ISO 20121

What Is Sustainable Event Management?

The process by which organisations produce an event with social and environmental responsibility at the forefront of their strategy is known as sustainable event management. Sustainable event management considers the needs, values, and ethics of all event stakeholders.

Sustainable event management is important because it minimises environmental damage while keeping ethics and values at the forefront of event strategy. Sustainability-focused events prioritise environmental, economic, and social values. Sustainable products and events are more than just trendy, with 9 out of 10 Australians wanting sustainable products and a massive 70% seeking to make their events more viable by 2020.

What Is ISO 20121?

ISO 20121 provides guidance and best practices to help you manage and control the social, economic, and environmental impact of your event. Every action matters, from drinking tap water instead of plastic bottles to encouraging people to use public transportation. You might discover that it also helps you save money.

Because of ISO 20121's adaptability, it can be used for a wide range of events, from music festivals to school outings. To make the standard practical and useful, it was developed with input from many different stakeholders, including representatives from the event industry. It addresses all stages of an event's supply chain and includes guidelines for monitoring and measuring.

If you work in the event industry in any capacity, this standard is for you.

Why Should Your Business Get the ISO 20121 Certification?

The sustainability of events has received a lot of attention in recent years. The ISO 20121 event sustainability management systems standard provides a comprehensive and systematic approach to incorporating sustainability into the event planning cycle. This standard requires organisations to understand and manage issues related to sustainable development. However, it doesn't certify the event itself, but rather the management system of the organisations that organise it.

Adopting ISO 20121 not only helps with environmental challenges, but it will also make the event sector more lucrative and competitive. It has demonstrated a wide range of benefits by lowering the impact on local communities and cost savings through limiting the waste generated and energy savings, starting from the domestic local festival to the London Olympics 2012 and Paralympics games.

By obtaining ISO 20121 accreditation, the company demonstrates how its efforts to safeguard the environment and local communities aid in contract wins and provide it an edge over its competitors over other event planners.

Benefits of ISO 20121 Certification

• Find ways to make event planning and execution better
• Attain performance and efficiency standards that are best in class
• Define the obligations of employees, independent contractors, and suppliers.
• Reduce costs through improving energy and waste management
• For even better outcomes, incorporate ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards.
• The effectiveness of the task will improve with better matched staff and plan.
• It will create an accountable integrated management structure and boost employee innovation, which will increase productivity and teamwork.
• Foster a positive relationship between the company's partners, clients, and other stakeholders while enhancing the organisation's reputation.
• Able to achieve the highest levels of cost-cutting methods in terms of trash recycling, material use, and energy savings.

Requirements of ISO 20121 Certification

• Any type of event or activity associated with events must comply with the requirements set forth in ISO 20121:2012, and it also offers instructions on how to do so
• Any organisation that desires to: is subject to ISO 20121:2012
• Create, implement, sustain, and enhance an event sustainable management system
• Ensure that it complies with the organisation's stated sustainable development policy
• Demonstrate voluntary compliance with ISO 20121:2012 by first party (self-determination and self-declaration), second party (confirmation of compliance by parties with an interest in the organisation, such as clients, or by other people on their behalf), or independent third party (e.g. a certification body)
• The goal of ISO 20121:2012 is to manage increased sustainability all through the full event management cycle.

Why Is an ISO 20121 Checklist Important?

• Clause 4: Organisational Affairs

  Achieving the organisation's vision or aim is impossible due to internal or external problems. Therefore, these should be resolved in accordance with the following criteria:

  • The company and its situation should be openly disclosed to the personnel.
  • It is important to comprehend and fulfil the demands of parties and sponsors.
  • Determine the scope of the event sustainability management system.
  • It is necessary to establish the sustainability management guiding principles.

• Clause 5: Leadership

  The top management is accountable for demonstrating initiative and responsibility, developing a strategy for sustainable development, and communicating ruled-out positions and obligations within the organisation.

• Clause 6: Planning

  The planning phase is one of the most crucial parts of an event sustainability management system since it specifies the course of action to be done in case of hazards and the goal of a sustainable event.

• Clause 7: Support

  The event sustainability management system needs the right resources and a sound structure in place and upheld in order to accomplish continual improvement. Evaluation of employee competency in the workplace should take into account their education, training, self-awareness, experience, work aptitude, and mental health. These are also one of the elements required for the event industry to keep getting better.
  
  Employees working in the event sustainability management system ought to be knowledgeable of the framework, policy, and implications of the non-conformities for the ISO 20121 standard.
  
  There ought to be a clear line of communication between the organisation's staff and the general public, such as through group discussions, periodicals that are distributed, and discussions about how to stop particular risks and unruly employee conduct.
  
  The company must produce and maintain the manual document in accordance with ISO 20121 standards. In addition to that criterion, the organisation may additionally incorporate other data that it deems important for the event sustainability management system.

• Clause 8: Operation

  To address the ESMS execution, destinations, and targets, the planning and control of the association's activities and procedures will be resolved and put into practice. To demonstrate their ability to assist destinations, the association will also highlight the value of each of these goals, aims, and plans to service providers.

• Clause 9: Evaluation of Performance

  Every organisation should monitor the performance of sustainability management after receiving ISO 20121 accreditation, and reviews should be undertaken on a regular basis.
  
  Routine monitoring, analysis, and assessment can boost performance. Performance will also be improved by undertaking an internal audit and management assessment.

• Clause 10: Improvement

  The organisation should evaluate the steps for identifying non-conformities, and take appropriate preventive actions, with corrective measures. By eliminating the causes of non-conformities, the organisation will attain sustained improvement.

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