In Umeå there is a solid base of good basic conditions for sustainable meetings. However, it's your conscious choices as a meeting organizer that can make a difference and will improve your meeting from a sustainability aspect. Here are our best tips!

 

Start here! 

1.    Think of how you are going to measure sustainability at the beginning of planning – name a person as
       responsible for sustainability in your planning group.
2.    Engage and involve! Co-workers, suppliers, exhibitors, partners etc.
3.    Dare to ask questions and benchmark – how are others working with sustainability?
4.    Measure, report, evaluate.
5.    Inspire others – dare to share your success stories as well as the things that did not go as planned.
6.    Reconsider what your purposes are. How can your meeting leave a positive legacy and imprint – locally,
       professionally, personally?
 

Transportation and travel 

Umeå is strategically located in northern Sweden and is easy to travel to, in different ways.
Here are a couple of suggestions:

•    Decide that all delegates are to travel by train. Book a group travel with Norrtåg or SJ – or why not charter an entire train with SJ.
•    Fly one way, take the train the other way
•    If you choose to travel by airplane, climate compensate with klimatkompensera.se or reduce your climate impact with Fly Green Fund . With climate compensation you are indirectly contributing to lowering your CO2-impact where the compensation can be planting trees. If you choose to climate reduce, the airplane is fueled by biofuel instead of fossil fuel.
 

Find out more about travelling sustainably to Umeå 

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Venues

•    Choose a third party certified venue, find more information here.
•    Ask questions to the suppliers and make demands! How can they help you to reach your goals?
     Think transports and logistics, waste and disposal, local produce etc.

Purchase and waste

•    Plan purchases with the key words ‘minimize – reuse – recycle’ in mind. Find more help on
     how to deliberate on purchases, waste and left-over material on VAKINs’
     (Umeå’s local water and waste organization). 
•    Choose local, certified and ethically labeled products
•    Choose local suppliers
•    Instead of classic give-aways and gifts to lecturers, make a donation to charity. Here are some suggestions: Umeå Stadsmission (Umeå City Mission), Vän i Umeå (Friend in Umeå), Hjältarnas Hus (House of Heroes), Barnrättsbyrån (The Bureau for Childrens' Rights), Fatta!
•    Ask your venue if you can donate your food waste and left over event materials

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Accomodation 

•    Choose third party certified hotels. Today, 83% of Umeås’ hotel rooms are eco-labeled.

Food and beverages 

•    Make more meals vegetarian
•    Ask for seasonal and local food. Make demands when it comes to ethical and ecological certifications.
•    Communicate what you are serving – what are the food and beverages origin? 
•    Serve tap water (still or sparkling, most restaurants can offer both) instead of bottled water.
     Sweden has one of the world’s best and cleanest tap water – take the chance to drink it!
     Another way is to choose a “Kranmärkt” venue or to make the meeting
    “Kranmärkt” – read more about it here
•    Provide information on contents of the food to simplify and assure your delegates what they are eating
•    Choose Fairtrade- or ethical labeled products when it, for example, comes to: coffee, tea, chocolate,
     bananas etc. Make demands on the venue! 

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Open, welcoming and accessible 

•    Plan your meeting according to generally accepted accessibility criteria, so that everyone can participate
     regardless of function variation
•    Communicate accessibility as soon as possible, preferably in the invitation
•    Actively strive and work for equality in the conference program and having both women and men
     in panel sessions
•    Activate delegates in charity events and collections for local society- or environment organizations
•    Share important knowledge from your meeting and engage in accessible activities with local organizations
•    Collaborate with a local non-profit organizations

 

Do you have any questions or do you want help with how to take on these tips above? Visit Umeå offers support and guidance to help you make your meetings more sustainable! Don't hesitate to contact us!