While sustainability has become a strategic priority for many organizations, implementation remains a significant challenge across the meetings and events industry.
New findings show that although 66% of Associations consider sustainability highly important, fewer than 34% have embedded it into their operations, and only 3% report having an advanced sustainability program.
To help close this gap, Radisson Hotel Group (RHG) and GDS-Movement have partnered to launch Accelerating Sustainable & Regenerative Events: A Guide for Associations & PCOs, a practical roadmap designed to help Associations and Professional Congress Organizers (PCOs) integrate sustainability into event planning, delivery and reporting.
The guide was unveiled to industry stakeholders in Brussels and developed using insights from destinations participating in the GDS-Index, the leading benchmarking and performance improvement program for destination sustainability. For Associations, the challenge extends beyond a single event.
Many organizations manage multiple meetings across different destinations, suppliers and planning cycles, creating complexity when trying to implement consistent sustainability standards and reporting frameworks.
“The industry does not have a sustainability awareness problem; it has an implementation challenge,” said Inge Huijbrechts, Chief Sustainability and Security Officer at Radisson Hotel Group. “As a global hospitality company, we work closely with associations, event organizers and destinations around the world and understand the practical barriers they face. This guide is designed to move the conversation from ambition to action by providing planners with practical tools, trusted frameworks and stronger collaboration models.”
Despite growing awareness of environmental and social responsibilities, many event organizers continue to face barriers, including perceived costs, limited access to sustainability data, fragmented supplier ecosystems and a lack of practical implementation frameworks.
The guide argues that successful sustainable events require more than individual initiatives. They depend on collaboration between Associations, destinations, venues and suppliers to create measurable and repeatable approaches that can be applied consistently across event portfolios. For organizations managing recurring congresses, annual conferences and regional meetings, this need for consistency is particularly important.
A central theme of the guide is the growing role of destinations in helping event organizers achieve their sustainability objectives.
Through the GDS-Index, destinations are assessed against 74 qualitative and quantitative indicators aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Destination Criteria, helping create transparency and accountability across the events ecosystem.
“Destinations play a pivotal role in accelerating the transition toward sustainable and regenerative events,” said Guy Bigwood, CEO and Chief Changemaker of GDS-Movement. “Through the GDS-Index, we help destinations measure and improve their sustainability performance while providing event organizers with the information they need to make informed decisions. Collaboration between destinations, venues and suppliers is essential to creating events that generate meaningful social, environmental and economic value.”
The guide outlines five practical actions that Associations and PCOs can implement to strengthen sustainability performance across their events: Collaborate with destination partners earlier in the planning process; Prioritize certified supplier networks and sustainability credentials; Integrate social impact and legacy initiatives into event design; Incorporate low-carbon mobility strategies for delegates and stakeholders; Implement sustainability-linked measurement, reporting and incentive frameworks.
Together, these actions provide planners with a practical foundation for delivering more sustainable and regenerative events while improving consistency across multiple meetings and destinations.
The partnership between Radisson Hotel Group and GDS-Movement reflects a shared commitment to accelerating sustainability across the meetings and events industry through practical action, collaboration and measurable outcomes.
Building on initiatives such as Verified Net Zero and the implementation of Hotel Sustainability Basics across its portfolio, Radisson Hotel Group continues to work with Associations, destinations and industry partners to support more responsible event delivery and help create a more sustainable future for meetings and events worldwide.
