Tokyo is strengthening efforts to promote sustainable business events as part of Japan’s national development policy that incorporates UNSDGs.
The Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau (TCVB) has launched initiatives for business events organisers who are considering hosting an event in the metropolis. They include a sustainable event support desk, sustainability guidelines, a carbon footprint calculator and sustainable experience programmes, available both in-person and online for hybrid meetings.
The move marks TCVB’s ongoing commitment to sustainability, building on its destination membership of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, attained in May 2023, and hosting of Tokyo’s inaugural Sustainable MICE Showcase in December 2024, which introduced topics like smart, environmentally-friendly venues, and sustainable approaches to F&B.
“The goal of our activities is to make sustainable tourism visible and to revitalise the tourism industry using it as a norm,” said Masaru Suzuki, TCVB’s director general.
“To promote sustainable tourism in a vast city like Tokyo, it is essential for DMOs, the government, tourism-related businesses and local communities to work together in consensus.”
Events that have utilised the sustainable event support include the Tokyo Sustainable Seafood Summit 2024, which prepared the sustainability policy for its event with the help of TCVB staff.
Among the green options adopted were the use of environmentally friendly exhibition materials such as FSC-certified cardboard, onsite panels and pre-event emails to distribute lecture materials, water dispensers, bamboo tumblers and cardboard name badges.
In addition, the venue was selected based on its accessibility by public transport, unsold lunches were utilised as staff dinners to reduce food loss, and participants were asked to dress in warm clothing to save power.
