l'enjeu majeur De l'événementiel - GL events

Cover story.21
ADEME:
the carbon
footprint
is not a finality
Carbon footprint. When sustainable
development is mentioned in the context
of the event organisation sector, this tool,
which is designed to calculate greenhouse
gas emissions, is highlighted everywhere.
According to the French agency for the
environment and energy control (Agence
de l’Environnement et de la Maîtrise
de l’Énergie, ADEME), although it is
undoubtedly a good thing, it is not enough.
In other words, the carbon footprint is not
a finality. “It’s just a photo taken at a given
moment in time, which should subsequently
make it possible to make real decisions
with regard to sustainable development,”
says Florence Barbett, the ADEME’s
communication manager. According to the
ADEME, all organisers of trade shows, trade
fairs or congresses must do a number of
different things in order to really adopt
a sustainable development approach:
informing clients of the eco-design of their
stands, using renewable energy sources,
Dan-Antoine Blanc-Shapira. One year later, these
same partners created, together, an “eco-guide”,
a sort of road map for eco-responsible events.
The guide presents, in the form of technical
information sheets, a collection of the “good
practices” known today, divided into ten topics:
transport, accommodation and reception, rental
of tableware and furniture, decorating and
producing stands, lighting and sound, and so on.
In the opinion of Annie Arsaut-Mazières, this type
of collective initiative is the perfect illustration of
how the French professionals in the trade fair,
trade show and congress sector are some of
today’s most motivated Europeans in sustainable
development. “In terms of waste processing,
Germany and Spain are very advanced. But when
it comes to economic development, maintaining
employment at the local level – which is a major
factor in sustainable development – our trade
fairs, trade shows and congresses are models
for the rest of Europe. They play a major role in
bringing dynamism to the regions.”
A real raising of awareness
If, in France, the professionals from the trade
fair, trade show and congress sector have in
the last few years stepped up their commitment
encouraging soft transportation methods for
access to the site, waste processing, using
seasonal products in the food provided for
visitors, paying suppliers on time so that
they do not find themselves in any difficulty,
employing handicapped people, and so on.
The list of measures to be taken for an event
to be part of a sustainable development
approach is almost infinite. Florence Barbett
goes even further, “For the ADEME, all
this is a given fact today. Now, the most
important thing for us is to help those who
take real ecological risks, who innovate and
who open up new avenues for the future”.
VIP area at the Première Vision trade show, designed and decorated with natural materials.
to sustainable development, the phenomenon
can be explained in particular by the change
in mentality. Today’s citizens, consumers and
local collectivities are ready. Their demand is
such that they create supply. Dan-Antoine Blanc-
Shapira confirms, “For events, more than two
thirds of our clients want eco-designed services.
Following on from the role played by Nicolas
Hulot at the last French presidential election,
the Grenelle de l’Environment, and the films by
Al Gore and Yann Arthus-Bertrand, we have felt
that a certain degree of awareness has been
attained”. Does this raised awareness of ethical
concerns also affect companies, or are they still
above all focused on the prospect of increasing
their market share? Dan-Antoine Blanc-Shapira
answers this question without hesitation: “Certain
professionals in the event organising sector are
taking an interest in sustainable development
in an opportunistic manner. On this subject, I
am one of those who believes it is necessary to
remain pragmatic. Any initiative that ultimately
plays a part in reducing our impact on the
environment is worthwhile. In the United States,
there is talk of “green business” as a means of
emerging from this period of crisis. And that is a
very good thing”.
Recycling
Anything is
possible if you
have you the ideas
Recycling the materials used in
the event organisation sector is
booming. In this field, structures
such as Reversible or Art Gens
have shown boundless creativity,
resulting in products that were totally
unimaginable in the past.
> The trend is now for long-lasting
products. Jean-Marc Imberton
created Reversible in 2006,
specialising in the recovery and reuse of printed
PVC tarpaulins. He soon realised that, “We
chose to go along the eco-design route,
breathing new life into more than 45 tonnes of
tarpaulin. With our teams of designers, we have
taken the risk of revealing the visual potential
behind these supports, with their multitude of
real graphic masterpieces.” This is how PVC
tarpaulins, materials that are usually difficult to
deal with at the end of their lifespan (dump or
incineration), have become fashion and
decoration accessories that are distributed via
the Internet and in a network of designer
boutiques and department stores in France and
all over the world. The bags, “Sakoch” and
“Sakafille”, lights “Sakalanterne”, deckchair
“Sakacool” and even a hat, “Sakapluie”, are just
a few examples of these unique creations. As
for the off cuts that are not used, they are
recycled by the company Texyloop, thus bringing
totally new products to life. Consumers
themselves are invited to return their product
when it reaches the end of its natural life, in a
recycled tarpaulin envelope that is given out
when the product is purchased.
Tarpaulins are not the only materials that have
inspired these “responsible designers”. The
association, Art Gens, has become an expert in
the field of artistic recycling, and has designed
100% eco-designed objects since 2002 from
the off cuts of industrial materials or products
used during trade shows. The latter include
carpeting, which has the reputation for being
difficult to recycle and store after use, and
which has been given a new lease of life, being
turned into wallets or decorative objects.
For Laure Vial Lenfant, Ecodesign Manager at
Art Gens, “today, this is more than just a passing
trend. People like the products, both for their
aesthetic appeal and their ethics”. And there is
every sign to say that this is here to stay!
Event
The trade show
for Renewable
Energy Sources
has become a
reference
The Renewable Energy Sources trade
show was pioneering in the early
2000s, but has now become a major
date on the calendar.
> Since 2001, the Renewable Energy
Sources trade show, held in Eurexpo
Lyon, has become the reference event
for all renewable energy source sectors: thermal
solar energy, photovoltaic thermal energy,
geothermics, wood, biomass energy, biogas,
agrofuels, small hydraulics, wind power…. This
trade show, which attracts an ever-wider public,
effectively plays a foreground role in this booming
market. Arnaud Wigniolle, the director of the
Construction department at Sepelcom, confirms,
“In 2001, when renewable energy sources were
still relatively insignificant, this trade show was a
real pioneer. Today, it has become the gateway to
the French market for foreign industrialists.” For
its 7th edition in February 2009, the RES trade
show put the focus on innovation, as usual. In the
“new products” section, equipment for the mass
production of energy, the questions of how to
integrate RES into the residential and tertiary
sectors, as well as energy- or heat-producing
materials built into buildings were all put in the
spotlight. In the future, GL events hopes that this
trade show will become genuinely eco-designed.
This is why it has already adopted a certain
number of actions so that the visitors will prefer
public transport to cars. Similarly, and in
collaboration with the ADEME, a carbon footprint
of the event was made. “It is important that we
be in harmony with the principles vehicled by this
trade show. Our carbon footprint is only the first
step. In the future, we will have to take this
reasoning even further, encouraging our visitors
and exhibitors to use public transport when they
come to Eurexpo, encouraging our exhibitors to
adopt a real eco-design approach for their
stands, and so on,” states Arnaud Wigniolle.
Octobre/October 2009 - GL events magazine