CINZ in New Zealand set to be a carbon-neutral event

Conventions and Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) will be a carbon-neutral event for the third year in a row. The event, which will take place from 29-31 October, puts sustainability high on the agenda, according to Chief Executive Sue Sullivan. Sullivan commented: ““CINZ will again be working with local environmental consultancy Ahika to offset any carbon emissions produced as a result of the conference. For the 2017 conference in Dunedin, for example, CINZ sponsored native tree planting to help restore the Otago Peninsula forests. “Delegates will walk to the conference venue Skyline Queenstown from their various hotels. Skyline is giving all delegates glass KeepCups for their hot drinks, and people are encouraged to refill their own bottles at the water fountain. At the event, delegates heard Sustainability advocate Saskia Verraes, General Manager for Responsible Management at Tourism Holdings Limited, speak on global environmental issues. Also featured was a panel discussion focused on sustainability practices operators are already demonstrating within their businesses. Keiran Frost from The Headwaters, Tim Hunter from Southern Discoveries and Georgina Torrington from Brooke Serene brought their experiences to this panel. Sullivan continued: “Waste food at the various venues is recycled, and the fabric lanyards and their plastic pouches are recycled from one event to the next. Printed paper will be cut to a minimum by using the EventsAIR mobile app and, only a few Annual Reports will be printed for the AGM. “As advocates for the business events sector, we are also looking at sustainability in its broadest sense, encompassing environmental, economic and social impacts. With our partners including Tourism New Zealand, Air New Zealand, Queenstown Convention Bureau (QCB) and our members who are already active in this field, we want to demonstrate and lead practical change.”