As the world celebrated Earth Day April 22, event professionals, organizations and venues took stock of the impact their carbon footprint has on climate change and implemented initiatives to be more sustainable. Following are three convention centers that unveiled green initiatives to mark Earth Week.

New York City’s Javits Center may be located in one of the busiest cities in the world, but it’s as green as it gets at this newly expanded facility. The center just unveiled an innovative 200,000-square-foot rooftop that features a glass-enclosed pavilion, an outdoor terrace and a one-acre working farm that is expected to generate up to 40,000 pounds of produce each year for the center’s banquet operations.

Even though big gatherings still aren’t allowed in most U.S. cities, that hasn’t stopped sustainably minded event organizations, hospitality companies and venues from finding ways to celebrate the 51st edition of Earth Day.

For event professionals who are passionate about sustainability, this past year has raised some concerns about the future of green events. As the trade show and meetings industry begins to recover, and with event budgets tighter than ever, will anyone care enough about sustainability to help the cause or will green practices end up on the bottom rung of importance?

It isn’t easy being green, but convention centers that remain steadfast in their commitment to sustainability can certainly reap the rewards from time to time. Case in point: Detroit’s TCF Center, which received a 2020 U.S.

When it comes to combating event waste, ICC Sydney appears to have one of the event industry’s leading environmental issues under control.

With the events industry focused on COVID-19 recovery, discussions around the role that sustainable events play in helping to stop an even bigger long-term threat — climate change — have taken a back seat.

We recently wrote about why event industry organizations should implement green teams — cross-functional groups that identify and implement ways to help the organization operate in a more environmentally sustainable fashion.

As the importance of lessening the environmental impact of meetings, trade shows and events only continues to grow, here’s what two Midwestern convention centers are doing to help make sustainable planning easier.

Sustainable practices are fast becoming a must for events.