ABSTRACT

In light of the now intense global focus on sustainability and the future of planet earth, the first consideration for all event organisers when discussing international events and sustainability is not so much knowing where to start, but deciding where to stop. This in itself is a sustainability question for the hosting of international events. It is not possible for international events to avoid creating an impact on the environment, so the organisers should include measures to reduce the impact at every stage. With international events being one of the best ways to communicate a sustainability message, individuals and companies should make every effort to demonstrate that their event contributes to being as green as possible instead of adopting destructive methods such as greenwashing.

There are a number of environmental concerns that international events will have a greater or lesser impact upon including global warming, pollution, and deforestation. To cover all of these topics in relation to international events in any reasonable depth is way beyond the capabilities of this chapter. With this in mind, this chapter will discuss some of the main themes related to sustainability, particularly around an area where the available science is most robust, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This will contribute to understanding sustainability and the management of international events and what international event organisers should consider in the delivery process.

The relationship between international events and sustainability is extremely complicated, but at the same time undoubtedly managed in such a way that is appropriate to the financial demands of the larger international events. There are international events that put sustainability at the heart of the event and provide a better understanding for its audience while others play the sustainability card but do little to reduce their environmental impact. There is no doubt a great deal of effort has been and continues to be made to reduce the impact international events have on the environment and this has improved both our understanding of and involvement in reducing the damaging effects. However, the power of profit from international events continues to supersede this aim.