Interview with MPI's Elizabeth Henderson

Recently, Elizabeth Henderson, CMM, CMP, M.E. Des., director of corporate social responsibility with Meeting Professionals International, took time to answer a few of our questions. One of Henderson’s key roles at MPI is to help move the events industry towards a more Earth-friendly future. Her informative, well-written blog can be found here.

What’s your job as it relates to promoting sustainable practices in the meetings world?

Henderson: My role as Director of Corporate Social Responsibility involves integrating the principles of people, planet and profit within our operations. This has many facets. Not only do we want to implement these principles internally; we want to inspire our community of over 24,000 global members to act, too. I refer to it as a journey to sustainability. Specifically, I develop, activate, measure, report on and revise our CSR strategy, ensuring what we do is aligned with the principles of the UN Global Compact, of which we are a signatory.

How did you come to the job? What did you do beforehand?

Henderson: My educational background is in environmental science. I hold a Bachelor of Science degree in (environmental) geography, where I studied things like soils and plant bio-geography. I also have a Master's Degree in environmental design (Environmental Science), where I studied air pollution. You can find my thesis, written some years ago, here.

I began working in this industry about eleven years ago, at a convention facility. Environmental jobs were not thick on the ground at that time, and this is what I call a very contagious industry – lots of charismatic people and sparkly, compelling events. I got involved as a volunteer with MPI at the chapter level, then was hired by MPI headquarters about five years ago. My most recent position was as the director of Canadian development. I view the creation of the director of CSR position as serendipitous.

What has surprised you most about your job?

Henderson: Two things. First, the speed with which the organization decided it needed to have someone in this position, created the position and filled it was close to light-speed. Einstein would be impressed – it might actually have curved the space-time continuum. Second, the incredible amount of interest it has generated with both staff and members. I get information forwarded from everyone and everywhere (don’t stop!).

Tell us about your blog.

Henderson: I like to write about a lot of different issues. I’m trying to focus them right now on sustainability and everything that goes with that, but I have blogged in the past on anything from the power of conflict, storytelling, culture and change to why groups tend to make smart decisions (Get Smart: Why Maxwell Joined the Crowd). Sometimes I will get inspired and throw something out there and hope smart, engaged people read it and respond.

What initiatives are underway at MPI to promote eco-awareness among members?

Henderson: MPI is doing a lot of things to promote awareness of what I like to call environmentally sustainable meetings, and what most people call "green meetings." First, we are producing and publishing case studies on our meetings. These case studies track our process, measure our success, teach us lessons on how to move forward more effectively and provide our community with practical ideas for their own application.

We also make sure we provide sustainability education for our members at our conferences. For example, at the upcoming World Education Conference in Las Vegas, August 9 – 12, we have tracks on certification, reducing the carbon footprint of your event, trends in CSR and green meeting transportation.

We tell the community specifically what areas we focus on at conference here.

In August, we're planning a series of webinars on practical applications to make your meeting green, such as measurement and contracts, transportation strategies, and destination selection. We plan to follow this up with a series of webcasts in the early fall on sustainability.

One of my main objectives in the next few months is to develop an education session for our global chapters on CSR and environmentally sustainable meetings, and to create a "train-the-trainer" program to ensure we have enough people qualified to speak. We also hope to develop a tool for our community to use in measuring and reporting the environmental and social impacts of their events.

Do you see growing interest in planning meetings in a sustainable manner?

Henderson: Yes, I do. That's not to say that the whole industry has suddenly started to plan environmentally sustainable meetings, because that’s not the case (although I would like to see that happen!). But meetings are being influenced by general societal pushes, "global drivers," and this is prompting change. Some of these include demographics; the younger generation is probably more environmentally and socially aware. The cost of oil is another one; we have seen prices go from an eye-opening $100 a barrel in January 2008 to the current astronomical $144. This affects everything that I can think of around a meeting – transportation of people, supplies and food; cost of heating or cooling facilities, maybe even cost of labor as the cost of living goes up. Public perception is a big one, and this is driven by communications like newspapers. I can't pick up a publication these days without a story about environmental or social sustainability. Other pushes include corporations with strong CSR policies finally noticing the impact their events have, both their ecological footprint and their "intellectual" footprint on their stakeholders. Governments are also getting in the game; the Environmental Protection Agency is partnering with APEX (the Accepted Practices Exchange) on a set of environmental standards for meetings.

