Understanding the Carbon Footprint of the Events Industry
- Oksana Zheleznova
- 4 hours ago
- 5 min read
How much of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions come from events?
It’s a difficult question, because “events” are not a standalone category in traditional economic reporting. Unlike sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, or energy, event-related emissions are dispersed across transport, energy, hospitality, and waste.
In other words, the impact is real, but statistically fragmented.
When you aggregate business travel, venue energy use, catering, logistics, accommodation, and waste, the picture becomes clearer. Based on industry estimates from organizations such as Greenly and the Net Zero Carbon Events initiative, the global events industry may account for up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
That is not marginal. It is systemic.
Putting the Numbers Into Perspective
To make it tangible:
The average conference attendee generates roughly 176 kg of CO₂e per day.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup, frequently cited as a benchmark, produced approximately 3.6 million tons of CO₂e— roughly equivalent to the annual emissions of a small country like Montenegro.
Globally, the events industry produces an estimated 1.2 billion tons of CO₂e annually.
And the trend is not declining.
The Rebound Effect
While sectors such as power generation are steadily decarbonizing, the events industry faces a rebound effect. Global travel has returned to — and in many cases exceeded — pre-pandemic levels. As the experience economy expands and more people suffer from the "loneliness epidemic”, the number of conferences, expos, festivals, and summits continues to grow.
Aviation decarbonization, however, is not progressing at the same pace.
Without structural change, event-related emissions are likely to rise, even as other sectors rethink their operations trying to shrink their footprints.
Events catalyze innovation, culture, and collaboration. But they also carry a climate cost.
So, the question is no longer whether events have a footprint, but how to measure it accurately, reduce it intelligently, and address what remains responsibly.
Dealing with the Carbon Footprint of Events
From 20-person workshops to 50,000-seat festivals, calculating an event’s carbon footprint follows the same logic:
Activity Data × Emission Factor = Emissions
If 500 attendees fly 1,000 km each, you multiply total passenger-kilometers by the aviation emission factor.If a venue consumes 20,000 kWh, you multiply by the grid’s emission factor (unless backed by verified renewable electricity).
The formula is simple. Data collection is not.
Events are temporary, multi-layered ecosystems involving venues, suppliers, caterers, sponsors, and thousands of participants. The real challenge is gathering complete, accurate data — without gaps or double counting.
Step 1: Organize Emissions by Scope (GHG Protocol)
For consistency and transparency, emissions are categorized following the GHG Protocol:
Scope 1 (Direct): On-site fuel use (diesel generators, gas for catering).
Scope 2 (Energy): Purchased electricity, heating, or cooling.
Scope 3 (Value Chain): Travel, accommodation, food and beverage, materials, and waste.
For most events, Scope 3 dominates, often accounting for 70% to 90% of total emissions, and within it attendee travel is usually the largest single source.
This is why a one-day conference with mostly local participants may have a relatively low footprint, while an international summit can multiply its environmental impact dramatically due to flights alone.
Step 2: Collecting Data Across Four Core Pillars
Accurate accounting requires structured data across four areas:
1. Travel & Transport (Usually the Heaviest Hitter)
Modes of transport (air, rail, car, bus)
Total distance traveled by attendees, speakers, and staff
Freight and logistics (stage gear, booths, merchandise)
Even small variations in flight class or distance can significantly affect results.
2. Energy & Venue
Electricity consumption (kWh from meters or bills)
Fuel for generators or heating
Energy contract type (standard grid vs. renewable-backed)
Refrigerant leakage from HVAC systems (often overlooked but high impact)
Outdoor events reliant on diesel generators can see Scope 1 emissions spike rapidly.
3. Food & Catering
Food choices matter more than most organizers imagine. Emissions vary significantly by diet type: either it is vegan, vegetarian, poultry or red meat.
Data required for accurate footprint calculation:
Number of meals served, categorized by type
Food waste percentage
Whether waste was composted or landfilled
A red-meat-heavy menu can double or triple catering emissions compared to plant-forward options.
4. Materials & Waste
Temporary events can generate substantial material throughput.
You need to account for merchandise, badges and lanyards, signage and banners, stage construction materials, booths and exhibition infrastructure.
Equally important is end-of-life treatment, what percentage was reused, recycled, incinerated or landfilled.
The “end-of-life” pathway can significantly alter the final footprint.
Shift toward Circularity
The industry is increasingly aligning with ISO 20121:2024 (Event Sustainability Management Systems), which strengthens sustainability requirements and emphasizes circularity.
Organizers are now expected to report:
What was reused?
What stayed in circulation?
What avoided landfill?
What design choices reduced virgin material use?
Footprint accounting is evolving from pure carbon math to system thinking.
Tools for Carbon Accounting for Events
The ecosystem has matured significantly. Depending on scope and ambition, organizers may use:
Dedicated event carbon calculators such as TRACE by isla or Green Events Tool
Lifecycle assessment (LCA) software
ESG reporting platforms
Custom GHG Protocol-aligned spreadsheets
Third-party sustainability consultants
The right tool depends on whether the goal is internal benchmarking, sponsor reporting, ISO alignment, or public disclosure.
Digital Events: Lower Impact, But Not Impact-Free
Fully digital events have footprints 50–300 times smaller than in-person equivalents because they eliminate travel and venue energy.
But “virtual” does not mean “zero impact.”
Online events still generate emissions through participant devices (laptops, phones, tablets), data transfer across networks (video streaming is energy-intensive), cloud servers and data centers and also pre-event coordination calls and rehearsals.
For most digital events, the breakdown looks roughly like this:
Network data transfer (60–80%) – Video streaming is the dominant source.
Participant devices (11–19%) – Electricity used by laptops, phones, monitors.
Servers and cloud infrastructure – Hosting, recording, storage.
Typically, the heavier the video usage, the larger the footprint. Per participant, one hour of HD videoconferencing typically ranges between 200–350g CO₂e. Turning cameras off can reduce emissions by roughly 50%.
The accounting logic is the same as for physical events:
Activity Data × Emission Factor = Emissions
Inputs include:
Streaming hours
Number of participants
Video resolution (SD, HD, 4K)
Device type
Data center energy mix
Tools such as specialized event carbon calculators (e.g., MeetGreen Calculator, EventZero) can estimate totals.
Digital Sobriety: The Hidden Lever
Even within virtual formats, emissions can drop by 80% or more through simple behavioral choices:
Default to low-resolution streaming
Encourage camera-off during large webinars
Avoid unnecessary multi-hour sessions
Choose platforms powered by renewable-energy-backed data centers
Small digital habits, multiplied across thousands of participants, can make a big difference.
What Comes Next
Measuring the carbon footprint of an event is the essential first step toward addressing emissions and planning future events more responsibly.
In the second article, we’ll dive deeper into what actually works for in-person events with significant carbon footprints: high-impact reduction strategies, structural mitigation decisions, and how to manage residual emissions through high-integrity carbon projects — looking beyond footprint accounting alone.
We’ll also explore how Carbonmark enables transparent sourcing and retirement of verified carbon credits, turning climate commitments into traceable, auditable action.
Understanding your footprint is the starting point.
Reducing it — and addressing what remains strategically — is how real change happens and new category standards are set.
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