Industry body launch sustainability guide for the venue sector –

isla, the events industry sustainability body, has launched an action-focused guide to support meetings and event venues in the transition to Net Zero.

The isla guide encourages venues to review their sustainability progress and enables them to develop short to mid-term sustainability goals and set a realistic but ambitious aspiration to reach Net Zero by 2050 at the latest.

The guide ‘Sustainability in Practice: A Pathway for Venues’, created in partnership with VisitBritain Business Events and supported by three leading industry associations: the Association of Event Venues (AEV), the Meetings Industry Association (mia) and beam, takes a comprehensive look at how venues can develop a successful sustainability strategy covering five key areas: Company Operations, Commitments & Communications, Event Deliveries, Measurement & Reporting and Value Chain Engagement.

The framework acts as a practical toolkit, meeting venues where they are currently at on their sustainability journey, while stretching them to aim for more. It describes the what, when and how of sustainability best practice, brought to life by industry case studies and written drawing on isla’s extensive event industry expertise.

isla ceo & co-founder Anna Abdelnoor said: “Against the backdrop of the climate crisis venues understand, and acknowledge, the part they have to play in creating a Net Zero future. This Pathway gives venues of all sizes the guiding light they need to get there, in a way that is practicable, actionable and transformative for the industry. 

“We’re delighted to share the Pathway with venues today and help them start, or continue, their sustainability journey to meet the needs of a rapidly changing world and an ever-more discerning and environmentally-conscious visitor, client and investor base.”

Watch Anna’s video interview highlighting sustainability strategies and solutions for the events industry.

VisitBritain head of business events Paul Black said: “This new Pathway report will be a valuable tool to support our event venues to identify the key areas to address and implement in their progression to Net Zero, especially during the next critical decade. We are pleased to partner with isla on this Pathway and also with the support of important industry associations AEV, mia and beam, driving industry wide collaboration and partnership”.

Manchester Central chief executive Shaun Hinds continued: “Sustainability is an ever-increasing part of venue operations and we can’t afford to take our eyes off the Net Zero target. 

“Yet despite its significance, as an industry, we are still grappling with a lack of clarity and understanding as to how to make meaningful, impactful change to help us get there. The isla guide is a useful tool to help us harmonise our thinking and take steps in the right direction, together. We have already demonstrated our ability, as a sector, to provide innovative solutions to macro challenges and this is another great example of that.”

As an independent body founded by events professionals and industry leaders, isla is an action-driven network. We bring together expertise from across the entire events sector and empower your teams with the confidence, knowledge, and resources needed to confidently and consistently deliver sustainable events.  isla’s focus is in three core areas: zero waste, 100% renewable, and carbon emission reductions. isla’s goal is to set short and long term targets in these areas and then track measure, and report to drive constant improvement.