Sustainable and Virtual Trade Shows Arriving on the Scene
As EcoGreenHotel examines the world of tradeshows and conventions, it appears sustainability options have finally arrived to the forefront. US Green Building Council LEED certified convention centers are springing up in cities of all sizes around the world.
From centers in Santa Fe, Spokane, Pittsburg, Raleigh, and Virginia City to LEED silver centers in Los Angeles, Dallas, and Portland to the first Platinum center in Vancouver, British Columbia that sports its enormous 6-acre living green-roof, the largest non-industrial of its kind in North America. Even master planned sustainable cities such as Korea’s Songdo International Business District and Qatar’s Masdar City know sustainability is the way to the future.
Green Practices All Around
Now, more than ever, green practices are being adopted by convention centers, surrounding hotels, event planners, vendors and contractors to dramatically reduce costs and their environmental impact. It truly does become a domino effect. We receive more and more inquiries about Energy Efficiency Services as more hotels strive to become green to meet local event requirements. These are tremendous achievements and very exciting times for cities aiming to attract the growing market of sustainable tradeshows.
For example, WasteExpo is North America’s largest solid waste and recycling tradeshow serving both the private and public sectors. The show boasts “green” initiatives such as: extensive use of electronic media to eliminate paper, energy saving lighting, green cleaners, carpet made from recycled materials, and of course robust recycling and energy efficiency features.
It is held at the Georgia World Congress Center Authority in Atlanta, which has recently adopted sustainability practices for its 3.9million square feet of space. Beyond the standard green building practices, the center works closely with a local Food Bank to ensure left over food and supplies from events do not go to waste. Plastic water bottles have been replaced with spring water coolers and food wastes are composted onsite.
But are these initiatives enough to create a truly sustainable trade show?
There is still the impact from hosting tens of thousands of travelers annually and the tons of waste generated from booth displays. One could argue the environmental impact of transporting people, equipment and 100s or 1000s of trade booths across the country or world is avoidable, too costly and unnecessary in today’s computer driven world.
A Virtual Future
Imagine attending a conference or trade show while having lunch or on your own time and without dealing with the headache of airport delays. Thanks to the emergence of innovative technology, you can attend sessions, meet vendors, exchange business cards and mingle with attendees – all without leaving the comfort of your desk chair.
In EcoGreenHotel’s opinion, the most sustainable trade show is the recent rise of Virtual Trade Show events (VTS). Although these events have been around well before 2007, the struggling economy has forced many companies to reduce their travel budgets and increase focus on being “green.”
As the name implies, it is conducted online for all of the attendees and exhibitors in a virtual convention center. The Virtual Trade Shows offer live speakers, interactive vendor booths, networking events, and opportunities to sample products and services with nearly Zero Carbon Footprint!
In today’s economy the time and cost savings alone make this option immensely more attractive than traditional shows. EcoGreenHotel likes the idea of the virtual trade show so much it has committed to attend the Spa Hospitality Expo on May 26 and 27.
Your First Virtual Trade Show Experience
Join us at our booth to win a prize and attend the live streaming of “Transforming Hotels & Resorts” presented by, our very own, Scott Parisi. You can register for FREE at http://tiny.cc/dq4sh.
Look out for EcoGreenHotel’s June Eco Newsletter as we bring you: An Evaluation to our Virtual Trade Show Experience
About EcoGreenHotel
Headquartered in New Jersey, EcoGreenHotel is dedicated to serving lodging facilities address environmental issues, become a green hotel and achieve the Triple Bottom Line. EcoGreenHotel.com is also a great resource for tools, checklists, green product and service directory, news and trends, green hotel directory, as well as a marketplace for eco green products at EcoGreenHotel Store (www.EcoGreenHotelStore.com). EcoGreenHotel also offers green internet marketing services for existing green hotels looking to optimize their web presence. For more information, please visit www.EcoGreenHotel.com, or call us at 888.229.0213.
