This week I finally got around to reading the August 2008 version of Meetings & Convention Mangazine (M&C). There main story was 2008 Meetings Market Report. They actually asked some questions about being green. I was so discusted by the results that I had to share them with you.
“This year, to reflect how the “green” wave has taken over the meetings industry, we asked planners about their recycling and other conservation tactics. About a third of both groups make sure all their conference materials are printed on recycled paper. Surprisingly, in this climate, 33 percent of the corporate respondents and 21 percent of their association colleagues don’t know if recycled paper is being used.”
How do you not know if you are using recycled paper? I couldn’t believe that last sentence!!!
The article continued by doing a Green Planning Profile…
Every day, the “green movement reaches further into the meetings world. To gauge how planners are approaching the trend, a number of questions on the subject were added to the 2008 Meetings Market Report survey.
When asked how a destination’s reputation for being environmentally friendly weighed on their selections, 49 percent of corporate planners of events other than incentives said the area’s eco-friendly reputation was very important factor in their decision, while only 24 percent of incentive planners said it was significant. Just a quarter of convention planners said a destination’s reputation was a major factor, and even fewer of those who plan other association meetings, 22 percent, considered this important.
An unspoiled environment was a significant factor for just 37 percent of the corporate meeting professionals surveyed, but almost half (48 percent) of the incentive planners considered it important. On the association side, more convention planners (35 percent) than planners of other association meetings (28 percent) said a clean and unspoiked evnironment was a major factor.
Considering how high-profile the norion of social responsibility has become in the corporate world, it’s not surporising that corporate planners are more conscious of green practices when choosing facilities than their association counterparts. More than half of the corporate respondents (51 percent) and 42 percent of the incentive respondents said green practices at a facility were an omportant factor. Only 17 percent of association meeting planners and 18 percent of convention planners said ti was a significant consideration when choosing a facility or hotel. Planners generally are happy to implement green practices if the facility already offers them. Nine percent of corporate planners and 14 percent of association planners always arrange it so attendees can recycle papers, cans and bottles at events, but 41 percent of the corporate sample and 53 percent of association respondents do so only if the facility already offers the service.
When conferences are in progress, more than half of both groups (54 percent corporate and 57 percent association) make sure lights and air conditioning are turned off whenever meeting rooms are not in use.”
One other startling fact…9 percent of corporate planners follow a mandatory “green” policy for their meetings and only 8% for association!
This just makes me sad! 
