Associations Can Make a Difference Through Sustainable Practices – In Fact, We Have To

Sustainability is not really an ‘issue’ anymore. It has moved past the issue stage and into the consciousness of virtually every company, organisation, association, and government in the world. The next step is to make it a true priority of all these entities, and associations need to be taking the lead in this arena.

There are some people who will say that associations are merely organisations representing an industry, or a profession, or a cause of some type, and the association itself does not really have much of a carbon footprint. Those people need to think again. Associations have the opportunity to help shape the future of the fight to protect the worldwide environment by being committed, being proactive, and being courageous.

Here are some of the ways to do those:

Being Committed

1. Adopt a policy that clearly states your organisation’s commitment to sustainability in all aspects of your operations.
    
2. To go an extra step, amend your organisation’s mission statement and/or bylaws to include your sustainability dedication.
    
3. Implement association in-house practices that encourage energy conservation and related actions. For example: offer incentives to employees who use public transportation or carpool; install watersaving devices in association offices; reduce paper consumption by relying on cloud usage and electronic backup for documents; continue using video conferencing and other alternatives to replace the need for members and staff to travel, etc.
    

Being Proactive

1. When sending a RFP to venues that wish to host your meetings, conferences, and other events, require the venue to describe its sustainability efforts. These would include green building standards or recognitions earned where applicable, LEED certifications (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the world’s most widely adopted green building rating system), water conservation methods, etc.
    
2. Extend your organisation’s efforts to your members, exhibitors, and delegates at your events. Give them specific suggestions on ways they can assist your desire for a more environmentally friendly event.
    
3. Implement energy-saving actions at your events, including: paperless sessions, with links and QR codes to guide your attendees to session content; replace paper programmes with event apps; ofer incentives for exhibitors to limit the amount of paper they distribute to booth visitors (personal note: I’ve often thought if I could retrieve the exhibitor handout material left in attendees’ hotel rooms after my conventions, I would collect enough material to provide back to my exhibitors for them to supply their next convention); work with the venue to assure food and beverage functions (including exhibit floor and session breaks) are using the best practices to limit waste and trash, etc.
    
4. Include sessions at your meetings on sustainability. Show members how they can be part of your efforts through the adoption of environmentally friendly practices in their businesses, their workplaces, their institutions, their communities and in their personal lives. Show them the impact that they can make individually, and collectively.
    
5. If possible, use one of your keynote slots in your speaker lineup to have a sustainability expert describe the critical need for energy saving and the scope of what can happen if everyone works together.

Being Courageous

1. Fight against the pushback. There will be some who will be sceptical about your motives, actions, and sincerity. They will think that your organisation is adopting a “issue of the moment” stance; they will not want to be ostracised if they do not participate (i.e., it will cost their company a lot of money; it will be hard to sell to their employers, etc.) They have legitimate concerns in many cases. But we need to be prepared to openly discuss their concerns and move forward.
    
2. Stand up to your commitments. You do not have to insist on venues meeting all your sustainability criteria but let them know that all other things being equal, sustainability could be the deciding factor in which venue you select.
    
3. Take a risk by putting measurement criteria on your association’s commitment to sustainability. Examples: How many/what percentage of your members sign on to your commitment; by what date will you meet each of your goals/priorities; how many of your meeting venues have acquired LEED certification or have implemented energy-saving measures, etc.

Associations have a unique platform and numerous opportunities to be on the leading edge of the sustainability movement worldwide. It is not a social issue; it is not a passing fad; it is not an option… it should be part of your mission.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mark Levin, CAE, CSP has more than 20 years of experience as an association executive and is also an internationally-known speaker and consultant to the nonprofi t and association community. He currently serves as Executive Vice President of the Chain Link Fence Manufacturers Institute, an international trade association, and as President of B.A.I., Inc., his speaking and consulting fi rm.