In today’s events landscape, sustainability is no longer a nice-to-have — it’s the baseline. As delegates seek to make a positive impact within values-driven organizations, business leaders and meeting planners must design gatherings that deliver more than memories.
Destination Canada and cities across the country are leading this charge, committed to ensuring meetings hosted in Canada — and around the world — leave a positive handprint, not a negative footprint.
From coast to coast to coast, Canadian destinations are implementing innovative, comprehensive approaches to sustainability. Canada’s Sustainability Storybook captures these efforts, showcasing how to embed sustainable practices into every stage of event planning.
TURNKEY SOLUTIONS
Across the pages of the Storybook, planners can find a myriad of sustainability initiatives available in Canadian destinations. All initiatives are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), which act as a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. Examples include:
● Sustainable Incentive Funding in Halifax, offering discounts, recognition and support for event planners who opt for zero waste, sustainable catering, energy efficiency and social equity initiatives.
● A Guide to Social Procurement in Vancouver, created to help planners put purpose into practice with tools that create positive social and community impact through spending decisions.
● An Indigenous Fashion Show in Banff and Lake Louise, providing attendees with a unique and immersive opportunity to engage with authentic Indigenous culture and values.
The Storybook offers turnkey solutions that can be adapted to any event—large or small. Whether you’re looking for solar powered meetings, upcycled event furniture or local pop-up markets, the Storybook makes it easy to incorporate practices that meet both client expectations and attendee values.
COMMITTED TO SUSTAINABILITY
The Storybook grew out of a bold initiative — Destination Canada’s Business Events Sustainability Plan, a national program to enhance the economic, sociocultural and environmental sustainability practices of business events hosted in Canada.
The plan aims to help global clients develop events with sustainability at their core, and to do this, cities across Canada began participating in the Global Destination Sustainability Index (GDS-Index) annual benchmarking process, the world’s leading program promoting scalable sustainability and responsible practices among tourism destinations globally.
As Canadian destinations shared their sustainability strategies, action plans and initiatives, a collective vision of the country’s leadership in this area emerged—and the Storybook was born.
From Victoria’s cutting-edge, carbon neutral, biosphere-certified conference centre to Toronto’s GREENSmart program, which leverages technology to enhance sustainability, the Storybook is more than a catalogue of sustainability initiatives—it’s proof that Canada’s business events destinations are raising the bar for global best practices.
POWERFUL LEGACY
The initiatives featured in the Storybook do more than tick a sustainability checklist—they create a profound and lasting impact.
This is clear from Destination Canada’s Legacy & Impact Study, a multi-year study evaluating the beyond-tourism benefits generated by international business events held in Canada.
The findings confirm that events can create lasting impacts far beyond financial benefits, driving significant investments, shaping policy changes, fostering strategic partnerships, and inspiring far-reaching impacts long after attendees returned home.
When business events are designed with clear purpose and foresight, they transcend being simple gatherings—they become catalysts for lasting change.
INTENTIONAL PLANNING
Inspired by Canada’s approach? Here are three quick strategies to integrate sustainability into your next event:
1. Engage local ecosystems early. Partner with local suppliers, nonprofits and Indigenous communities to amplify the impact of your event.
2. Set measurable goals. Whether it’s waste reduction or community benefit, define clear key performance indicators (KPIs) from the outset.
3. Communicate your wins. Share positive sustainability outcomes with stakeholders and attendees to build community, deepen connection, and strengthen engagement.
CANADA, NATURALLY
Canada’s Sustainability Storybook is more than a resource — it’s an invitation. An invitation to create events that matter, leave behind a positive handprint, and show attendees that sustainability can be seamless, inspiring and deeply meaningful.
When you meet in Canada, you get more than world-class infrastructure, a warm welcome and stunning natural settings. You get the chance to spark lasting change—and help shape a better, more sustainable future for all.
Joel Walton is senior director, Business Events Strategic Initiatives at Destination Canada. Visit businessevents.destinationcanada.com to start making a difference.
