1. Digital workflow instead of a flood of paper
Let’s be honest: how much paper has piled up on your desk after past events? Too much?
Registration forms had to be printed, invoices created, and tickets mailed to every attendee. In short: mountains of paper were created in no time.
However, the goal of every Green Meeting should be to reduce paper consumption to a minimum.
This is easiest to achieve with event software.
The attendee registration can be organized entirely online without any paperwork. You simply define the booking options, and the software handles the rest, guiding all attendees through the registration process.
The best choice is event management software that can automatically send booking confirmations, invoices, and more to attendees via email.
If your event is a scientific conference, it is worth considering moving abstract submission and review online as well.
Selecting submitted abstracts can take a long time at larger conferences when papers are constantly being passed back and forth between authors, reviewers, and the program committee. If papers are submitted and reviewed online, the process is significantly simplified.
With the help of the software, the review process also becomes paperless and eco-friendly. You can centrally assign papers to individual reviewers, who then complete their evaluations online based on pre-defined criteria. You can also keep an eye on the review progress at all times.
2. Event app instead of a program booklet
Since the number of program items usually increases with the size of the event, the program booklet often becomes quite extensive.
However, the motto here should also be: paper is a thing of the past.
This doesn't mean your attendees have to navigate the event without any program at all.
No one needs to carry around a printed program if an event app is available for free download.
If the app allows for integration with the software, as is the case with Converia, all data is kept up to date. If there are any last-minute changes or additions to your event schedule, you no longer have to worry about how to communicate them to all attendees.
And an app can do something a program booklet can't: attendees can select their favorite sessions to create a personalized event schedule.
3. Green electricity instead of nuclear power
You can identify an environmentally conscious software provider by the source of the electricity used to power their servers. Ask them to what extent they take responsibility for the environment. If they power their servers with electricity from renewable sources, it is worth choosing their software. If, on the other hand, green electricity is only offered as an extra option for an additional fee, you should look elsewhere.
4. Scan instead of search
Want to be even more resource-efficient? No problem.
You can also save paper on-site with event management software.
Ask the provider about hardware and software solutions for a paperless check-in.
Your attendees only need their smartphones. They pull up their ticket, and the barcode is scanned. Booking information can be retrieved in just a few seconds.
The days of printed tickets and long attendee lists where every name had to be searched for manually are finally over.
5. Knowledge base instead of memory gaps
The end of the event shouldn't mean the end of your commitment to the environment.
Continue the Green Meeting philosophy even after the final session.
For example, capture the most important results of your event in a digital conference "memory."
Ask your event management software provider about options for implementing such documentation. A database summarizing key points is one possibility. The results can then be made available to all registered users on the event website.
If you also want to publish all contributions, it is best to do so paperlessly with a digital conference proceeding.
The software helps here too: since the individual contributions have been in the system since submission, the proceedings can be compiled without much extra effort.
Unlike a printed version, the digital edition is easier to navigate, allowing users to search for specific keywords instead of constantly flipping through pages.
Responsible, resource-efficient action and less organizational effort do not have to be mutually exclusive. With the right software by your side, you can easily follow the Green Meeting approach while keeping your paper usage to an absolute minimum.
