Sustainability at Christmas: A Corporate Responsibility

Christmas is a time for celebration, socializing and sharing. For companies, it's an excellent opportunity to bring teams together, strengthen bonds and celebrate successes. However, this is also a time marked by increased consumption, waste and environmental impact. Corporate events can be organized in a more conscious way, in line with sustainability and social responsibility objectives.

In this article, we look at good practices that allow companies to organize sustainable Christmas events, reducing the environmental impact without compromising the celebration.

1. Sustainable Planning: The Basis of the Event

The key to a more sustainable Christmas event lies in the planning. Defining a clear set of sustainability-related objectives is essential.

• Choose Sustainable Locations: Opting for locations with sustainability certifications, such as ISO 14001 or LEED(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), guarantees that the space adopts responsible environmental practices, such as the use of renewable energies.

• Reducing Carbon Emissions: To reduce the carbon footprint, it is essential to choose central locations or those with a good public transport network, encouraging the use of public transport or carpooling. In addition, opting for electric or hybrid vehicles contributes to a greener event.

• Conscious Suppliers: Working with suppliers who adopt sustainable practices, such as local and seasonal catering, helps to reduce the environmental footprint. Opting for recyclable or reusable packaging and eco-friendly decorative materials is also key to reducing event waste and supporting responsible practices.

• ISO 20121Implement the international standard ISO 20121, which provides guidelines for the organization of sustainable events. It is an international standard that establishes guidelines for the sustainable management of events. It focuses on reducing the environmental, social and economic impact of events by promoting practices that optimize resources, minimize waste and encourage stakeholder involvement. The standard helps organizations to improve the sustainability of their events on an ongoing basis, ensuring that it is integrated into the planning and execution of all stages of the event.

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Practical Tip: Carry out an assessment of the event's carbon footprint to understand its impact and find ways to reduce it. To carry out a carbon footprint assessment of an event, it is important to measure the emissions generated in various areas, such as transportation, energy consumption, food and waste management. Tools such as carbon calculators or specialized consultancies can be used to quantify the impact. After the assessment, it is possible to identify the main sources of emissions and adopt measures to reduce them, such as choosing sustainable means of transport, reducing the use of plastics and optimizing energy consumption, thus contributing to the sustainability of the event.

Reference: BCSD Portugal's Guide to Sustainable Events offers guidelines for organizing events with a focus on sustainability. It presents practices to minimize environmental impact, such as conscious choices of location, transport, catering and accommodation. Sustainability should be integrated into all phases of event planning, promoting economic, social and environmental benefits. The guide serves as a practical tool for companies to adopt more sustainable practices at events.

2. Decoration: Festive and Ecological

Decorations are an important part of Christmas events, but they can generate a lot of waste. Fortunately, there are creative and sustainable solutions.

• Reuse and Recycle: Reuse decorations from previous years or opt for elements made from recycled materials.

• Natural Materials: Use biodegradable materials such as wood, recycled paper, pine cones and natural plants.

• LED lighting: Replace traditional lights with LED options, which consume less energy.

• Renting decorations: Consider renting decorations instead of buying new ones, reducing costs and waste.

• Creation of Collective Decorations: Encourage employees to participate in the creation of ecological decorations, promoting involvement and awareness.

Reference: BCSD Portugal recommends the use of modular, reusable and sustainable decorations, also highlighting the potential of natural solutions as decorative alternatives.

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3. Sustainable Catering: Reducing Food Waste

Food is undoubtedly one of the highlights of any event. However, it is also one of the biggest sources of waste.

• Local and Seasonal Menu: Opt for local and seasonal ingredients, which have less environmental impact and support the local economy.

• Balanced Portions: Work with the caterer to adjust the amount of food to actual needs.

• Plastic reduction: Avoid plastic cutlery, plates and cups. Prefer reusable or biodegradable options.

• Distribution of leftovers: Create partnerships with charities to donate leftover food.

• Vegetarian menus: Include vegetarian or vegan options, which have a smaller environmental footprint.

Highlight: Companies that adopt sustainable catering practices are able to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of their events, namely by implementing measures to reduce food waste at their events, promoting the donation of surpluses.

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Reference: According to the BCSD Portugal Guide, the correct management of food waste and packaging is one of the critical aspects to be considered in order to make events more environmentally friendly, including actions such as, for example, the existence of properly signposted recycling bins in sufficient numbers; ensuring that waste is collected and properly disposed of, namely the collection of used cooking oil.

4. Emissions Offsetting: Going Further

Despite efforts to reduce environmental impact, some events still generate unavoidable emissions. In this case, companies can consider carbon offsetting. Carbon offsetting is a mechanism that allows companies, organizations and even individuals to offset the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions generated by their activities by investing in projects that remove or avoid greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in other parts of the world. This process is essential in the context of a climate neutrality strategy, since although efforts to reduce emissions are the priority, there are some unavoidable emissions in certain processes, such as transportation or energy use at large events.

How Carbon Offsetting Works at Events:

1. Calculating Emissions: The first step is to calculate the carbon footprint of the event, taking into account all factors such as transportation (planes, cars, public transport), food, materials used, electricity, among others. Tools such as the Greenhouse Gas Protocol or event-specific carbon footprint calculators are often used to carry out this assessment.

2. Choice of Offset Projects: After calculation, the organization invests in offset projects that absorb or avoid the emission of an equivalent amount of CO₂. Companies can choose specific projects, such as reforestation in certain regions or financing solar energy parks.

3. Certification and Verification: To ensure that offset projects actually result in CO₂ reductions, companies should choose projects certified by independent organizations, such as the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) or the Gold Standard. These seals guarantee that offsets are genuine and verified.

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Examples of International Events with Ecological Practices

The annual United Nations conference on climate change, COP24, is an outstanding example of a sustainable event. The COP has been implementing measures such as:

• Use of renewable energy to power the event spaces.

• Provision of public transport and encouragement for participants to use bicycles.

• Recycling and composting of waste generated during the event.

Web Summit (Portugal): One of the largest technology events in the world has adopted practices such as:

• Digital invitations and minimal use of printed materials.

• Partnerships with sustainable logistics companies to transport equipment.

• Food based on local ingredients and regional producers.

These events demonstrate that it is possible to organize large conferences and events in a sustainable way, adopting practices that minimize environmental impact and encourage awareness among participants.

Christmas events are also an opportunity for companies to set an example and demonstrate their commitment to sustainability. Through structured planning, conscious choices and alignment with standards such as ISO 20121, it is possible to organize festive celebrations without compromising the future of the planet. Making events more sustainable not only reinforces companies' environmental responsibility, but also strengthens their reputation with employees, partners and society in general. After all, celebrating consciously is also a way of sharing a greener present and a more sustainable future.

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Organize Your Next Event Sustainably!

Are you ready to take the next step towards greener events? Follow our tips and implement sustainable practices at your next corporate Christmas event. Get in touch contact us and find out how we can help you create conscious celebrations with a positive impact on the future.

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