors. We (UNFCCC) are acting as a neutral convenor to try and agree joint initiatives that help to reduce the sector’s impact on the environment. These are voluntary, free of consequence commitments, and are developed in conjunction with the sector. We are already having advanced conversations around the world (with the events sector) on how this could work, and we’re looking to bring more people into the conversation.”

Andrew Griffith, UK’s Net-Zero Business Champion for COP 26, commented, “I want to thank the 34 members of the events industry who have already become climate action framework members. This is a really brilliant opportunity to show the world that we are the solution, not the problem, and that we can build a real crescendo of momentum to give all of our leaders around the world the imperative to act. One of my big asks is for every business to set themselves a target, make a pledge, take some action, and the best way is to use the Race to Zero. If we do it now, it will amplify and resonate greatly.”

The event also saw the launch of ‘The Roadmap to COP 26: Event Sector Transformation’, a joint initiative between the UNFCCC, Race to Zero, SME Climate Hub, and event sustainability experts Positive Impact. The campaign is intended to provide the roadmap for the events industry, a sector made up predominantly by SME’s, to raise awareness of the sector, engage in the UN’s sustainability goals, and input into an industry wide framework for sustainability.

“It makes sense that the events industry takes on a leading role ahead of the conference; because COP 26 is an event,” commented Fiona Pelham, CEO & Founder, Positive Impact. “However, as with all the outcomes that will come out of COP 26, much of the work needs to be done beforehand. For us, this is about presenting a sector that is already on its way, that is taking giant steps forward and has a framework in mind that other governments and industry sectors can buy into.”

Adam Parry
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.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.