Behind the Scenes: Zero Waste Event

BEHIND THE SCENES: ZERO WASTE EVENT

WELCOME TO SEWF22, A ZERO WASTE EVENT

Written by Kylie Flament, General Manager at Green Connect (at the time of writing)

The social enterprise sector tackles some huge challenges, from food security to modern slavery, from deforestation to waste. Yes, waste. It’s dirty and smelly and problematic. We bury it in giant holes in the ground, we burn it in incinerators, we throw things ‘away’ and hope we never have to think about where ‘away’ is. None of that is sustainable. It’s the very definition of unsustainable – we can’t keep doing it forever. So it has to change. We have to change. Like all big problems, there’s no easy solution or single set of people responsible for tackling it. It begins with each of us making better choices and expecting better of ourselves and others.

The Social Enterprise World Forum team have been building sustainability into this event for months, and I’m so excited that they chose to work with us to design a Zero Waste event. To do that, it’s as simple and as hard as asking two questions about every item that comes in to the event: WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? The SEWF team have done a magnificent job of procurement with Zero Waste and social good in mind, including: •Engaging local suppliers •Buying local food, and not overordering •Choosing ethically produced clothing for staff and volunteers that they will want to wear again •Hiring reusable exhibitor pods •Briefing exhibitors on sustainable choices ahead of time, and working closely with the venue on event design •Avoiding: landfill-bound items, overordering and items we don’t really need As far as event managers go (and we have worked with a lot of them over the past 11 years), the SEWF team have really pushed themselves when it comes to sustainability, showing their commitment to do the right thing rather than the easy thing, and genuinely seeking feedback along the way.

WHERE WILL IT GO?

While a lot of effort has gone in to avoiding waste, there will be some rubbish produced and we want to compost and recycle as much as possible, so at this event you’ll see: •Multi-bin waste stations, with waste educators ready to help you to know which bin to use: compost, recycling or landfill and containers for change •Compostable lanyards with seed paper inserts •Sustainability guidelines for exhibitors and attendees (we hope you got the memo – go digital; refuse excess; bring only reusable items in; consider your transport options) •Minimal single use plastic at the event

•Compostable or reusable alternatives to duct tape and cable ties on the exhibitors’ stands

•More digital, less printed materials On top of that, the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre staff have partnered with us to do a lot of back-of-house work including: •Auditing waste to know where our messaging worked well and where it didn’t

•Sorting waste to compost and recycle as much as possible (avoiding contaminated waste streams from going to landfill) •Weighing and measuring each waste stream

This year’s waste outcomes (and sustainability measures of all kinds) will set a benchmark for future SEWF events, and the blueprint for sustainable events at this venue and at others around the world.

Thank you for doing your part to reduce, reuse and recycle, at this forum and beyond, so that we can all be part of a Zero Waste future.

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SEWF22