Setting the benchmark for sustainable practices in events

As an accreditation body that manages global sustainability standards for the hospitality, travel trade and MICE industries, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council® (GSTC®) is behind the Global Sustainable Tourism Conference (GSTC). Bringing together a panel of leaders from sustainability-forward organisations, the conference aims to inspire conversations around how attendees could embark on or advance their very own sustainability journey.

In line with this goal, GSTC saw two separate editions in 2024, one in Stockholm, Sweden, which took place in April, and another in Singapore, which was held in November. Each served as a platform to unpack insights from the region’s thought leaders and tackle the unique challenges faced by stakeholders in adopting these sustainability standards in their countries.

As the Event Partner for GSTC2024 Singapore, we immediately recognised that a key part of our efforts laid in embracing GSTC®’s pledge to sustainability. Apart from showcasing practical ways to minimise waste across various attendee touchpoints, this meant committing to a plan which would ensure that these initiatives would actually make a positive impact on the environment.

It helped that GSTC® had already called on Sentosa – itself a GSTC®-certified destination – to be the venue for GSTC2024 Singapore. This opened the doors for ideas such as recycling boxes, reusable hand-drawn placards, energy-saving LED walls, digital signages and upcycled decoration to be rolled out in tandem throughout all host locations in Sentosa, including ONE°15 Marina Club, Equarius Hotel and Village Hotel Sentosa.

We also paid close consideration to the choice of materials used to produce key elements of the conference. For example, all conference badges were made from recyclable TESLIN and attached to biodegradable bamboo lanyards, while cardboard desks – each foldable and compact to allow for more efficient transportation – doubled up as registration counters. Where extra durability was required, such as in large-format backdrops, honeycomb cardboard and recycled wood were preferred.

But to help GSTC® truly shape the ongoing dialogue around sustainability and shift the public’s perspectives on the topic, we felt we needed to go beyond the sum of these initiatives. A collaboration with Cloop, a circular fashion social enterprise in Singapore, saw the attendee passes we collected in the recycling boxes being given a second life. On one hand, the lobster clasps were reused in wristlet workshops. On the other, the bamboo lanyards were repurposed into stuffing for fabric ornaments.

Another cornerstone of our sustainability-first approach to managing GSTC2024 Singapore was being able to account for our carbon footprint. The amount of energy consumed by equipment such as printers, extra lighting fixtures and LED walls, in addition to the distance covered by logistics transportation, were among the figures measured and reported to GSTC®.