Re: convenings

Many gray hairs ago in 2012, a series of unexpected events led to finding myself at a TED conference.

The specific program I attended, TEDActive , was a satellite to the main event, designed to offer a more immersive experience to a younger and hipper crowd. (The emcee's words, not mine.) In-person talks at our local venue in Palm Springs were interspersed with TED talks streamed in live from the main venue in Long Beach. A highlight for me was hearing from James Hansen, and first learning about the planetary boundaries.

In the evenings, we were bused to a series of fascinating places, offering new scenery for our ongoing conversations and reinforcing the sense that we were all on a journey together throughout the week.

It was the first conference I attended where I left feeling like a different person.

To this day, I continue to believe in the unparalleled power of in-person convenings. Time and again, I have seen these events rapidly spread new solutions to widespread problems, create lifelong relationships, put a human face on distant places, mark progress - or make visible its absence, and create the will to move whole industries in new directions. And in the years ahead, the need for all of that may rise further still.

But the convenings of today are not sustainable, let alone scalable.

The legacy model for many associations and conference planners still involves everyone descending on a single location. An analysis of one international conference concluded that 75% of its environmental footprint was caused not by the event itself, but by the international flights required by a little over a third of its attendees. Concerned participants - clinicians, in particular - are increasingly pushing back against the legacy model, publishing analyses of their environmental and health costs and urging a transition to virtual-only events .

Might a multi-site model offer the best of both worlds?

For me, the TEDActive conference hinted at the possibilities of multi-site models, in which multiple groups of live participants link together through live events. Beyond simply logging in to a virtual platform, local activities can be designed to recreate the shared experiences and community building associated with traveling to a distant location. In considering alternative approaches to emissions reductions, Stijn van Ewijk and Paul Hoekman illustrate the benefits this way:

According one particularly rigorous analysis , a multi-site convening with thoughtfully selected sites could reduce emissions and energy use by as much as two-thirds. Analyses of other conferences suggest that with just two additional hubs, emissions could be reduced between 58% and 80% - or more if combined with a shift to land transport. Hypothetically, such a model could also significantly strengthen ties and capacity within the local participants, in ways that a single-site model could not.

So I did have to qualify that last bit as hypothetical. To my knowledge, no one has analyzed the social impacts of these multi-site events - most likely because so few of them exist yet. Indeed, as of 2024, all four of the conferences referenced above still appear to be continuing with single-site models.

Why hasn't this approach taken off? I think there is tremendous inertia associated with the single-site model. In many associations, revenues tied to convenings are the largest source of revenue, which can make experimentation feel very risky. Also, many people who participate in these convenings really like the current model of flying to a desirable destination, often with travel support from their employers. Current virtual options offer little social interaction, compete with local demands, and offer few safeguards to ensure time for reflection. (And the people who opt out of both aren't asked to fill out the exit surveys.)

Decoupling convenings from emissions

In the coming year, I plan to explore the multi-site model with as many conveners as will entertain the question. Given the potential payoffs for both sustainability and community building, more experiments with these types of models are desperately needed.

If you are interested in pursuing more sustainable convenings, I have rounded up a few recommendations and resources that may help:

• As a convener, consider explicitly prioritizing sustainability in designing future convenings. The Geneva Sustainability Centre recently published a guide on Ideas to Improve the Sustainability of Conferences , including references to research on this topic.
• As an employee, consider developing departmental or organizational policy guidelines encouraging sustainability in your events. 英国伯明翰大学 has an excellent eco-friendly conferences and events guide relevant to convenings of all kinds. 美国麻省理工学院 has a sustainable events checklist that offers another great starting point - they even have three-level self-certification program MIT conveners can use in advertising their offerings:

• As a convenings attendee, consider joining your group's events committee, and offering to explore options to strengthen sustainability. If you receive a post-event survey, make sure you complete it! (Most people don't.) Even if no relevant questions are asked, you can use the open-ended comments section to nudge conveners in positive direction. The guides above can provide great ideas for what to suggest. In addition to identifying improvement opportunities, be sure to recognize - and appreciate - any actions the conveners have already taken to make their events more sustainable.

Recent items of interest

• [article] - The Hidden Costs of Climate Change on the Workforce. Authored by Talia Varley of the Cleveland Clinic and published in the Harvard Business Review, this article provides an excellent summary of climate-related employee health risks and how organizations can mitigate them. Available online here .
• [TED talk] - The Tipping Points of Climate Change — and Where We Stand | Johan Rockstr?m. Recorded in July of 2024 and released August 15th, Johan delivers updates on our fragile planet over stunning infographics. An important but difficult watch. Viewable here .
• [vlog] - Battery powered flights from Washington DC to LA. No longer a pipe dream? If you need a chaser after the video above, Dave Borlace 's most recent Just Have a Think vlog suggests there is a realistic path to electrifying short-haul flights. Viewable here .

Upcoming events/deadlines

• [webinar] = "How to reduce single-use medical items" (Sept. 3, 13:00 - 14:30 CET Geneva time). Climate Action Accelerator is hosting this free webinar, in English with simultaneous translation into Frensh. More information and registration are available here .
• [preconference program] - "Navigating Net Zero mini-masterclass" (in-person, Sept. 9, 9:00-12:00 BRT, Rio de Janeiro, BR). I will be co-facilitating along with Sonia Roschnik , Executive Director of the Geneva Sustainability Centre and Jonathan Perlin , CEO of the Joint Commission . More info and registration is available here . You can also read about the sustainable conferencing steps WHC is taking here .
• [roundtable session] -"Building resilient health systems: Adapting to the pressures of climate change" (in-person, Sept. 25th, 10-11:30, NYC) Economist Impact is hosting this roundtable as a side event to NYC Climate Week; I will be there participating on behalf of the Geneva Sustainability Centre . More information and registration is available here .

Have you been involved in a multi-site conference? If so, what did you think? Do you have other suggestions or experiences to share on creating sustainable convenings? I'd welcome your comments. Thanks for reading - and your help healing our future.

Andy Garman