Sustainability

A Community at SITE

Overview of the SITE Sustainability Community

SITE's Sustainability Committee became an active community in 2020 following Vancouver, BC SITE Global Conference.  The late Miek Egberts, founding chair of the committee, with her poignant beliefs in Sustainability, propelled this committee to start advocating Sustainability Principles to our global chapters. Her passion for the balance between humans and mother nature along with enthusiastic committee members as Ambassadors & Mentors together inaugurated the SITE Sustainability Chapter Certification. The certification process was created as an internal guide & process to bring about awareness of our industry’s global impact. 

  • Mission & Vision

    Our Mission: To advance sustainability awareness and certification for incentive travel & motivational experiences with SITE Global Chapters, communities, and members.

    Our Vision: To be the leading industry voice for sustainability transformation of incentive travel & motivational experiences through the implementation of standard practices in planning and delivering events that support environmental, societal and economical endeavours, locally, regionally and globally while promoting our pillars of people, planet, purpose and profits.

  • Our Purpose

    To create a global community and advocate global citizenry by educating the incentive & motivational industry to reduce carbon & water & food footprint, lower the impact of climate change and positively impact environmental, societal, and economic endeavours, locally, regionally and globally. 

  • 2024 Update from Committee

    Our SITE Sustainability Community celebrates its 5th Anniversary this year. It has been a journey of learnings, realizations and insights for the volunteers and chapters over the years.  We are thrilled that our 2023 year met its many goals, perhaps the more significant milestones is the Sustainability Chapter Certification of ALL the existing global chapters and the awareness that our community exists, and we commit to providing on-going support to our SITE Global Community and beyond.  

    This year, 2024, we have raised the bar for even more exposure through our web page, our key communication outlet, by means of providing over the next several months, relevant, meaningful and practical material, such as articles, white papers, recorded webinars, recommended NGO's and Organizations (with a key focus on Sustainability) and Education Initiatives where will be sharing the stage at Global Conference 2024 and IMEX Frankfurt plus a live Webinar in Q3.

    At Global Conference, during our Interactive Gathering we engaged in insightful discussions and exchanged ideas with roundtable topics including Sustainability Strategy with Courtney Lohman, CSR Events with Katrin Naumann and Kate Cardoso, Measurements with Tanya Wick and Hotels with Kim Napolitano and Harith Wickrema; our Frankfurt Session will be a grassroots approach focusing on the Sustainable "6Rs" Rule: Rethink, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Repair.  

    SITE has added two new chapters, Northern California and Arabia. Our team will be working diligently with these chapters so they will receive the Sustainability Certification by the end of 2024. As the chapters have had their Sustainability tutoring through the certification process, a blueprint is now being created to recommend on-going practices to install Sustainability mindset in each Chapters' DNA.

    Earth Day is quickly approaching on April 22.  However, the Sustainability Community sees it a "Every Day is Earth Day".  In 2023, we initiated a lofty goal for Earth Day, a veritable Global Plant-Based E-Cookbook. We are proud to launch it in March along with our 2024 initiative and recommendations. 

    And we continue to "walk the talk: of our Purpose Statement: To create global communities and advocate global citizenry by educating the incentive & motivational industry to reduce carbon & water & food footprint, lower impact to climate change and positively impact environmental, societal, and economical endeavours, locally, regionally and globally.

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    Sustainability Committee Chair

    Mary Pepe

    Incentive Travel & Corporate Events Specialist, MEP & Associates

    Toronto, Canada

    Sustainability Committee Co-Chair

    Katrin Naumann

    Owner, another konzept

    Barcelona, Spain

    Past President SITE Canada, 2023 SITE Global Sustainability Committee

    Gabrielle Spanton

    Managing Partner, GAB&CO Consultants

    Grand Bend, Canada

    VP Membership South America Chapter / Sustainability Committee - Earth Day/Cookbook

    ARACELI DI MEGLIO

    Managing Director, Passion for Events DMC

    Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Sustainability Committee - Earth Day/Cookbook

    Austin Hall

    Event Manager, Event Source Professionals

    Colleyville, United States

    Sustainability Committee - Certification

    Catherine Pascaud

    Managing Director, Servitours

    Paris, France

    Sustainability Committee - Education

    Liz Akey, CMP

    Executive Director, E.M.A. Marketing Ltd

    Oakville, Canada

    Sustainability Committee - Certification

    Janick Wagemans

    Strategic Business Unit Manager , Premio DMC

    Turrucares, Costa Rica

    Southeast 2021 Past President / Sustainability Committee - Certification

    Lynn Beierschmitt

    Executive Director Sales & Operations, Liaisons Meetings & Events

    Knoxville, United States

    Dir. Education & SITE 2024 Sustainability Community Team Member

    Elena Altemir

    Owner, MICEfulness

    Barcelona, Spain

    Sustainability Committee - Education

    Stijn Huijbers

    National Director of Sales UK&I - Specialist Sales Support Office , Hilton UK&I

    London , United Kingdom

    Kate Cardoso

    Founder, Travel with Purpose Pact

    Florence, United States

    Sustainability Committee - Earth Day/Cookbook

    María Carlina (Maca) Murillo

    Product Developer, Premio DMC

    Liberia, Costa Rica

    Vice President Communications & Sustainability / Sustainability Committee - Measurement Tools

    Tanya Wick

    General Manager, Totem Connections

    CAULFIELD NORTH, Australia

    MaryBeth Reeves

    Sustainability Director & Event Design Manager, McVeigh Global Meetings and Events

    Atlanta, United States

  • goals
    • Promote the SITE Global Sustainability Committee as an Education & Resource/Knowledge Outlet with the wider SITE community
    • Establish dedicated SITE Global Sustainability social media groups (LinkedIn, Facebook) to provide education and build an online community
    • Publish Sustainability Related Information via this webpage
    • Enhance recognition of Sustainable-Certified SITE Chapters
    • Work with ALL chapters to get them certified
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    Content Plans for 2024

    • 4 Sustainability Related Webinars per year
    • 4 Sustainability Related Articles for SITE Motivate Blog per year
    • Produce a Plant-Based Cookbook - Earth Day Initiative

    NEW Content for 2024

    On Earth Day 2023, we planted the seeds of inspiration and nurtured collaborations resulting in our Global SITE Plant-Based E-Cookbook. Our cookbook is available to all SITE members and the community at large.

    Access here

    This year, we are launching our 2024 Scrapbook. The Scrapbook will allow us to spotlight your Earth Day initiative to share with our global community. It will be an inspiring reminder of the global impact we achieve when we come together with a shared purpose. The initiative will be a memorable reminder of the steps we are taking together towards a Sustainable World!

    Download the template to document your Earth Day initiative

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    NEW: EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive

    SITE is proud to announce the launch of a new sustainability guide, largely focused on the EU’s recent Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.  

    Funded by SITE Foundation, this member-driven project initiated by industry stalwart Bruce Bolger is one of the first guides of its kind prepared specifically for MICE professionals.  

    With sustainability gaining increased attention across the business travel landscape, Bolger’s work is particularly timely, with its overview and commentary on new reporting standards set out by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).  

    SITE Canada Sustainability Webinar: See the Forest for the Trees

    Sustainability Sponsor | IHG Hotels & Resorts

    Why Sustainability is important for SITE - Hear from Benoit Sauvage

    Webinar: Sustainability in Incentive Travel

    Environmental Sustainability in Incentive Travel

    SITE Global Webinar: Exploring Sustainable Incentive Travel Solutions

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    Other resources

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