How do you recognize a sustainable event venue?

The consequences of climate change are becoming increasingly visible. The earth is warming, sea levels are rising, and the amount of plastic soup is increasing. Fortunately, more and more people (and therefore also companies) realize that it is everyone's responsibility to act sustainably for people and the environment. This also includes focusing on sustainable event organization. A sustainable event also leads to increased morale, helps with creativity, and strengthens the corporate image. But how do you know if an event venue is sustainable?

Green and sustainable as a basis

There are various aspects that an event venue must at least be working on before it can be considered 'sustainable'. In the concept of CSR (corporate social responsibility), there must be added value for the 3Ps in business operations: People, Planet, Profit. Notably, profit comes last; it is the ultimate goal of the organization which derives its right to exist from the first two Ps. This naturally also applies to an event venue.

A sustainable event venue often has a coordinator or someone ultimately responsible for all CSR matters within the organization. Together with a project team, this person ensures compliance with standards and developments and actions in the CSR policy.  

Green Key 

A great example of direct confirmation of sustainability often comes in the form of a quality label. This is applied from fisheries to waste processing companies; it will not surprise you that this also exists for event venues.

The most common quality label for event venues in the Netherlands is Green Key. This quality label looks at all aspects involved in organizing an event and the internal organization of the venue. It differs from standard points like catering, waste processing, water waste to management reports, implementation of the participation act in personnel policy, and the like.

Green Key uses three levels in which companies meet the requirements: bronze, silver, and gold. If an event venue holds the golden Green Key quality label, it goes beyond the standards in sustainable business operations.

Catering

There are many aspects of sustainability that can be applied to catering. Consequently, there is much to be gained in terms of sustainability with catering at an event.  

Local & Seasonal Products

Purchasing local and seasonal products ensures less impact on the environment. By working with local products, there is less transport and therefore fewer emissions. Seasonal products cost less energy in production and transport. In addition, seasonal products usually have more flavor. Although this is not always possible based on menu requirements, it is an important part of a sustainable event venue to focus on this as much as possible.

Plant-based

Another way to increase sustainability at an event is to serve a Vegan menu. Plant-based food has by far the lowest impact on the environment. Plant-based products generally have a 10 to 50 times lower greenhouse gas emission than products made from and originating from animals. Greenhouse emissions can be particularly high not only for animal meat but also for eggs and dairy. Various studies show that the average vegan diet emits up to 60% less greenhouse gas. In addition, the production of plant-based food requires much less water than the production of animal products such as meat. Events are the perfect place to introduce people to Vegan dishes, in order to inspire people to apply this to their daily diet as well! The Future is Vegan!

Food Waste

A sustainable event venue, in cooperation with the caterer, deals consciously with food waste. This means they do everything they can to ensure guests lack nothing, while at the same time producing no unnecessary waste. Think of the way of serving and presenting food, foodie bags after the event, or recycling and reusing leftover food. Theater Amsterdam has in-house catering and once started as concept caterer DeBorrelFabriek. When DeBorrelFabriek closed its doors at the start of the Corona pandemic, Theater Amsterdam was able to preserve the chef and all the beautiful concepts, and they cater exclusively in Theater Amsterdam. The Love Food, Fight Waste program has been revived, and the creative and circular concepts are being fully utilized again. Leftover vegetables from events are fermented and used as pickles and Kimchi at a subsequent event. A private 'Borreltje' (liqueur) is distilled from leftover wines. And ready-made meals are offered via Buurtbuik or the Too Good To Go App, where people can pick up a fresh meal for a small contribution.

Accessibility

Transportation of people causes a lot of emissions. You organize a sustainable event at a location that is easily accessible by means of transport other than just the car. Ideally, a sustainable event venue is close to a train or metro station. That way, visitors can easily travel to the location via public transport. Other options include pickup from a central gathering point using electric shuttle buses.

Do you want to organize an event with as little impact on the environment and nature as possible? Theater Amsterdam holds a golden Green Key quality label. We would love to brainstorm with you to organize a sustainable event. Download our brochure here or request a no-obligation tour.