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Greening Your Events


Cartoon showing people engaging in onsite, hybrid, and virtual events.Green events are planned and hosted in an environmentally-responsible way. With sustainability in mind, green events:

  • Reduce greenhouse gas emissions 

  • Reduce consumption of natural resources

  • Reduce waste to a minimum 

  • Support sustainable acquisition and locally-sourced food and services

Compared to onsite (in-person) events that require participants to travel, virtual events, such as online meetings, conferences, training, and webinars, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, typically cost much less, and increase work-life flexibility. Federal policy encourages event planners to host virtual events when possible.

Tutorial for this Site (video, mp4)

Event Formats & Decision Tools

There are three event formats:

  • Virtual: participants join remotely through virtual technology.

  • Onsite: participants are in-person at a single location.

  • Hybrid: participants gather in one or more locations and/or some participants join remotely.   

The Event Formats & Decision Tools page has more information about each format and a decision guide to assist in selecting the format that will best suit your event goals.

Resources & Support

The Resources & Support page provides a variety of resources and tools for planning and hosting green events of all types:

  • Planning checklists: a checklist with suggested actions for each event format (virtual, onsite, hybrid) to guide event coordinators in planning and hosting successful green events.

  • Guides, Tips, and Resources: a variety of links, tip documents, and templates for planning and hosting green events of all types.

  • Accessibility Resources: resources and tips for integrating accessibility into events.

  • Support for Forest Service Virtual Events: links to self-help and other support resources to help Forest Service employees plan and host green and accessible events.

  • Best Practices: best practice links, mostly for virtual events, developed by different agencies and organizations.

Policy & Accessibility

Federal policy, such as Executive Order 13693, Planning for Federal Sustainability in the Next Decade, and Federal Travel Regulations encourage green events. Federal agencies also have the opportunity and obligation to provide all programs and presentations in a manner that is accessible for everyone. Ensuring that those with mobility, vision, and cognitive issues can participate fully in all events is key to making them successful. Learn more about policy and laws relating to green events and accessibility.

 

https://www.fs.usda.gov/es/about-agency/greening-your-events