Fewer than 40 signatories to the industry-wide movement Net Zero Carbon Events had published a formal pathway to eliminating their emissions and halving them by 2030. Photo Credit: Adobe Stock/treety
A new report has laid bare the scale of the challenge facing the meetings and events industry as it seeks to reduce its carbon footprint – with progress stymied by a glaring lack of action.
Fewer than 40 signatories to the industry-wide movement Net Zero Carbon Events had published a formal pathway to eliminating their emissions and halving them by 2030 when the report was compiled, with roughly the same number again saying they 'intended' to by the end of 2024.
Assuming they did, this would still represent just 15% of the 500 plus signatories to NZCE, and a quarter (26%) of the 302 signatories who were obliged to provide an update within the biennial reporting period.
The NZCE Reporting Results Executive Summary was based on updates from 144 of those 302 signatories – the balance having failed to provide an update at the time of reporting – and included organisers, venues, agencies, logistics firms and others.
A closer analysis of the data makes stark reading.
Scope 3 emissions cover all ‘indirect emissions’ in the supply chain – and are the biggest challenge for the events sector, covering everything from travel to food to materials sourcing.
Despite this, less than half (47%) reported measuring these emissions, and more than half of those lacked supporting data, leaving the vast bulk of event-related emissions unaccounted for.
A majority (60%) currently track Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. However, 11% (Scope 1) and 7% (Scope 2) of those measuring were unable to provide data.
The report, which covers the period from July 2023 to January 2025, underlines the sheer complexity of fully decarbonising such a diffuse and multi-faceted international industry.
There were glimmers of hope, however.
Most (94%) had communicated their NZCE participation to staff, and 77% had made public statements, mostly via company websites (62%), social media (48%), and client communications (32%). Eight out of 10 (78%) had told customers about their carbon reduction goals.
Meanwhile more than half of respondents had integrated sustainability into procurement processes (59%) and supplier communication (61%), suggesting a growing awareness of the importance of partnerships and collaboration in the race to reduce emissions.
Commonly reported categories included purchased electricity (72%), business travel (61%), and office waste (59%). Plans to expand measurement include company vehicles, digital communications, employee commuting, and other categories. Those less frequently included in signatory updates were embodied carbon in venue buildings (2%), upstream food and beverage emissions (11%), and non-staff attendee accommodation (13%).
A full NZCE Reporting Results Report is set for release in July 2025. The next reporting cycle (2025–2026) will launch later this year, accompanied by an updated NZCE Measurement Methodology to enhance consistency and support signatories.
“These results demonstrate our industry’s commitment to a sustainable future,” said Alexander Alles, executive director of the Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC), hosting the NZCE campaign on behalf of the business events industry. “For the first time we have a clear and global overview of where our industry stands in regards to environmental sustainability, which is backed by data.”
Kai Hattendorf, co-founder of NZCE and former CEO of UFI, the international association for the exhibition industry, was philosophical in his appraisal of the progress made so far.
Writing on LinkedIn, he noted: "For the first time, we have a global data set on the global event industry's decarbonisation efforts. It is far from complete, at it has some challenges – as some critics will surely point out. Most importantly, we don't yet know by how much we have been able to reduce carbon emissions to date. But – to use what is probably the most common metaphor for this – we now have a "glass half full" where we had an empty glass before. Change takes time, especially when it is not about symbols and actionism, but about systemic adaptation."
Source: AMI