Easyfairs
Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2023)
Reporting Period: 2023
Environmental Metrics
Renewable Energy Share:54% in venues
ESG Focus Areas
- Environmental
- Social
- Governance
Environmental Achievements
- Reduced group carbon footprint by 33% since 2019
- Reduced energy-related CO2 emissions by 37% since 2019
- Reduced carbon intensity by employee by 35% since 2019
- More than 70% of stands at events are reusable modular stands
- Less than 3% of visitors come by plane
- Reduced waste-related carbon emissions by 39% since 2019
- 50% of events used sustainable carpeting
- 72% of exhibitors reduced paper waste using Smart Badge and Visit Connect technologies
- Reduced freight and logistics emissions by 33% since 2019
- 93% of events offered vegetarian and vegan options
- 22% of events replaced red meat with other alternatives
Social Achievements
- Employee Net Promoter Score achieved 40
- Retained Best Managed Companies label for the 5th time
- Adopted Code of Business Conduct
- Ran a full cybersecurity audit
- Average time each team member dedicated to learning on The Academy Online in 1 year: 31 hours
- 46% of Senior Leadership Team are women
- 20 of Easyfairs events embed sustainability in their content programme
- CCR Diwali parties raised £55,650 for The Childhood Trust
- Art Brussels partnered with KickCancer, raising €107,000
- HEROES events raised over €9,000 for Think Pink
- Heroes Dutch Comic Con raised €12,165 for War Child
Governance Achievements
- Launched ESG Scorecard to track events' progress
- Launched ESG Academy learning channel
- Launched internal awareness campaign on Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity
- Released Code of Business Conduct
Climate Goals & Targets
Long-term Goals:
- Net zero emissions by 2050
Medium-term Goals:
- 50% reduction in energy consumption in venues from baseline (target 2030)
- 50% more visitors coming by public transport compared to baseline (target 2030)
- 75% of waste diverted from landfills (through recycling and reduction) (target 2030)
Short-term Goals:
- 100% renewable electricity in all venues by 2025
- Reduce number of disposable stands by 2% annually
- Remove single-use plastic bottles from catering points by 2025
- Use sustainable carpets at all events and venues by 2025
Environmental Challenges
- Consistent emissions from purchases due to inflationary pressures
- Challenges in reducing freight and logistics emissions beyond immediate control
- Waste generation and management in the exhibition industry
Mitigation Strategies
- Energy efficiency plans in venues and offices
- Switch to carbon-efficient vehicles
- Increased share of renewable electricity
- Reduced number of events post-Covid
- Accurate measurement of visitor transport modes
- Initiatives to reduce stand waste, switch to sustainable carpeting, reduce paper waste, and eliminate single-use plastics
- Consolidated transport initiatives
- Prioritizing sustainable logistics suppliers
- Promoting green transport options to attendees
- Partnering with hotels with strong sustainability credentials
- Offering vegetarian and vegan choices at events
Supply Chain Management
Responsible Procurement
- Prioritizing logistics suppliers and transportation companies with sustainable practices
- Ethical choices for catering and suppliers (local suppliers with sustainable practices)
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Net Zero Carbon Events pledge
Certifications: Green Key (Flanders Expo Meeting Centre), SUSA (Kistamässan and MalmöMässan)
Third-party Assurance: Climact
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- Reusable stands
- Smart Badge Technology
Awards & Recognition
- UFI Education Award (2017)
- UFI HR Award (2023)
- ESG Award from Exhibition News (2024)
- Gold Best Managed Companies Award (6 years running)