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Published:
05/03/2010
Think sustainably to win event sponsors say Olympics organisers
Making your event sustainable can help attract sponsors, according to the London 2012 Olympic Games organisers. David Stubbs, head of sustainability for LOCOG, said the approach of the Games – which is aiming to be the most sustainable ever - had driven a lot of sponsorship.
“Companies are paying extra to be Sustainability Partners,” he said. “If your event is sustainable it’s attractive to companies because they are going to put their brand alongside yours and they want to show what good corporate citizens they are. It’s added value and it drives sponsorship revenue to the organisers.”
As well as pioneering the BS8901 British Standard for Sustainable Event Management, LOCOG has just launched its Global Reporting Initiative, which promotes a standard way of event sustainability reporting.
Stubbs said: “It covers all the relevant issues in an accessible way which should be a good legacy of the Games.”
He added that LOCOG hoped to see improved sustainability practices throughout the event industry after 2012: “Through the procurement process we’re putting a challenge out to suppliers. The best responses we’re getting are from companies that are looking at changing practices across the whole of the supply chain. The ideas are there, we’re just forcing them to crystallise.
"Our biggest nightmare would be if people said ‘great, LOCOG is gone, we can go back to the way we were'. We hope there’s a drag effect that brings everyone up to another level and subsequent events reflect that.”
David Stubbs, head of sustainability, London Olympic Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games
