On the road – to net zero – together
D ear colleagues , Rarely in recent years has an UFI Congress theme matched the sense and spirit of an event as well as ‘ Together Again ’ did this year . We , indeed , came together again , we discussed together again – laughed together again . We shared experiences and observations , learnings and strategies . We mourned the colleagues we have lost to the pandemic , and we celebrated those who showed leadership and innovation , winning the UFI Awards this year .
I said repeatedly during the Congress that my favourite slide to share during our General Assembly was the one listing UFI ’ s upcoming face-to-face events . We will head into 2022 with a calendar that lists quite a few already , with others in planning – taking us to Hamburg , Macao , Poznan , as well as to Singapore and – for the 89th Global Congress , to Muscat , Oman . All of that is subject to pandemic development still , of course . And , for 2023 , UFI has selected Las Vegas , USA , as host for the 90th Global Congress . We could not be more excited with this growing line up of face-to-face events .
Just as our industry events bring us back together , and drive new ideas , so do other types of events around the world . Arguably , the most important conference / summit of the year took place earlier this month in Glasgow : The Global Climate Summit , COP26 . And this time , we showed up as an industry , with the Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge initiative .
Because , when it comes to battling climate change , we have two roles to play . One is the role we always have : We build and we operate the
Right : UFI has been active with work on sustainabilty for over 15 years
Kai Hattendorf UFI managing director / CEO
platforms where everyone comes together . But we also have to make sure that we commit ourselves to the target of carbon zero – to make sure that the greenhouse gas footprints that events create become smaller and smaller and eventually disappear . In Glasgow , we took the stage in front of the world – to share our own obligations as an industry .
The events sector is a very wide sector – covering everything from trade shows to wedding planners , from global congress organisers to local suppliers . But we are used to collaborating , and to collaborating well , to make things happen .
In the past months , we have brought together a global , inclusive group of actors from across the events sector . With the support and guidance
from the UNFCCC we have worked on our sector ’ s journey towards carbon neutrality and zero carbon .
On 10 November , when we launched the initiative officially , we were already able to announce an impressive list of more than 100 initial signatories – companies that signed the pledge and committed to its targets . And their number has grown steadily since then ; and I want to encourage each and every one of you to sign your business up as well . This journey won ’ t be easy , but we aren ’ t starting from zero . It looks complicated , but we have experts and guides at hand .
Across our industry , we have excellent good practices and sustainability champions . We can build on their work with them all – as an industry collaborating , not competing .
At UFI , we have been active with work on sustainability for more than 15 years , and we can and will share all we have learnt through the Net Zero Carbon Events initiative . As our new president , Monice Lee-Müller , said to us , accepting her presidency in Rotterdam : “ I can ’ t emphasise enough – if we don ’ t take meaningful steps now , the future is bleak . Not just for our industry , but for our future generations and our planet . Let ’ s all get on the road to net zero , together .”
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