Special events can have major environmental impacts. From food waste to emissions from attendee and speaker transportation, events can be pretty harmful to our earth.

You may have read some of our walk-the-talk blogs before where we discuss the sustainable event initiatives we have implemented. With the 2020 Kingston Climate Change Symposium coming up, we wanted to keep sharing all of these great initiatives that we have put in place to make it as sustainable as possible. We encourage everyone to try to implement these in their own events or promote them to be used in other events!

Waste-Free

We ensure all of our events are waste-free with nothing going to landfill. We often have to go the extra mile to seek out recyclable, compostable or rented dishware; however, this year, The Grand Theatre has eliminated all single-use plastics from its concession! All garbage bins will be removed from the venue as nothing at the Symposium has to go to landfill!

For more information on The Grand Theatre’s efforts, visit: https://www.cityofkingston.ca/-/the-city-of-kingston-s-grand-theatre-proudly-presents-a-single-use-plastic-free-facility-?redirect=/city-hall/news-public-notices&fbclid=IwAR2hUJfE8q6yyAw_4559bgdduA95zpGMToa8DH7eDFJ3IHuy30oKoYq05f4.

*Please bring your reusable water bottle to be filled up at The Grand Theatre’s water refill stations!

We are also excited to partner with Loving Spoonful and FoodRescue.ca to donate any rescuable food to be redistributed in the community after the event. Any non-rescuable food will be sent to a local farm to ensure no food is wasted.

During the Symposium breaks, vegetarian and vegan snack options will be served to further reduce the event's environmental impact.

Carbon Neutral

Sustainable Kingston is working with Carbonzero to offset the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the Kingston Climate Change Symposium. Sustainable Kingston is proud to recognize Carbonzero as its official offset sponsor.

Community

All of the Inspiring Action Mini-Sessions at the Symposium will be led by local climate leaders to showcase Kingston’s sustainability successes!

We are providing a student discount of $15 (25% discount from the original ticket fee) to inspire innovation and collaboration among the next generation. We are also partnering with the Queen’s Sustainability Conference (QSUS) to provide all QSUS delegates access to the Symposium.

This event will be a positive space event to support and welcome all members of the community.

We are also trying to make this event as accessible as possible. A couple of examples include a wheelchair accessible venue and an available water bowl for service dogs.

Sustainable Transportation

We are partnering with Kingston Transit to provide free bus transportation for ticket holders. Just show your ticket on January 16 to get to and from the event for free!

If you’re a winter cyclist, there are many bicycle racks around downtown, so jump on your own or try out Drop Bike!

Looking to drive an electric vehicle to the event? Check out this map for nearby public electric vehicle charging stations by the City of Kingston: https://www.cityofkingston.ca/documents/10180/2304312/Kingston+EV+Charging+Locations+Map/88d3ae55-871e-4039-9554-78d9764d66fc.

Want to see these initiatives in action? Buy your ticket for the Kingston Climate Change Symposium on January 16 at the Grand Theatre! https://www.kingstongrand.ca/events/the-2020-kingston-climate-change-symposium

Want to implement these strategies in your own events? Contact Tess at tess@sustainablekingston.com for more information on how to do so.