Guidebook for smart and sustainable event management

Which elements make events safe and sustainable? Are all key players aware of sustainable principles and will they implement them? These and other questions were explored during the Union of Baltic Cities Sustainable, Safe and Cultural Cities Commissions´ joint meeting Cultures of Sustainability in Baltic Cities that took place in Słupsk and Ustka, Poland on 15th – 17th June 2016. The aim of the meeting was to discuss and find key principles on how to produce sustainable events from small-scale local events to big international events in the Baltic Sea Region cities. The meeting offered a fruitful ground for experts from the three focus areas – safety – culture – sustainability – to change experiences and build new partnerships.

Need for common principles on sustainable event management

It was discussed during the meeting that organizing events is a co-operation between various actors, such as municipal authorities, businesses and NGOs. There´s an actual demand for smooth communication, clear instructions for necessary permits and safety regulations. In addition, cultural and social values should be incorporated in all levels of the event management. As the outcome of the meeting, the participants committed to work for establishing a guidebook for sustainable event management that would disseminate smart practices from the UBC cities.

1. Susanna Winblad, City of Malmö, stressed that already existing cultures and facilities should be utilized when planning and organizing events

Susanna Winblad, City of Malmö, stressed that already existing cultures and facilities should be utilized when planning and organizing events

By combining different angles (safety, culture, sustainability), it is ensured that all central elements will be taken into consideration and included in the guidebook. Secondly, the participants discussed that there is a need for commonly shared principles on sustainable event management in the Baltic Sea cities. Therefore, the possibility to use the guidebook also as a toolkit for cities will be explored. Finally, participants suggested that the guidebook would be published as web-application and distributed broadly in the UBC cities and well as schools and other relevant stakeholders.

The joint meeting gathered around 30 participants from the UBC cities. More information about the follow-up will be published in UBC page later.