Safe Live Events, Virtual Events, and Sustainability

By Scott McKye | CEO | KLEERTECH®

Beginning in the late 90s, the event industry acknowledged the pain of the pollution resulting from holding large events. Post-event reality meant watching ten or more 20-ton truckloads of event waste being hauled from McCormick Place every week and heading for some landfill. While the cost to organizers surely must have been a wake-up call, sadly, little was done to cure this for another decade. The good news is during this time, all events of every size and category came under the same scrutiny for the right reasons as the large ones. Wasteful practices were agreed and ethical best-practices became essential components of both organizers and vendors to the event industry plans.

While some felt the need to make pithy quips such as ‘the most sustainable event is the one that’s never held’, let’s assume they never fathomed such an ‘event’ would occur, nor would it be world-wide in scope.  Any such circumstances would be an existential threat to their livelihood, affecting theirs and everyone in the Industry’s sustainability, no?

Instead, they saw the way to full sustainability in all-digital events. They envisioned live events would gradually disappear and be replaced by online events. Every aspect from registration to sessions to meetups to the exhibition hall and exhibitors would be online, thus eliminating almost all the physical resources needed and expended in the production of live, face-to-face events.

As this concept was implemented, planners found there were some drawbacks to all virtual events, especially for exhibitors whose returns on investment were significantly less compared to their returns on investment for live events.

At the same time, various organizations began looking at ways for event planners to produce sustainable live events following standardized practices. The Event Industry Council (EIC) began in 2014 in partnership with the ASTM (formerly the American Society for Testing and Materials) to develop standards. In 2019, the EIC independently revised their standards and introduced a path to sustainable event certification with its Sustainable Event Professional Certificate Program.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic began, and everything changed.

The majority of event venues in the United States were closed to gatherings of more than ten to 25 attendees, and event planners were left with only one choice: All virtual online events.

Now more than ever, those producing, attending or exhibiting at virtual events could see the financial consequences of all virtual events and most of all what was missing for everyone, the benefits of face-to-face contact.

Now, with a better understanding of the disease and how to protect against it, falling rates of infection, and a proven vaccine, event planners, the hospitality industry, event supply manufacturers and sellers, and event services providers are meeting the challenge of returning to live events safely with innovative ideas and planning as well as keeping their commitment to sustainability.

The first consideration in safe gatherings is the number of people assembled for the event. Testing the waters with smaller groups is a good way to start and provides the opportunity to determine the most effective procedures and engineering for creating a safe environment for all involved.

To start, event planners are wise to discuss their planned events with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local public health departments. Also, when looking for venues, a GBAC (International Global Bio Risk Advisory Council) certified venue and staff is the ideal choice.

Once the venue is determined, the plans for physical layout, barriers to exposure, and procedures to follow can be implemented.

Identifying potential problems at the start of an event is essential. Exhibitors and attendees can be screened as they enter the event hall using automated temperature kiosks. Screening kiosks are available as a floor or tabletop model and are equipped with software that will send an email notification to designated devices to alert staff to any readings which are out of range.

Maintaining safe distances and identifying individuals who have come in contact is important to the safety of all event participants. Several devices are available, which can provide both contact tracing and an alarm that alerts the individual user who comes too close to another individual. Bluetooth wristbands, Bluetooth Low Energy beacons and mobile phone apps are examples of these.

Safe distancing guides should be provided throughout the venue especially at the entrance, registration check-in and badge printing stations wherever lines will be formed. Floor signage works well for this purpose and can be strategically placed to help attendees stay aware of keeping a safe distance from fellow attendees.

Of course, all event participants should follow the now-common requirements for COVID-19 safety such as mask-wearing and frequent hand washing or sanitizing. Event planners can provide plenty of hand sanitizer stations and extra masks to facilitate these safety procedures. Besides, planners should equip the appropriate areas, such as registration tables or kiosks with clear plastic shields, to provide a barrier between staff or exhibitors and attendees as they interact.

Finally, the use of digital event badges was trending even before the COVID-19 pandemic began. A digital badge has everything a physical badge has and has several advantages both in and out of a pandemic.

With a digital badge loaded on your mobile phone, registration check-in is just a matter of scanning a digital barcode at an automated kiosk keeping personal contact at a minimum. No physical materials are handled or need to be disposed of such as a badge holder, badge, or lanyard. With fewer resources used, fuel and energy needed for transport are lessened and less waste goes into landfills.

While the current exploding impetus for virtual events came from the necessity to hold a safe event, their potential efficacy is undeniable once the pandemic is truly over. Those attendees and exhibitors who can’t afford to participate due to time constraints, medical conditions or even budget limitations, may still attend if a virtual component is included in event planners' scope of work. We hope they will.