Insight: Issue 48 (9th June)

Happy Pride, event profs! <3

Today’s insight offers up a jam-packed calendar of this month’s Pride events, plus: the event vax debate continues; a new study shows virtual events will continue to thrive after the pandemic (*gasp!*); live music lovers can look forward to HebCelt’s hybrid festival next month; the Edinburgh International Conference Centre has become the first venue to achieve the new Green Meetings Standard certification; and G7 nations have agreed ‘historic steps’ to make climate reporting mandatory. Faith in humanity = ever so slightly restored.

Pride Month 2021: events calendar

Pride month is upon us! And though many events have been postponed or moved online due to COVID-19 restrictions, there are still plenty of LGBTQ+ celebrations taking place across the UK’s major cities. Here’s everything you need to know about these events, plus a few extra dates for the diary later in the year as well.

Event vax debate prompts legal/moral questions

In last week’s insight, we scratched the surface of the legal and ethical considerations of vaccine ‘passports’ for live events – and, well, that debate isn’t going away any time soon. Smart Meetings and networking platform twine joined forces for a Twitter chat on 1 June (using the hashtag #TheEventVaxDebate) to find out how event profs are handling the vaccine requirement conundrum. Questions on the day covered:

• Legal precedent – e.g. should masks/no masks and vaccinated/not-vaccinated be an addendum on contracts with venues?
• DIY vs. third-party expertise – e.g. who is responsible for executing the safety plan: event and venue staff, or designated health and safety attendants?
• Tech aids – e.g. what’s required from a tech perspective to encourage people to attend events IRL (distance monitoring, contact tracing bracelets, health apps)?
• Redefining inclusivity – e.g. what is demonstrably necessary to protect public health? And is denying access to those who are not vaccinated discrimination? 

To catch up on the chat, check out this summary or search the hashtag on Twitter.

Virtual events set to grow in popularity

SHOCKING NEWS ALERT! Virtual events are popular.

According to a recent study by LinkedIn, 45% of future B2B events will be completely virtual. Its survey of 200 B2B event organisers in the UK and Ireland found that 72% of businesses will keep up virtual events in the long term, and 77% are interested in organising hybrids. In fact, it looks like the future mix of business events will be 45% virtual, 32% physical, and 23% hybrid.

Considering £31 billion a year was spent on B2B events in the UK before the pandemic, the UK’s virtual events industry could be worth £14 billion a year. So, if you’re faced with any virtual sceptics, feel free to show them those stats. More indisputable data here.

Missing live music? Check out hybrid HebCelt

Good news for former festival-goers – HebCelt is staging a hybrid festival next month. Called the ‘Survival Sessions’, the four-day event will run from 14 to 17 July in an effort to support the local music community. It will include small live shows with socially-distanced audiences, alongside streamed and pre-recorded digital content. Festival Director Caroline Maclennan commented:

‘Following another fallow year, we wanted to do something for our loyal audiences. This programme not only offers us a lifeline, but throws one to the many thousands who buy tickets for HebCelt each year and are missing it.’

The full programme and info on tickets will be announced next week, so keep an eye on their website.

EICC is 1st venue to gain green certification

Green Tourism – the world’s leading sustainable certification programme – is giving venues the tools they need for a sustainable recovery from the pandemic, in the form of its new Green Meetings Standard. Hotels, conference centres, and other event venues can apply for the accreditation, which will measure their performance against 3 pillars: caring for people, places, and the planet.

Since launching on Monday, the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) has become the first venue to achieve the coveted Green Meetings seal of approval. Aaron McKeen, Sustainability Champion at the EICC, said:

‘Event organisers are asking more and more questions about the environmental credentials of our facilities and our services, and so it’s essential that we can demonstrate that we take sustainability very seriously, and support them in their ambitions to host more sustainable meetings.’

That’s what we like to hear!

G7 agree to make climate reporting mandatory

In other green news – Rishi Sunak, the UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, met with finance ministers in London this past weekend, where discussions led to a historic agreement that G7 nations will mandate climate reporting. The proposals state UK companies with 500+ employees, and over £500 million in annual turnover, should disclose potential risks associated with climate change and the net-zero transition via annual reports.

The agreement doesn’t have a timeframe yet, but the wider G20 group of nations are also set to discuss the topic – potentially meaning that an international agreement could be achieved prior to the COP26 climate negotiations in Glasgow this November…

So, watch this space!