Are you starting to think about end-of-year celebrations?

Events are an important part of the university experience when we come together as a community around a shared purpose. Events can also produce a large amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but there are easy steps we can take to have a positive impact.  

ANU Green has updated the carbon smart events guide for hosting events on and off campus with a reduced carbon footprint. Check out these tips and tricks below: 

• Focus on experiences: Instead of emphasising food or drink to entice attendees, consider hosting an event that offers a unique experience. How about a National Botanic Gardens tour? Or organise a book swap, donating pre-loved books to Lifeline Canberra. 
• Choose sustainable service providers: Use the sustainable service providers list to find suppliers that prioritise sustainable practices. 
• Cater wisely: Try vegan or vegetarian-only catering. Hosting a morning or afternoon tea instead of lunch or dinner can also be more commitment-friendly for those with caring requirements.   
• Minimise food waste: Avoid over-catering, and if there are leftovers, donate them to ANUSA or organisations such as Communities@Work, OzHarvest or St Johns Care. 
• Try bringing your own: Encourage attendees to bring a reusable water bottle, keep cup or cutlery and crockery. A potluck picnic with fairtrade and seasonal selections is a great opportunity to practice this sustainable choice. 
• Choose accessible venues: Host your event at a location accessible by active or public transport. Where this is not possible, encourage carpooling. You can even consider organising your event around active transport. Consider a walking, cycling and scooter 'bus' from key Canberra locations to reach the event. Be sure to consider your team's accessibility requirements. 
• Avoid and reduce waste: Avoid generating waste where possible and aim to recycle or compost waste you cannot avoid. 
• Review the carbon smart events guide: Consult our guide for additional strategies to further reduce your event's carbon footprint. 

Want to bring some friendly competition to your event? Let each team member calculate their expected commuting emissions to and from the event and challenge them to choose alternative transport modes to reduce this number when travelling on the day. Alternatives may include active transport, public transport, carpooling or a combination of all three.  

Make your end-of-year celebrations memorable and impactful by integrating sustainable alternatives into our planning. We would love to hear about your efforts. Share your experience with the ANU community by posting to the ANU Green Network.  

ANU is working to reduce our environmental impact across all our emission sources including energy, travel, waste and more. Looking for other ways to help support this mission? Join the One Small Step app or the ANU Green Network. The app speaks directly to the ANU community with easy and fun ways to act more sustainably, and the Network is an online resource for ANU staff and students to access and share sustainability activities and advice at the University.