Advent Blog

South by Southwest (abbreviated SXSW) is a film/business/music event that happens in early spring in Austin, Texas.  Austin is a very actively “green” city with a variety of resources to cut down on a company’s carbon footprint.  However, statistically festivals and events are never as green as they seem.  Count in just the travel that occurs for a large group of people to gather in one area and one can easily see the potential for problems.  But, SXSW is taking a different approach.  They have implemented these steps within their company to make the SXSW event successful.

Support ways to reduce carbon dioxide output.
You can buy carbon credits from producers who use alternative energy.  You can also do something so simple as encouraging living things that process carbon dioxide into oxygen.  This is also known as planting trees, or taking care of trees.

Check your office and event buildings.
Most energy companies will come out and do an audit for you.  This lets you know where energy is being wasted.  Whether is an ancient furnace or big windows, this company will give you the way to reduce losing that energy.

Encourage green commuting.
If the event that you are planning involves a lot of people commuting, then set up a shuttle system around the city so that people can just hop onto a shuttle.  Set up a map of where your employees live and encourage carpooling to work at least once a week.  Instead of driving somewhere to lunch, walk to the closest sandwich place.  One of the great things about SXSW is the proximity in which the event occurs.  Instead of setting up huge stages in Austin city parks, it is actually set up in music venues all around the downtown metro area.  And because of the way Austin is set up, a lot of the music venues are right next door to one another.

Keep an eye on paper consumption.
Try to keep paper handouts to a minimum.  One way is only print out exactly what you need.  At the Austin City Limits Festival that in September, they only printed enough schedules for attendees.  When people register for an event, give them a paperless option.  Would they rather have a brochure e-mailed to them as a .pdf that they can store on a mobile handheld device or something in their hand?  Have recycle bins specifically for paper.  SXSW recycles all of the waste that comes from their event, they are able to recycle it all because they only provide items that are able to be recycled!

By making a commitment to being eco-friendly during your event, you can show how easy and practical it is to be a company that takes care of the environment.