My green Congress

IUCN was dedicated to leading by example by organising a sustainable event. As the Congress host country, the government of France shared this commitment and has incorporated sustainable practices into all procurements and preparations for the event.

The Congress was awarded by the ISO 20121 Event Sustainability Management System and involved local resources and initiatives as much as possible.

IUCN and the government of France applied sustainability efforts across the event, from hotels, transportation and on-site materials, to food, energy and waste management. The end goal was to leave a sustainable and green legacy at the local and regional levels, Marseille and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, that will last beyond the IUCN Congress.

IUCN and the French government developed and implemented sustainability initiatives that aim to, but were not limited to:

Reduce as much as possible greenhouse gases produced before and during the event and work on a local and international mitigation program
Minimise the demand for resources, and use available local, reused and/or recycled resources whenever possible
Promote good environmental practices to service providers, participants, exhibitors and local communities engaged in Congress preparations
Work with suppliers, partners and companies which support Congress sustainability efforts on environmental, social and economic benefits
Create a sustainability program supported by the local stakeholders
Leave a sustainable legacy for the city of Marseille

Learn more about the Congress sustainability efforts in the following report:

Congress sustainability report

Congress carbon offset policy

As part of our sustainability efforts, IUCN and the Host Country offsetted the greenhouse gas emissions related to staff and sponsored delegates’ travel to and from the event.

All Congress participants were invited to support these efforts by making a voluntary contribution to offset their travel-related emissions via the online registration platform.

The Host Country calculated the emissions to be offset using the average carbon footprint per person from previous Congresses (estimated at 1.58 tonnes of CO2 equivalent). To guarantee equity, the cost of offsetting was €24 per person regardless of the country of origin, so as not to disadvantage participants from low-income countries.

For every kg CO2 emitted, 2kg of CO2 equivalent offsetted, taking into account all greenhouse gases linked to air travel including non-CO2 emissions that also cause warming.

Participants could chose between four certified projects from different regions to donate their voluntary carbon offsetting contribution:

Clean Water Project in Ethiopia
Livelihoods Hifadhi projects in Embu and Tharaka Nithi Counties, Kenya
Madre de Dios in Peruvian Amazon
Tatai Forest in Cambodia

All funds collected were transferred to each project after the Congress. The carbon offset allocation for the selected projects may be subject to changes for equivalent projects.

Learn more about the carbon offsetting efforts in the following reports: