How we’re making a difference
Fiona Pelham, CEO of Positive Impact Events, explains in this brief video the “Acceleration Action” that has been submitted to the UN SDG Summit, and what you can do to help create a sustainable event industry.
Engaging the global event industry in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
Ensuring by 2030 the over 1.5 billion* people who attend events every year acquire knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development. There are two immediate actions that everyone can take:
1. Make a commitment to action on the survey
2. Join our community of almost 400 global ambassadors who are using their voice to encourage action on the UN Sustainable development goals.
This Acceleration Action was submitted to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Action Campaign on the 9th September, 2019 to raise the profile of the role of events in meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
The Acceleration Action wil build on the 7,000 commitments collected from 58 countries during the MyWorld events survey.
The event industry is global, so over the next 6 months our goal is that we will have commitments to action from around the world.
We asked people to identify which Sustainable Development Goal were of immediate concern to them based on their experience within the global event industry. The top 3 were:
50%
Committed to donating food waste to address SDG 2
54%
Committed to providing internships to allow young people to gain relevant skills to address SDG 4
63%
Committed to ensuring that at least 50% of content for their event was provided by women to address SDG 5
61%
Committed to identifying where they are using plastic at their event, and choosing suppliers who can help them reduce this to address SDG 14
90%
Committed to delivering an activity at their event to facilitate inclusion and participation from all to address SDG 16
58%
Committed to collaborating with the local community to understand the potential event impacts to address SDG 17
Contribute to the creation of a sustainable event industry
Have your say - Positive Impact Events, the UN and partners want to hear from you.
Positive Impact Events is a not for profit creating a sustainable event industry since 2004.
For us, sustainability means positive economic, environmental and social impacts in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and a sustainable event industry is one where every time an event happens, we see one or more of these impacts.
We work with the whole event industry, including everyone within the supply chain (such as destinations, venues, event agencies and hotels) who make it possible for two or more people to connect with a shared purpose at an event.
We’re creating a sustainable event industry by sharing best practice, faciliating conversations to develop industry-changing reports, as well as creating content, tools and campaigns to tell the story of the power of events.
I work for a company who understands why this is important
Listen to the Positive Impact Events intern team interview Fiona Pelham, CEO of Positive Impact Events, about her time at the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit and the UN SDG Summit.
The podcast covers why the Summits were so important for the business world, particularly the event industry, and how the Summit have created an attitudinal shift from commitment to action. Hear Fiona’s takeaways from the Summits including the inspiring talk from female indigenous American tribe leaders and the reinvigorated motivation of Positive Impact Events to continue positively disrupting the event industry.
The business case for a sustainable event industry
To understand why sustainability is essential for the future of the event industry, listen to a webinar from future event attendees or read the 2018 IPCC report, which recommends using more technology rather than travelling to meetings.
There is also a huge opportunity for the event industry to be part of a global conversation with governments and businesses at the United Nations SDG Summit in September 2019.
We have the chance to share ideas and targets that could help to reach the Sustainable Development Goals, but we need your input to make this happen.
Need more information?
Visit our resources page to learn more and get support to help you share this survey.
Watch the interview with EventIcons below to hear Fiona Pelham (CEO of Positive Impact Events) explain more about the clear opportunity and the business case for sharing ideas with the United Nations by contributing an “Acceleration Action” or “Acceleration Commitment”.
FAQ
We’ve put together some short videos to help you engage the global event Industry with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
What is the survey?
What is an Acceleration Commitment or Acceleration Action?
Why are Positive Impact Events doing this?
Why get involved?
How can you get involved?
Who has funded this?
Why the Positive Impact Events team are excited
The importance of Positive Impact Events Ambassadors
What should you know if you're thinking of sponsoring any Positive Impact Events campaign?
* This figure comes from the Event Industry Council 2018 'Global Economic Significance of Business Events' report. This refers to the 1.5 billion people who attend business events. We know in addition to this there are those who attend sport and cultural events also.