Green Economy Journal Issue 41

EVENTS
Green at Heart BY
CTICC
The Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) lies in the business hub of Cape
Town, welcoming delegates from across the globe in the quest to expand the knowledge
economy and create jobs by connecting people.
CTICC Nurture Our World Team
CTICC 2 ground floor.
Designed from the outset to be green at heart, the CTICC is
proud to continue its contribution to sustainability in the
events industry. At the time it was built, CTICC 1 achieved a
77.1% compliance with South African Energy and Demand Efficiency
Standards, while the innovative design of CTICC 2 earned a 4-star
Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of South
Africa. Both CTICC 1 and CTICC 2 maximise the use of natural light,
emission-minimising climate control and energy saving technologies.
Ongoing retrofits have included the installation of sensor-operated
escalators, LED lights, soft-touch taps, dual flush toilets and a closed
climate control system that actively manages unnecessary usage.
To ensure sustainable water usage, the CTICC invested R8 million into a
reverse-osmosis plant, combined with an extra storage capacity of 400 000
litres. Greywater and rainwater harvesting, for use inside and outside the
complex, are two additional initiatives the centre has in place to save water.
When it comes to the events hosted at the CTICC, clients are offered
the opportunity to ‘green’ their events, through various ways such as
completing the ‘Event Greening Checklist’ early in their planning process.
This ensures that greening is top of mind at every step of their event
planning and execution.
The CTICC takes extra care to ensure that the majority of the ingredients
used in the catering offering is sourced from local suppliers within a
50km radius, with the exception of food items sourced from upcountry to
accommodate specific client requirements. 63% of the Centre’s recyclable
waste, including kitchen waste, is diverted from landfill.
The kitchen waste is segregated and sent to fly farms, while unpackaged
food waste, as well as any horse manure and straw from the annual Cape
Premier Yearling event, is sent to a composting contractor, who distributes
the waste for use in bokashi. Bokashi is a composting method where
scraps of organic food waste are placed in a container filled with a special
type of bran, which is tightly covered for 10 to 12 days. The waste becomes
pickled and is then ready to be used in the garden.
Event waste such as wood from custom stands, furniture left behind at
events, and packaged non-perishable food, is donated to organisations in
need for upcycling and reuse.
The Investing in African Mining Indaba is a good example of green
events hosted at the CTICC. In celebration of its 25th anniversary,
organisers created an event that brought the issue of sustainability to the
attention of its 6 050 delegates. One of the initiatives included a waste
recycling programme that saw 24 000kg wood donated to the Orion
Organisation, a school for persons with disabilities, and Cabrico Genuine
Clay Face Brick and Pavers.
The centre work with the event organisers and stand builders to
guarantee that the event break-down procedure was well briefed
and methodically managed, and ensured that the wood was carefully
dismantled and contamination avoided.
Additionally, one of the centre’s contractors assisted in arranging and
delivering the event fabric, banners and signage to Sealand Gear, who
reused the material to make upcycled goods.
Not only did the CTICC and Investing in African Mining Indaba meet
their goal of creating an environmentally sustainable event, but the
diversion of this waste helped create multiple jobs.
The CTICC’s commitment to ‘green’ events extends to the Centre’s
participation at exhibitions as well. This year CTICC won the Small Stand
Award category in the Event Greening Forum Awards at Meetings Africa
2020. The stand was created to be used at multiple events for the next two
to three years, with minor touch-ups. To ensure a sustainable exhibition
stand, during the design phase, the Centre specifically chose construction
elements that could be upcycled, recycled or reused at the end of the
stand’s lifespan. While the stand is not in use, it is be stored in a warehouse.
It is no wonder the CTICC is an iconic world-class convention centre, and
a business whose reputation for inspirational leadership in the meetings
and conference industry is underpinned by its triple bottom line strategy;
people, planet, profit. The CTICC is undoubtedly green at heart.
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