Conference Matters 142

SUSTAINABILITY

'Unfortunately, there's still a lot of green hushing'

When it comes to sustainability at a confe rence, it’s important to talk the talk as well as walk the walk. For fear of being portrayed as a greenwasher, organisers are sometimes reluc tant to talk about sustainability, notes Transfor mational Media Professor Bianca Harms. Bianca Harms, PhD, is a Professor of Transforma tional Media at the NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences. Her research focuses on how organisations, brands and policymakers can use content and media in a way that creates value for organisations, consumers and society. This also applies to the development of sustainable com munication at conferences and events. By Suzanna Timmer What are the most effective methods to increase awareness and involvement around the theme of sustainability? “That’s a complex question. Overall, we ultima tely aim to increase awareness and engagement on sustainability topics to promote behavioural

change. Thanks to decades of research, we now have numerous insights, models and theories at our disposal that explain our behaviour. Exhibiting sustainable behaviour is ultimately influenced by many different environmental factors surroun ding consumers, such as motivations, resistance and unconscious decision-making processes. In our research into sustainable behaviour, we often use the COM-B model, which states that people only exhibit desired behaviour if they have the capability (knowledge and skills), opportunity (external factors such as social and physical environment) and motivation to do so. However, there’s no universal method or strategy to achieve awareness, involvement or behaviou ral change. Each specific behavioural context and target group needs a different approach, which requires in-depth knowledge. We want to gain as much insight as possible into the target groups so that we can provide good advice about effective interventions. Sometimes, the target group lacks knowledge, while in other cases, the

re’s considerable resistance. It’s essential to press the right buttons. This also means that it’s impossible to develop generic methods. As I often say, it’s not one-size-fits-all.” And specifically looking at conferences and events? “First of all, the purpose of the conference or event is to create awareness and involvement in sustainability. Is it about communicating the sustainable story of the event itself or promo ting sustainable behaviour before, during or after

16