New ISO 20121 standard for sustainable events management - 23 June, 2012.
ISO has just published a new standard to support the
organizers of events of all types – sporting, business, cultural, political –
in integrating sustainability with their activities.
ISO
20121:2012, Event sustainability management systems – Requirements with
guidance for use, is suitable for ensuring that events, ranging
from local celebrations to "mega events" such as the Olympic Games
and Paralympic Games, leave behind a positive legacy. The standard is relevant
to all members of the event industry supply chain including organizers, event
managers, stand builders, caterers and logistics suppliers.
Conferences, concerts, sporting events, exhibitions
and festivals can offer a wide range of public, local community and economic
benefits. However staging an event can also generate negative economic,
environmental and social impacts, such as material waste, energy consumption
and strains on local communities.
ISO 20121 provides the framework for identifying the
potentially negative social, economic and environmental impacts of events by
removing or reducing them, and capitalizing on more positive impacts through
improved planning and processes.
Among the stakeholders who have provided input to
the development of the standard are members of the sustainability team for the London
Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. The Head of
Sustainability, David Stubbs, comments: "London 2012 is proud to have been
the catalyst for ISO 20121. This is a piece of legacy with the potential to
transform how events around the world consider their economic, environmental
and social impacts."
The standard takes the management systems approach
familiar to thousands of organizations worldwide through the success of
standards such as ISO 9001 (quality management) and ISO 14001 (environmental
management).
ISO 20121 has been created by the event industry for
the event industry. More than 30 countries and liaison bodies participated in
the work.
Fiona Pelham, Chair of the ISO team of experts who
developed ISO 20121, comments: "The development process has been led by
members of the event industry from around the world who have experience of
event management and sustainability leadership initiatives. Among its key
benefits are:
- Best business practice
It makes sense to take an organized, processed approach to managing economic, environmental and social impacts. In addition, what gets monitored and measured gets reduced, so there are likely to be lower overheads. - Reputational advantage
Using a recognized international framework will enable leaders in sustainability to demonstrate their actions in a credible and transparent way."
ISO 20121:2012 was developed by ISO project
committee, ISO/PC 250, Sustainability in event management. It
is available from ISO national member institutes (see thecomplete list with contact
details). It may also be obtained directly from the ISO Central Secretariat,
price 146 Swiss francs through the ISO Store or by contacting the Marketing,
Communication & Information department.
Source: www.iso.org
23 June, 2012.