Conference Matters 141

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

But what if the congress takes place in the Mid dle East or Far East? Questions about human rights then quickly arise. Environmental issues also pop up. Is it justifiable to travel to Bali where every effort is being made to supply water to the golf courses, while the population is forced to buy bottled water due to lack of desalinated water. Is it acceptable to organise a congress in a location where many people died during the con struction of the venue or where labourers are still systematically abused? Sustainability issues also come into play closer to home. Is it still justifiable to organise an event in the Alps, where energy-guzzling machines ensure enough snow for skiing outings. Or in a city where human rights of the lhbtiq+ commu nity are under severe pressure such as in several European countries? These questions will come up when organising conferences to certain desti nations. Western countries Hence, ESG issues will also impact the confe rence industry. On the one hand, conference participants from Western countries will incre asingly demand that congresses comply with various aspects of ESG. On the other hand, desti

conference takes place. Participants are from corporate organisations and come from all over the world. For those working at multinationals that must comply with the CSRD, it will be important to know whether this conference is sustainable. For instance, from an environmental perspec tive, does the conference venue try to minimise single-use plastics and other types of waste. Is energy for heating and cooling green energy from climate-neutral sources. From a social point of view, are women and men having equal career opportunities within the organising company. In addition, the CSRD requires companies to be transparent about what they do, how they do it and if they properly run their business. Simply put, managing the company correctly means working with integrity and being accountable, which implies the ‘G’ of governance. Congress venues Congress venues such as RAI Amsterdam are focusing on and committed to be compliant with ESG policies. Not only in the ‘environmental’ scope but also in the other two pillars, ‘social’ and ‘governance’.

and, conversely, how you as a business affect the environment (inside-out). The former is cal led financial materiality. Think of the huge labour shortage driving up costs. But also increased energy costs and maintaining mandatory energy labels. In addition, as a company, you need to know what your impact is on the environment. The confe rence area being inaccessible due to a congress has impact on the neighbourhood. The amount of waste caused by dismantling stands has an adverse impact on the environment. This is called impact materiality. Together, this is called double materiality. So, it is about knowing what kind of impact you have on stakeholders and what you may expe rience from them. Therefore, it is important to have a good idea of who your stakeholders are. Apart from sentient creatures also nature is a stakeholder. While animals and nature cannot safeguard their own interests, numerous others, individuals and organisations, can and do. Non-financial Reporting Up from 2024 ESG and CSRD will firstly apply to large, listed companies. This means that in addi

What does ESG mean for the conference indus try and what are important things to consider as an organisation? Not having a ESG policy is the recipe to eventually lose your client.

nations where ESG is under pressure, whichever of the three pillars, will see a decline in internati onal congresses or at least in participants from Western countries. Consequently, this also affects PCO’s and other companies involved in the organisation. In other words, the conference market will change, no doubt about is. And in Europe at least, will require sustainability. Double materiality What does ESG mean for the conference indus try and what are important things to consider as an organisation? It’s about having a clear picture of how the environment affects your business (outside-in)

By Angelique Lombarts. Image: Shutterstock

Are women and men having equal career opportunities

Everyone has heard about the United Nations SDGs, the Sustainability Development Goals. Far fewer have heard about ‘ESG’, the abbreviation used for the overarching sustainability concept consisting of the three pillars Environmental (E), Social (S) and Governance (G) to achieve these very important goals. Or have heard about ‘CSRD’ (Corporate Social Reporting Directives), the new European legislation that requires companies to demonstrate they have an ESG policy in place to become (more) sustainable. That ESG will play an increasingly important role the coming years - and the fact that the impact will be significant - does not yet seem to be com mon knowledge. Nor does the urgency seem to be getting through to everyone. Practical examples Let’s start with a few practical examples to illus trate the above. Suppose a large international

within the organising company?

ESG is here and is here to stay

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