Energy Foundation x Carbonstop | "Low Carbon Event Kit" Released, Making Every Gathering Beautiful and Low Carbon Environmentally Friendly

Recently, with the support of the Energy Foundation, Carbonstop released the Low-Carbon Event Toolkit, which provides a comprehensive guidance tool for event planning from pre-event preparation and planning, on-site education and guidance during the event, to post-event quantification and dissemination, as well as future optimization.

A minute on stage, a decade of "cultivation" behind the scenes.

According to data from Damai, if all attendees of a concert with ten thousand participants enter with paper tickets, it would result in the emission of approximately 600 kilograms of carbon dioxide. This is equivalent to the carbon sequestration capacity of one acre of Haloxylon ammodendron in Alashan over ten years. In other words, the carbon emissions from a two-hour concert with ten thousand attendees would take ten years to offset.

And this is just the carbon emission from paper tickets for a single concert.

Even for a relatively small music festival, the production of paper tickets, the use of on-site power systems, transportation used by bands and audiences, and hotel accommodations and catering all generate corresponding carbon emissions. According to The Daily Mail, after the Glastonbury Festival, the largest outdoor music festival in the UK, which attracted 177,000 people over four days in 2015, about 1,650 tons of waste were left behind.

What should be moments of human "celebration" have become a "heavy blow" to the Earth.

However, as global climate change and environmental issues become increasingly severe, more and more people are beginning to pay attention to how to maintain a cool-headed reflection on the land beneath our feet while reveling at gatherings. "Low-carbon," "green," and "environmental protection" have started to become trendy symbols in events of all sizes. This year, Coldplay announced that the direct CO2 emissions for the first two years of this tour were reduced by 59% compared to their previous stadium tours (2016-17).

Making a commitment is the first step; real and substantial carbon reduction is the key.

To make human activities more low-carbon, with the support of the Energy Foundation, Carbonstop compiled and released the Low-Carbon Event Toolkit, providing a comprehensive guidance tool for event planning from pre-event preparation and planning, on-site education and guidance during the event, to post-event quantification and dissemination, as well as future optimization.

Taking music events as an example, event organizers can reduce carbon emissions at the source based on identified emission sources.

• Fossil fuel emissions: Use renewable energy or unplugged methods. During Coldplay's 2022 world tour, they used renewable energy sources such as solar power, sustainable biofuels, and wind power to provide energy for the concerts. In 2021, Wuhan hosted its first entirely unplugged low-carbon forest music festival.
• Transportation emissions: Choose greener modes of transportation. Coldplay stated that they will opt for commercial flights as much as possible during the tour and pay extra fees for all flights to support sustainable aviation fuels. Coldplay's partner, Neste, also provided the band with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) to help reduce emissions from air travel.
• Waste-generated emissions: Promote waste recycling. The Fuji Rock Festival has taken waste recycling to the extreme, distributing garbage bags made from recycled plastic bottles from the previous year to attendees upon entry. Since 2018, the Strawberry Music Festival has initiated and continuously implemented the "Circular World" environmental action, reducing plastic use at the festival and creating the "Strawberry Forest" through the recycling of discarded plastics.

Whether it's a music event, a sports event, or a conference, all aspects from planning, organizing to execution and follow-up are involved. Due to the large number of participants and resource consumption, these events inevitably have an impact on the environment.

As global awareness of environmental protection continues to increase, the widespread application of documents like the Low-Carbon Event Toolkit marks a new era of green development in event hosting. From the vibrant atmosphere of music festivals to the thrilling moments of sports events, and the rigorous exchanges at business conferences, every event represents a profound commitment and practice of environmental protection. Striving for a win-win situation between economic benefits and ecological benefits, it aims to achieve a virtuous cycle of human activity development and natural resource utilization.