Wednesday, December 18, 2024
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In the days leading up to Christmas a tradition takes place which is usually required attendance for any worker: the company lunch or dinner. As well as being an opportunity to strengthen team bonds, this event also showcases a great chance to implement good practices that allow for reducing the environmental impact of these celebrations.
By Eva Díaz Riobello
Company events are usually eagerly awaited by employees, as it is a time to let off steam with colleagues before the well-deserved Christmas holidays. These celebrations however can unfortunately have a certain environmental impact: taking into account factors such as lighting, air conditioning and waste generated, it is estimated that an event of this nature can emit between 30 and 50 kg of CO₂ per person.
This can all be prevented with thoughtful planning and informed decisions as there are loads of options for organizing a sustainable company meal or dinner without giving up the festive spirit of Christmas.
Choosing the location of the event: accessibility and efficiency
When it comes to deciding where the company dinner or lunch will take place, the first step is to choose a place that is easily accessible by public transport. That way employees are not forced to take the car to get there and the volume of emissions will be minimized.
If the large number of attendees or the event’s scale requires booking a distant venue or one only accessible by road, carpooling systems can be put in place so that employees can share a car or, if the budget allows, charter a bus to transport them all from the office.
What should we eat? Choosing a responsible menu
Partnering with local suppliers is a common approach in Germany and the Netherlands when it comes to lowering transport emissions and boosting the local economy. There are currently loads of restaurants and caterings in Spain such as Aponiente, Subiendo al Sur or MICE Catering that incorporate sustainable practices in their daily operations, for example: they use seasonal and locally sourced products in their menus, or they promote waste recycling and cooking with leftovers in order to minimize food waste. Many of these places have certificates that accredit these practices, such as the Slow Food seal or the Biosphere seal, very popular among tourists who plan their trips following sustainability criteria.
If the company at the end chooses to organize the meeting at its own headquarters, or in a rented space, priority can be given to those spaces that allow for a reduction in energy expenditure, that is, those with low-consumption lighting and good thermal insulation that ensures efficient use of heating systems.
During the company meeting: recycling and reusing
Christmas food always generates waste: disposable napkins, food waste, single-use decorations, paper blankets, and gift wraps are just a few examples. In some European countries however, such as France, there is already specific legislation concerning regulation for use of disposable materials and promoting reuse at large events, such as the AGEC Law (Anti-Waste and Circular Economy). Taking a cue from this, we can use strategies for our dinner such as decorating the place with recycled or natural elements (candles, holly branches, pine cone baskets) or using reusable utensils such as cloth napkins or ceramic dishes.
For this, well-identified recycling containers in visible places in the event space are of vital necessity, so that attendees can use them easily. If the meet-up is in the office and there is a lot of food left over, we can also hire a specialized entity to manage the surplus food, such as Naria, to make the catering company's donation to a charitable organization a much easier affair, or allow employees to take leftovers home to use them.
After the event: gifts and mindful fun
A company gift to employees is a common occurrence during Christmas dinners or lunches. This is a great opportunity to raise awareness by giving them zero waste, sustainable and ecological gifts, such as self-culture kits for workers to grow a plant in their homes, seed bombs like those made by Seedball Factory, natural handmade soaps or accessories made from recycled fabrics. If employees organize the traditional "Secret Santa" to exchange gifts, they can be encouraged beforehand to avoid unnecessary wrapping and instead go for reusable bags or recycled paper.
To liven up the event, there is a wide variety of actions in place to foster taking part and fun without generating waste: hiring local artists or musicians, in support of the community; or organizing team dynamics with a green focus that pair fun and learning, such as a workshop to make Christmas decorations with recycled material, or a collective gymkhana that includes questions about ecology and sustainable practices.
Calculating the footprint of the event: think and compensate
As soon as all the meet-up’s details are set up, an estimated calculation of the carbon footprint can be made. The basic formula to calculate involves multiplying the activity of the event - that is, the number of resources used in the company lunch or dinner (such as kilometers traveled, kilos of waste, or kWH of electricity generated) - by the emission factor, which represents the amount of CO2 emissions for each of these activity units.
There are entities nowadays such as Neutral Carbon or Eco2 Calculate that provide personalized tools to calculate the carbon emissions of an event, as well as offering detailed reports with recommendations to reduce them, which ease this task. Some of them, such as Sustainable Businesses, from the Chamber of Valencia, also offer the purchase of certified carbon credits to offset them.
Dual objective: raising awareness and informing
A lot of these measures will be useless if we do not inform employees beforehand of the reasons behind each detail of the event. If we want all these initiatives to leave a mark, it is important to effectively communicate to workers the measures we have taken to make the company dinner more sustainable and to let them know how they can also contribute to making a really successful event.
By this token, when announcing company lunch or dinner, a personalized email can be sent that clearly explains the reasons behind the event venue selection, details of the menu, planned leisure activities and gifts. The newsletter can also be used to explain how we have calculated the carbon footprint it could have, and how it can be reduced through the proposed measures, ensuring the gathering has the smallest possible environmental impact.
Organizing a sustainable company event can seem like a challenge, but it is also a great opportunity to innovate and care for the planet without sacrificing fun, as well as inspiring employees to replicate all of these good practices in their daily lives.
Eva Díaz Riobello is a degree in Communication and Completed Literature.Has worked in media such as El Mundo, El País, La Nueva España and Europa Press, as well as in the SER radio chain, specializing in areas such as health, education and culture.She is also a writer of literary texts for RBA Coleccionables, and has received awards such as the New Creators granted by the Academy of Letters of Granada, and the Young Talents Booket Award.
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