Sustainable practices, as defined by the UN back in 1987, may be referred to as ‘meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.’ 24 years into the 21st century, global governments and world leaders have increasingly come to realise the pressing need to make our planet more sustainable to live in in the future.
Perhaps, as a human race, we’ve been working towards a future we may not have, all thanks to climate change and collective ignorance. We’ve been tricked into believing that we have enough time until our resources are depleted. But the truth is that the world must act now.
On that note, no single industry or entity is free of this collective responsibility to ensure that our planet remains habitable. The academic event management space also stands at what we’d like to call a ‘fascinating crossroads’. In-person conferences and academic gatherings have been important to discovering much of the knowledge and pedagogy that we have today. They have, for centuries, been key platforms for researchers and scientists to share knowledge and collaborate with each other.
On the other hand, having now realised the environmental impact that the hosting of such events brings to the table, the industry, made up of some of the brightest minds in the world, is understandably concerned. Organisations and managers have been trying to cut down on their carbon emissions, reducing waste and limiting their consumption of material resources. Certainly, sustainability has become a topic that is now impossible to ignore.
Living in a modern world means having access to resources, both man-made and earthly, that our ancestors could only dream of. And the technology that we are privileged to access today with ease can, in fact, be put to fruitful, sustainable use. Yes, technology has now made it possible for online event management platforms, such as Dryfta, to hold conferences entirely virtually or in hybrid formats.
Understanding the Importance of Sustainable Practices
Before we jump into solutions, it’s worth understanding and acknowledging the scale and magnitude of the problem concerning sustainability. Most organisations think that it is an aesthetic or moral choice to make. However, in reality, it is pertinent and pervasive. Conventional, in-person conferences contribute to the building up of waste from across multiple channels. Organisers print materials for attendees in dozens that eventually end up in the trash.
In hosting high tea or lunch for participants, several organisers resort to the obvious. They hire single use catering supplies, many of which are non-biodegradable. A conference with a modest number of attendees itself produces several tonnes of waste and many more miscellaneous ones that are unaccounted for. In such a scenario, attendees and organisers are often left to question if these environmental costs even outweigh the benefits of the meeting.
What Makes These Sustainable Practices Worth It?
The event management industry adopting sustainable practices has led many event organisers to turn to technology, the smartest child in the room, for answers. Collectively, we are looking at solutions that can address these ecological challenges but without compromising on the quality and convenience of our events.
Modern technology, including artificial intelligence, has become the primary enabler of this sustainable movement in the event management sector. We now have in our kitty, tools that we previously could only read about in prototypes and pitches.
Organisations like Dryfta, now offering semi and full automation in conducting events and conferences, are committed to working towards a future that accounts for all of us.
Making Registrations Digital = Reduced Paper Waste
In making the switch towards sustainable conferences, the first thing to address is event registrations. It is one of the first functions that attendees and organisers work with in unison. Even registrations are known to generate a considerable amount of waste in the form of papers and printouts. One of the most straightforward applications of technology in this context is in digitising this process altogether.
It is certainly possible, and we at Dryfta have managed to build a software that performs this function with ease. In signing up with Dryfta and in setting up a few functions, the system then automates it and repeats it until you decide to close registrations for the event.
Formerly, traditional events relied heavily on printed forms, name badges, programmes and handouts. Each attendee might receive multiple paper items, most of which served a temporary purpose before being discarded. When multiplied across hundreds or thousands of attendees, the environmental impact becomes staggering.
Modern event management platforms have helped change this approach. Dryfta, for instance, offers all-in-one online registration features that let you eliminate these paper forms entirely. Attendees can flow through registrations via web interfaces and receive digital confirmations and access to event RSVPs and more specific details in an instant.
We also have a Dryfta mobile app that simplifies this process down to a T. Moreover, the digital approach lets organisers collect more detailed information about attendees, stacking up data that will come in handy in planning other sustainable initiatives throughout the event.
Flexible, Hybrid: The New Sustainable Approach
The environmental benefits of virtual and hybrid events compound when we consider programme booklets and schedules. A typical conference, on average, prints hundreds of multi-page programmes, many of which attendees barely reference before leaving them behind. Digital alternatives through event apps and websites give you just the same information with more flexibility than ever.
This is great news for organisers. You no longer have to reprint dozens of materials when you spot a minute yet decisive typo in the page content. Fairly, this is a human mistake to make. But today, technology like Dryfta is here to cover for you. You may now update schedules in real time; a single typo does not ruin an entire day ahead for you.
When a speaker cancels due to unavoidable circumstances at the last instance, you can now erase any remaining evidence that such an individual was ever due for a speech. It’s a scenario that event managers are far too familiar with. Organisers can now compensate for these wretched last-minute changes and even add newer sessions. Our automated software allows event managers to avoid any mishaps while conducting the events while doing their bit to save the planet, why would anyone say no?
Sustainable Conferences: Taking Virtual Route
We acknowledge that no technological development thus far has positively impacted conference sustainability more profoundly than the rise of virtual and hybrid events. While the COVID-19 pandemic encouraged more organisations to explore this idea of part-online, part-offline or fully online events, we are now looking at the voluntary adoption of these formats upon necessity.
At Dryfta, having previously hosted some massively successful and community-driven events for clients like John Hopkins University and the International Association of Applied Linguistics, we see that the environmental benefits we’ve managed to take stock of have encouraged us to prioritise the possibility of hosting virtual events even as in-person gatherings have long resumed.
What We Do At Dryfta
Virtual events eliminate travel-related emissions entirely for remote participants. When you consider that a significant portion of conference carbon footprints comes from attendee flights, ground transportation and accommodation, the potential impact becomes clear.
Dryfta supports both virtual and hybrid event formats via integrated streaming facilities, virtual networking features and digital engagement tools. These platforms enable organisers to host productive sessions for remote participants rather than simply broadcasting presentations as though it were passive social media. Attendees can tune in from anywhere in the world, provided they have connectivity to the internet.
For the ones off the grid, we still have other features to offer, such as recorded sessions on demand. The platform’s comprehensive approach means that virtual attendees aren’t treated as second-class participants but rather as an important, inextricable part of our conference community.
Hybrid models offer particular promise for sustainability as they continue to address some limitations of solely virtual events. They allow local or committed attendees to benefit from face-to-face interaction. And of course, also engage the attendees that enjoy the thought of discussing potentially life-changing ideas from the comfort of their home or a local cafè.
This approach can actually expand access to professionals who cannot justify the time or expense of travel. They can now still engage with conference content and networking opportunities. The result is often a more diverse and inclusive attendee base, adding social sustainability to the environmental benefits.
Looking Ahead: Dryfta’s Promise to Sustainability
From our work in the event management and academic conference industries over the last decade, one input has become increasingly clear: sustainable conferences are here to stay. In fact, more and more companies, including our counterparts and contenders, will likely expand in this area in the forthcoming years.
We’re privileged to be among the handful of organisations who are committed to building a sustainable future in the event management space. With tech-based tools becoming more and more sophisticated and environmental concerns becoming harder to ignore, we see a pattern and a solution here.
In putting two and two together, we’ve successfully built some features and tools that will help you allocate your resources better and cut down on your carbon footprint. The most sustainable conference might be one that doesn’t happen at all, but that misses the point entirely.
Our end goal is not to eliminate these gatherings but to make them more compatible with the cause of the environment. Here’s to more mornings, afternoons and evenings of rewarding discussions, breakthroughs and sustainability! Should you need a host and a friend, Dryfta is here.