What to you see as the greatest impediments and the greatest encouragement for green meetings as an industry wide change?

Henderson: Greatest impediment: Inertia. Many people don't like to change. It takes them out of their comfort zone.

Greatest encouragement: Collaboration. Many industry organizations are starting to work together as they realize this is an area where we will all succeed together.

Are we looking at a green trend or a green revolution? Why do you think so?

Henderson: It's a revolution. I think this because business and government are starting to drive action. It isn't just being driven from a socially aware demographic, like we saw in the '60s – although that is certainly helping.

Do you see pressure to create eco-friendly meetings coming more from planners themselves, or from their clients and employers? Is the greening of meetings happening faster on the corporate or the association side? What about independent planners?

Henderson: I don't think I have enough data to really comment on that specifically, but I can tell you some general trends. The MPI Foundation partnered with the George P. Johnson and Event marketing Institutes to produce EventView 2008. For the first time, they asked a question about green event marketing. This study, released in March 2008, found that 34 percent of North American event marketers planned to implement green initiatives within their event in the next three to twelve months. This number increases to 41 percent globally.

Reasons cited in the study for going green included: One, an overall CSR mandate. Two, cost savings. Three, competitive advantage. Four, winning or maintaining customer loyalty

FutureWatch, the study presented by the MPI Foundation and American Express, also asked a green related question. Now in its sixth year, research is showing that the greening of the industry is starting to make a serious impact. FutureWatch tells us that a growing number of meeting professionals — 19 percent overall, 31 percent in Europe and 29 percent in Canada — list conservation and environmental concerns among the top three external trends affecting their work. Six percent overall, 12 percent in Europe and 10 percent in Canada list these concerns as their leading external trend.

Do high-profile events with a sustainability theme like the political conventions and G8 summit help to build a green meetings movement? Do you think planners pay attention to those?

Henderson: I don't think the majority of planners pay close attention to these kind of events, which is too bad, as they can be a paragon in the field. I have some personal experience with the G8 Summit. It was held in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, some years ago. The facility I worked for hosted the media center. That event had a very specific green mandate, from the percentage of post-consumer waste in the paper to the amount and kind of waste generated, and they did waste audits (also known more colorfully as "dumpster-diving") to ascertain the facility was participating. The new British Standard for sustainable events, BS8901, was developed in part to prepare for the 2012 London Olympics. The European Meetings and Events Conference, co-created by MPI, in London in April 2008 was actually the first event to be third-party certified as attaining Phase 1 and 2 under BS 8901.

What is the easiest thing planners should do to become more socially responsible, whether it has to do with the environment or not?

Henderson: I think that social responsibility needs to have a good "fit" with the organization’s mission and vision. I always use the example of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. They partner with Habitat for Humanity because they both have a mission of "affordable housing." Then find a local expression of this cause or organization and partner with it.

Is there a planner or industry stakeholder you'd like to call attention to for their sense of social responsibility?

Henderson: Timberland. They have a mandate towards environmental and social sustainability that is built into the culture, mission, and vision of their company, and this is reflected in their events.

Anything we haven't asked you about that you'd like to mention?

Henderson: I believe it is all about the individual. Shakespeare said, "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players." The most impactful thing for meeting professionals to do is to make a personal commitment to sustainability, and this will filter down into their professional lives.


| Other Headlines for July 16, 2008

Amtrak boost fares due to high demand and energy costs (The Detroit News)

Airlines group says fuel helped push carrier costs up 31 percent in first quarter (Press Release)

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) eyes green future, inspired by stay in eco-hotel (Boston Herald)

Aviation industry seeks green technologies (CNN)

Europeans on quest for an eco-copter (Flightglobal)

Environmentalists take on cruise industry (AlterNet)