The MICE Sustainability Certification, developed with contributions from the government, industry, and TUV SUD as the technical writer and auditing company, caters to varying stages of the sustainability journey within the MICE ecosystem. Photo Credit: Adobe Stock/Ilja
The Singapore Association of Convention & Exhibition Organisers
& Suppliers (SACEOS) is seeing encouraging response from industry
players regarding its MICE Sustainability Certification (MSC).
Sukumar Verma, VP, Industry & Enterprise, SACEOS, said: “Since
its launch in January this year, over 40 companies have stepped forward
to express interest in getting certified. The Singapore MSC provides
businesses with an international aligned framework for the adoption of
sustainable practices across all stages of their journey. We would like
to urge all MICE businesses to embark on this certification journey and
to reinforce Singapore’s position as a leading sustainable MICE
destination.”
The first company to achieve certification is TRICOM Events. Dylan
Sharma, co-founder & director, emphasised the responsibility of
event agencies to integrate sustainable practices into all organised
events. Sharma stated, “The Singapore MSC provides a recognised means of
assuring others of our capabilities in organising sustainable events.
As a pioneer company for the Singapore MICE Sustainability
Certification, I strongly encourage all industry players to seek
certification.”
Addressing different stages of sustainability
(from left) TRICOM Events’ Dylan Sharma and SACEOS' Sukumar Verma.The MSC, developed with contributions from the government, industry,
and TUV SUD as the technical writer and auditing company, caters to
varying stages of the sustainability journey within the MICE ecosystem.
Shirin Pang, SACEOS assistant director for community &
partnership and sustainability, highlighted, “The Singapore MSC is
designed to cater to the diverse segments of the MICE ecosystem,
regardless of their sustainability stage. With a streamlined
certification process across three tiers - Bronze, Silver, and Gold -
the Singapore MSC aims to assist businesses in advancing their
sustainability efforts.”
Upon expressing interest, businesses receive the MSC Framework and
Guide to Certification for self-assessment. This aids in understanding
the criteria for their respective sectors and certification tiers,
facilitating the audit process.
To kickstart the journey, Wong Zhi Xiang (Zac), head validation,
verification & audits (sustainability) at TÜV SÜD PSB, gave the
following tips to interested parties: “Companies must be able to
understand the needs of sustainability within the MICE events. Companies
must start building their internal sustainability policy within the
company and take the effort to understand the checklist by SACEOS.”
Highlighting its uniqueness, Wong added that the MSC is a “more
robust certification standard that covers ESG” as it allows companies to
grow in sustainability due to the various tiers, catering to small SMEs
that have just started their sustainability journey, and to big MNCs
which have already implemented certain sustainability policies within
their companies.