These guidelines have been created by the Office of Campus Planning & Sustainability as a way to assist student groups and departments in hosting green events at the University of Victoria.
They are designed to respond to the array of events, conferences, and meetings held on campus and offer organizers a number of strategies to reduce costs, create innovative partnerships, and demonstrate leadership in sustainability.
Whether you are planning for ten people or one hundred people, there are a number of options and ideas you can incorporate into your planning to ensure a small event footprint.
Initial Planning & Communications:
- Assess your audience and event -- focus efforts on incorporating green initiatives into your plans based on size, budget and nature of activity.
- Distribute information on your intent for a green event to all stakeholders, suppliers, organizers, sponsors and staff. Ask people for ideas at initial planning stages on ways to reduce the impact of the event.
- Publicize your commitment to a green event as a part of your marketing.
- Include information on your sustainability efforts in the program/print materials.
- Consider the different ways of measuring success of greening your event and report on them to your organizing committee/group.
Promotions and Invitations:
- Review the list of required printing jobs – is there a way to communicate your information digitally?
- Use post consumer recycled paper stock for invitations/programs/posters. The University of Victoria bond paper printing standard is 100% post consumer recycled paper – the Print Shop on campus can offer a series of attractive stock options.
- Double side all documents, promotions, and programs.
- Review directional signs – can you use recycled paper, re-useable signs, bulletin boards, or white boards? You may consider canvas banners for events that happen on a regular basis. Sign holders and bulletin boards can be rented through UVic Facilities Management.
- Review delegate packages/conference kits – are the contents functional or will they simply be thrown away? What other types of socially and environmentally friendly products could you include instead?
Communications:
- Investigate on line registration rather than print or mail-in forms. UVic Continuing Studies offers a fantastic on line registration program. Have participants/guests RSVP by email or to a voicemail.
- Instead of printing individual agendas or outlines, consider projecting this digitally on to a wall or screen.
- Compile presentations digitally and then make cds of meeting/conference proceedings. Presentations may also be able to be emailed to delegates or placed on a website for them to download the information from.
- Offer the option of allowing participants to opt out of handouts in their registration.
- Create re-useable or recyclable nametags – or, if appropriate, suggest that participants bring their own permanent one.
Food and Beverage:
On campus you will be using Housing Food and Conference Services, UVSS Catering and Conferences, or the University Club catering. Off campus, you will have a variety of choices.
- Talk to the staff about a menu: what items are currently in season – what options are there to tap into local food supplies? How about organic foods and produce?
- Consider a water cooler or jugs rather than bottled water
- Order fair trade and organic coffee and teas
- Ensure re-useable cutlery
- Avoid individually packaged containers (eg: cream, sugar, condiments) ask for bulk pouring (eg: cream jug, sugar container, condiment jars)
- Request cloth napkins or 100% recycled paper napkins
- Order organic or locally made beverages such as beer, wine, ciders, juice and milk
- Ask people to bring their own mug/glass
Off Campus Venues:
If the event is held off campus, look for a venue that has environmental practices and/or policies. Here are a few considerations:
- How accessible is the venue for sustainable transportation?
- Is it close to transit?
- Do they have parking?
- Where is bicycle parking and change rooms?
- Is there the ability to control lighting levels? Is there access to natural light?
- How will event waste, recycling and composting be handled?
- Is the venue in a “green” building or registered in the LEED Rating program?
- Is there access to natural ventilation?
- Are there any outside food restrictions?
Location and Decor:
- Try booking a room or space in one of the many green buildings on campus. These include Continuing Studies, Harry Hickman, Medical Sciences, and the Engineering Computer Science Building.
- Consider natural materials for table centerpieces – pine cones, gourds, shells, moss etc.
- Source local or organic flowers
- Purchase items for the décor that can be donated to local charity or re-used for other purposes
- Rent décor items that can be re-used or have already been used
- Can you bring in live plants?
Staff/Organizers/Volunteers:
- Be sure that your volunteer/staff team know about the green initiatives your even incorporates. It may help to develop a quick fact sheet for reference.
- Provide organic cotton or alternative fibred t-shirts. The UVic Bookstore is just one of the locations in town where you can get eco-friendly clothing.
- Create re-usable or recyclable nametags
- Have you considered talking to community organizations such as the UVSS or Volunteer Victoria to help find volunteers?
Transportation:
- Include a reminder about using sustainable transportation to get to the event in your promotions or invitation.
- Offer a transit ticket as a part of your event ticket. UVic Office of Planning and Sustainability has a partnership with BC Transit to offer programs like this for a reduced cost.
- Develop the option for carpooling in a conference registration/event invitation.
- Consider offsetting for major travel through an external organization such as Offsetters.ca. In 2008 the University of Victoria will have its own internal offsetting program so keep posted to the sustainability web portal for more news.
- Provide incentives/prizes for those who bike, walk or bus.
- Consider contacting local organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club or Rotary Club to see if they would be willing to have a staff member drive one of their busses in exchange for a charitable donation.
- Can you offer select components of your event to those who live far away through video or telephone conferencing? UVic AV Services can provide you with the help you need to set this up.
Waste Management:
- Aim to have a zero waste event: avoid excess packaging and think about product choice
- Develop a list of waste management needs: compost bins, recycling containers, signs
- Create a layout so that recycling and composting containers are easy to find and strategically placed
- Secure volunteers to assist with event waste education
Energy:
- Turn off projectors and laptops when not in use
- Turn out the lights when you don’t need them
- Consider acoustic bands/music to cut down on energy use
- Reward speakers/presenters who do not require electricity.
Contacts:
UVic Office of Campus Planning & Sustainability
853-3758
UVic Conference Services
721-8430
UVic Catering Services
721-8603
UVSS Catering and Conferences (SUB events only)
721-6243
UVic Facilities Management, Waste Reduction Unit
853-3160
UVic AV Services (Video Conferencing)
721-6560
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