We share highlights from Worlds Better & Hewlett-Packard Industrial’s winning entry in the Best Sustainable Event category at this year’s micebook Awards… 

Worlds Better, a specialist event sustainability consultancy, was briefed to work as an extension of the Hewlett-Packard Industrial Labelexpo Europe 2023 delivery team to integrate sustainability into every part of the planning and delivery, driving overall carbon reductions and reducing HPI’s exhibition carbon intensity.

As the largest exhibitor at Labelexpo, the world’s largest event for the label and package printing industry, HPI understands its responsibility to set an excellent environmental example and accelerate industry-wide change.

Worlds Better guided HPI to take smart, tangible and planet-friendly action across each event delivery area. This included reducing the amount of carpet on stand, reducing virgin material related emissions and waste, replacing bespoke exhibition walls with a hired, reusable wall system, reducing waste and use of new materials, using local suppliers wherever possible to reduce transportation emissions, and using digital screens instead of single use printed graphics.

The implemented sustainable practices directly reduced the environmental impact of the event through achieving measurable carbon reductions – 24.2 tCO2e – the equivalent of 121 tree seedlings grown for 10 years – and known carbon reductions that aren’t measurable such as those from consolidated transportation and switching from single use plastic cups to reusable glasses.

HPI have since introduced the sustainability management template created for Labelexpo to other tradeshows and set a target to maintain the same level of carbon intensity at the next Labelexpo, as well as at DRUPA which is their next tradeshow.

Judges commended Worlds Better for finding innovative ways to reduce waste and energy savings, while keeping an eye on all the other events components.