Sustainability is a top priority for Destination Canada and at the International Symposium on Destination Stewardship—both in delivering the event and increasing attendee awareness around sustainability. 

Now more than ever, it is our collective responsibility to prioritize sustainability and make meaningful contributions toward achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As of now, “only about 12% [of the Goals] are on track; close to half, though showing progress, are moderately or severely off track and some 30% have either seen no movement or regressed below the 2015 baseline” based on preliminary assessment (United Nations’ SDG Progress Report Special Edition_1). 

As such, sustainability has been woven into the planning of the Symposium from the very start. We determined which SDG targets we could impact the most through an expansive list of initiatives, and created a communications plan to broaden awareness around the SDGs. Through these efforts, we are taking steps to reduce waste and emissions, while promoting good health, well-being and connection among attendees.

Even with these efforts, sustainability is an iterative process and we are continuing to learn how else we can make an impact. We are continuing to look for other actions we can take and will share our learnings broadly with the aim of further increasing awareness and inspiring widespread positive change. 

We invite you to join us on this journey and empower you to take small steps to support sustainability, starting at the International Symposium on Destination Stewardship. To get started, see the Attendee Journey infographic below, as well as the FAQ web page, for ideas. 

Here are just a few of the steps we are taking to make the International Symposium on Destination Stewardship a sustainable event:

• Making sustainability a priority throughout the planning and execution of the Symposium 
• Prioritizing vendors implementing sustainable practices like serving local and sustainably-sourced menus and products
• Worked with vendors to eliminate their use of single-use plastics and to create an event using sustainable materials
• Providing a reusable cutlery set for attendees to use during the Symposium and beyond
• Working with vendors to track the emissions produced from hosting the Symposium (using the innovative TRACE platform), and offsetting those emissions through investment in reputable, certified projects
• Increasing attendee awareness around the sustainability initiatives we are taking to reduce the emissions from this event and what they can do to further reduce their individual footprints and support sustainable development

Click on the images below to learn more about the actions being taken at the International Symposium on Destination Stewardship: