European meeting planners are more than twice as likely to have a sustainability policy than their North American counterparts, according to the latest Northstar/Cvent Meetings Industry Pulse Survey.
The stark finding follows the publication of the first European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) version of the survey, which includes a Global Edition, comparing responses from EMEA, North America, and Asia.
While 65 per cent of European planners were guided by environmentally friendly policies, only 31 per cent of North American planners could say the same. More than half (56%) of Asia planners had a sustainability policy, firmly establishing Americans as laggards in this area.
Northstar Meetings Group-UK editorial director James Lancaster said the findings provided statistical evidence for something that a lot of people in the industry had long suspected.
“It’s often been said that Americans weren’t as serious about event sustainability as their European counterparts, but those making the claim had no real evidence to support it - now they do. Nevertheless, I think some people will be surprised at the size of the gap, not just with Europe, but with Asia, too, where a majority of planners now have a sustainability policy.
“Hopefully, this survey will act as spur to action for American meeting and event planners.”
Other key highlights from the survey:
- The perceived value of face-to-face events has increased since the pandemic, with six in ten planners saying they are now ‘somewhat’ or ‘significantly’ more valuable.
- But virtual events are not going away, either. More than a half of EMEA planners were planning to produce events that were either fully virtual or hybrid this year.
- Networking is the most important factor driving demand for face-to-face meetings, scoring significantly higher than education, which was ranked in second place.
- The main pain points are costs and budget constraints. Hotel service levels are another bugbear as staffing issues continue to challenge the hospitality industry.
This EMEA survey comprised of 135 responses from planners of all types.
Download the full report here.
Written By
James Lancaster
A journalist for more than 22 years, AMI editor James
Lancaster is a familiar face in the meetings industry and international
association community. Since joining AMI in 2010, he has gained a reputation
for asking difficult questions and getting lost in convention centres. Page
proofer, podcaster, and panellist - in his spare time, James likes to walk,
read, listen to music, and drink beer.
