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Sustainability has moved from a nice-to-have to a qualifying question in venue and event procurement. Here is what to expect, and how to answer with evidence.

 

If you run a venue or organise events, you have probably noticed a shift in the questions arriving with requests for proposals. Alongside capacity, catering and cost, there is now a section on sustainability, and it is no longer a box-ticking afterthought. Increasingly, it decides whether you make the shortlist at all.

This is not a passing trend. Corporate clients are under their own pressure to report on emissions across their supply chain, and the events they run are part of that. When a procurement team asks for your sustainability data, they are not being polite. They are gathering evidence they themselves have to stand behind.

What they are actually asking for

The wording varies, but the questions cluster around a few themes. It helps to recognise them so you can prepare answers in advance rather than scrambling:

  • Carbon data: can you provide a measured footprint for an event held at your venue, or for the event you would run? Not an estimate, a number.
  • Certifications and standards: do you hold recognised accreditations, and what do they actually cover?
  • Specific initiatives: energy sources, waste diversion, catering, travel and transport, single-use plastics.
  • Reporting: can you give the client something they can put in their own ESG reporting afterwards?

The last one is the giveaway. When a client asks for something they can reuse in their own reporting, they are telling you that a vague paragraph about your commitment to the environment will not do. They need data they can attribute and defend.

How to answer well

The venues and organisers who win these sections do a few things differently:

  • They lead with evidence, not adjectives. “We measured this event’s footprint at a specific figure using recognised methodology” beats “we are a sustainable venue” every time.
  • They are precise about what their claims cover. If you hold a certification, say what it certifies. If you buy renewable energy, say that it relates to your electricity, not your entire footprint.
  • They provide something reusable. A shareable, verifiable record the client can point to later is worth far more than a PDF that goes out of date.
  • They are honest about gaps. Procurement teams trust a venue that says “we do not yet measure X, but here is our plan” far more than one that overclaims and gets caught.

A vague claim of being green is now a liability in an RFP, not an asset. Evidence is what wins.

Getting ahead of the question

The simplest way to handle sustainability in RFPs is to stop treating it as a question to answer under time pressure and start treating it as an asset you maintain. If you measure each event’s footprint as a matter of routine, you always have a credible, current answer ready. A live impact page, calculated on recognised methodology and shareable as a link, turns the hardest question in the RFP into one of the easiest.

The direction of travel is clear. Sustainability requirements in procurement are only going to get more specific, and the new rules on green claims mean clients will increasingly need substantiated data rather than warm words. The venues that prepare for that now will find themselves on more shortlists, not fewer.

See what a live, verified impact page looks like.

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Eric currently works as an independent consultant at the intersection of nature and climate, focused on catalysing market and non-market solutions to drive the just transition.

He previously was Head of Product at Earthshot Labs, supporting nature conservation and restoration projects across the global south secure project finance. Prior to Earthshot Labs, Eric led nature-based carbon project development for Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique and founded the Carbon Cooperative, a global alliance of leading nature conservation and restoration practitioners exploring carbon finance. After serving in the Peace Corps in Mozambique out of university, he spent much of his 20s working in community-based conservation and ecosystem restoration efforts in Sub-Saharan Africa interspersed with two startup ventures as co-founder and CEO of a mental health tech startup and COO of a sustainable coffee company. Eric has a dual Masters in Environmental Engineering and Environmental Policy from Stanford University where he was a NSF Graduate Research Fellow and a BS in Environmental Engineering from Tufts University.

Alan is a risk management thought-leader, superconnector, and FinTech pioneer. His mission is to enable an Earth Positive economy which includes nature in global accounting systems.

Alan is Founder of Generation Blue, a venture studio dedicated to planetary game changers powered by exponential technologies. Previously, Alan established Natural Capital Markets at Lykke AG, pioneering blockchain based forestry and carbon backed tokens. Alan has over two decades of risk management experience advising global financial institutions, and was a founding member of the RiskMetrics Group, a JPMorgan spin-off. Alan is an investor and advisor to regenerative impact ventures, including TreeBuddy.Earth, Regenativ, and Vlinder Climate.

Lori Whitecalf made history when she became the first woman to be elected Chief of Sweetgrass First Nation in 2011. She served three terms of office from 2011-2017.  

Lori took a two-year hiatus from leadership to expand the family ranch and serve as the FSIN Senior Industry Liaison. She was re-elected on November 29. 2019 and again on November 30, 2021, as Chief of Sweetgrass. Chief Whitecalf practises a traditional lifestyle of hunting, fishing and gathering. She currently sits on the following boards: Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technology, FSIN Lands and Resource Commission, Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre and Battleford Agency Tribal Chiefs Executive Council, FSIN Women’s Commission.

Tina is the Chief Business Officer for MLTC Industrial Investments, the Economic Development arm of the Meadow Lake Tribal Council. She has a diverse background of experience. Having spent 15 years as a municipal Chief Operating Officer, 20 years involved in Saskatchewan’s Health Authority Board Keewatin Yatthe and 9 years with Northern Lights Board of Education. 

 

She continues as a Board Member with Beaver River Community Futures supporting small business development in her home region. Tina brings a wealth of experience in a variety of fields and many connections to the Indigenous communities of Northern Saskatchewan. In addition Tina holds a BA Advanced from the U of S, a Certificate in Local Government Authority from the U of R and is certified as a Professional Economic Developer for Saskatchewan and a certified Technician Aboriginal Economic Developer (TAED).

Tootoosis’ career spans 40+ years in HRM, political leadership, and Indigenous economic development, as a dedicated bridge builder and advocate for Indigenous causes.
As a key member of the Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority (SREDA) team since 2021, he develops strategies for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission final report and Call to Action #92.

He is a graduate of the First Nations University of Canada and a certified Professional Aboriginal Economic Developer. Spearheading various community initiatives while serving as a Chair of the SIEDN while directing ILDII and WIBF. Founder of MGT Consulting Tootoosis is based in Saskatoon, Treaty Six Territory.

Cy Standing (Wakanya Najin in Dakota) has a long and distinguished career including serving overseas as an Electronics Technician in the Royal Canadian Air Force, former Chief of Wahpeton Dakota Nation, former Vice Chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indigenous Nations (FSIN), past Executive Director of Community Development Branch of the Department of Northern Saskatchewan as well as an Order in Council appointment to the Federal Parole Board.  

Mr. Standing has served as a Director on many Profit and Non-Profit Corporate Boards, including serving as a Director for Affinity Credit Union with assets of over six billion dollars as well as IMI Brokerage and Wanuskewin and is currently a member of the One Tribe Indigenous Carbon Board.