Sustainable Event Program

Designed for events large and small, the Sustainable Event Program supports low-impact event planning at Cornell.  Improve your event sustainability with our guide to a sustainable event, local catering list, and certification program for completing steps in food, waste, purchasing, accessibility, and more. 

Purpose of this Program

Cornell University hosts over 10,000+ events annually, making event planners crucial to our campus sustainability efforts. With simple changes to how we host events, together we can have a large collective impact on improving purchasing, reducing waste, and demonstrating our culture of sustainability to visitors and our community. Check out previously certified events to see who is making an impact at Cornell by hosting smarter, sustainable events!

Getting Started

Sustainable Event Certification

Certification is easy.  Fill out a short form before your event to receive certification as a Sustainable Event (5+ actions) or Platinum Sustainable Event (10+ actions). Single or recurring events of any size can be certified. 

By completing the certification process, you are helping to integrate sustainability into business practices, capture what actions are taken across campus, share best practices among event planners, and address on-going issues event planners are facing. Thank you for participating!

How to Certify

1. Check out the Sustainable Event Checklist to identify ways to make your next event more sustainable
    

2. Before hosting your event, self-certify using the Sustainable Event Certification form, where you will commit to taking 5 or more actions
    

3. Add a certification logo to your marketing materials
    

4. After hosting your event, complete the quick debrief survey to report what actions you took and offer recommendations to other event planners 
    

Key Sustainable Event Resources