Blog > Industry News

Sustainability event trends for 2025: Part 1

By Blair Potter | Jan 27, 2025

We asked sustainability experts in the meeting and event industry to tell us about sustainability trends event planners should be paying more attention to in 2025, from taking small, consistent actions to measuring the journey.


_________________

Sustainability in the corporate event space shouldn’t feel overwhelming as we move into 2025—it’s about starting where you are and then building meaningful partnerships to amplify your impact. Event planners don’t need to solve every challenge at once—small, consistent actions begin a ripple effect that creates the waves of change. By collaborating with venues, suppliers and organizations already leading in sustainable practices, planners get to share the responsibility and achieve much greater results together. The focus should be on progress, not perfection, and knowing that every step forward matters.

Ultimately, event planners are the changemakers we desperately need in this industry,  and their choices greatly influence how vendors, venues and participants engage in their sustainable actions.

In 2025, Marriott will continue to plant seeds of change that support the growth of a blossoming sustainable event community


Michael Clarke
Director, B2B Marketing & Events - U.S. & Canada Global Sales Organization
Marriott International

_________________

In 2025, U.S. event planners should watch European sustainability trends, including the continuous implementation of the Green Deal and Circular Economy Action Plan, which push for carbon neutrality and stricter waste management. While recent election results might indicate a potential rollback of environmental policies and slow national adoption of similar regulations, these initiatives can inspire U.S. practices in event management. The alignment of U.S.-based events with global client expectations for sustainability highlights the major challenge for 2025.


Toby Frowen
Vice President US
Proske

_________________

The next evolution of sustainability practices that I see coming is a shift from lower impact/mitigating impact to the environment (think reusable bottles) versus making a positive impact to the environment (carbon positive production).


Hayley Landingham
Event Program Manager (Lead) - Americas Partner Enablement
Cisco

_________________

A trend that should be top of mind for event planners in 2025 is measurement—although this is less of a trend and more of a fundamental practice.

The event industry is one that’s high impact: We have to acknowledge this and take action accordingly. However, we know from experience that it’s impossible to demonstrate—or even make—headway without baseline measurements.

Having robust data on hand can help support client conversations, expanding possibilities for a more positive impact and long-term gains.

One example of the industry stepping up to this challenge is the launch of an ​​Event Carbon Measurement Starter Pack, created in partnership with isla and IMEX. This provides the why, what and how around measuring carbon emissions, simplifying the process for event professionals and giving them the knowledge to support conversations with clients or colleagues about this issue.

We may all be at different stages of the sustainability journey, but it’s essential to measure—only by doing so can we identify areas to focus on where we can make the biggest impact.


Roger Lehner
Senior Operations & Sustainability Executive
IMEX

 

 

Author

blair potter new
Blair Potter

Blair Potter is director of media operations for MPI. He likes toys and collects cats (or is it the other way around?).