Greening ITU Digital World

At ITU Telecom, we believe in the power of technology to improve lives everywhere. Supporting sustainable development is central to our aims – and we’re working hard to make sure sustainability is central to our events, too.

 
Here's how we are working on greening our events - and how you can help to support us as an exhibitor or participant.
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TRANSPORT

What we’re doing

  • Neutralizing

    our emissions by purchasing carbon offsets for ITU staff flights

  • Reducing

    staff travel through local staff support

What you can do

  • Carbon-offset

    your flights – the ICAO’s official calculator is here

  • Take

    event shuttle buses rather than individual cars

  • Choose

    a hotel close to the venue or public transport, and with an environmentally-responsible policy

WASTE

What we’re doing

  • Living

    our paperless policy – all event information is available on the Event App and website (we don’t print programmes or brochures)

  • Renting

    equipment (pavilions, decorations) that can be returned and reused where possible

  • Providing

    recycling stations throughout the venue

  • Collecting

    and recycling event badges

What you can do
as a participant

  • Recycle

    your waste at one of the many recycling stations

  • Use

    the Event App instead of printing out event information or exchanging business cards

  • Recycle

    your badge at one of the badge recycling stations when you leave the event

as an exhibitor

  • Use

    sustainable materials for your construction projects, including recycled metals and plastic; non-VOC paints; recycled or biodegradable carpeting; reusable displays or digital screens

  • Use

    only recycled paper and print double-sided with soy-based inks

  • Reduce

    printed documents – use QR codes or online information instead

  • Sort

    your waste responsibly

FOOD AND BEVERAGES

What we’re doing

  • Minimizing

    the use of plastic bottles by providing water dispensers that you can use free of charge with your own bottle

What you can do

  • Bring

    your own reusable water bottle to refill at the water dispensers.

ENERGY

What we’re doing

  • Employing

    a power-down policy to ensure only critical equipment is on during rehearsal and move-in times

What you can do as a participant

  • Switch off

    all electrical devices, including lights, ventilation and ICT equipment when not in use in both conference and hotel rooms

  • Enable

    energy-saving features on your devices

What you can do as an exhibitor

  • Ask

    your contractor for energy-efficient lighting on your stand

  • Source

    local and eco-friendly printers

OTHER

What we’re doing

What you can do
as an exhibitor

  • Ensure

    gifts and giveaways are either virtual (ideally) or are eco-friendly, locally-sourced and without excess packaging

  • Donate

    left-over gifts and stationary to a local charity

  • Talk

    to your stand contractor, research your options, and design a green stand

If you would like to learn more, or if you have any additional suggestions or ideas on sustainable development at our events, we'd love to hear from you at green@itu.int.