AGF team up with Manchester Metropolitan University for a sustainable events day

AGREENERFESIVAL have teamed up with Manchester Metropolitan University for a 'sold out' one day conference in Manchester on December 2nd for 200 final year event management students and invited industry guests . It's a packed day, and we are delighted to have the support of campsite waste campaigners Love Your Tent and food salvage experts 8th Plate as well as industry leaders from Powerful Thinking  and Firefly Solar to talk about sustainble power. On top of this we have leading experts from The Glastonbury Festival, Kendal Calling, The Hay Literary Festival and Shambala to talk about best practice and new ideas. The conference agenda looks like this:

09.25  Introduction & Welcome    Shaun Litler (MMU)

09.30   Andy Fryers, Hay Literary Festival: Juggling the Four Balls of Sustainability

10.15   Helen Innes, A Greener Festival:  Introducing Sustainability at Events

10.45 - 11.00am Comfort Break

11.00  Ben Challis, Glastonbury Festival / A Greener Festival: Events, The Environment and The Law

11.30  Questions with Andy Hay, Helen Innes and Ben Challis  (chaired by Shaun Litler)

12.00pm – 13.00pm Lunch

13.00   Rob Scully, Glastonbury Festival & Kendal Calling: Presentation: Glastonbury: Love the Farm, Leave No Trace & The Green Fields of Kendal Calling

13.30   Emma Dyer, 8th Plate, the food waste project: Food for Thought

13.45  Juliet Ross Kelly, Love Your Tent: The Solutions to Campsite Waste

14.00   Chris Johnson, Shambala Festival:  Powerful Thinking - the energy efficient, low carbon and cost effective future for festivals

14.15  Tim Benson, Firefly: Sustainable Power For Your Event

14.35 – 15.00 Break

15.00  Panel: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Tackling Waste at Events : Chaired by Shaun Litler with Chris Johnson (Shambala), Rob Scully (Glastonbury Festival), Emma Dyer (8th Plate), Juliet Ross Kelly (Love Your Tent) and Andy Fryers (Hay Literary Festival).

16.00 Closing remarks with Shaun Litler & Ben Challis

Many thanks to all of our friends for the making of what looks like being a very exciting and informative day!

Final line up announced for Green Events and Innivations

Green Events and Innovations – Keynotes, Panels and Presentations

09.30am Registration opens (please arrive at the Gateway Building, Buckinghamshire New University and you will be directed over to the conference room (N3.06)

10.15am Introducing the Greener Festival Award: Presented by Helen Wright, A Greener Festival : The Greener Festival Award is now in its 5th year and is recognised internationally as a prestigious independent assessment of sustainability and environmental good practice. This session aims to allow delegates the opportunity to understand how the scheme works and what criteria are used in assessing festivals.

11.00am Waste Management Solutions: Presented by Andy Willcott, Network Recycling Network Recycling are acknowledged experts in providing waste management solutions to festival and Andy Willcott will provide a presentation on practical and effective waste management regimes for festivals. The presentation will follow a group discussion on the opportunities and challenges ahead for reducing and managing event waste most effectively.

12.00pm Measuring GHG Emissions: Presented by Helen Heathfield, Julies BicycleEstablished in 2007 by and for the UK music industry, Julie’s Bicycle is a non-profit company working with the creative industries to co-ordinate and catalyse best practice in sustainability and develop cultural leadership around climate issues to reduce the sector’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. JB help organisations understand their carbon impacts and take responsibility for reducing them by providing clear, practical advice and support, based on the best available research, tools and which will be explained by Helen Heathfield, Julies Bicycle’s Associate Director for Energy & The Environment.

1:00pm Lunch Break: Lunch is not provided but there are two cafeterias at Bucks New University: Rusty Bucks in the Gateway Building (ground floor) and Beats (1st floor) as well as a number of pubs and restaurants in the centre of High Wycombe, just 5 minutes walk away.

2.00pm Keynote: The Role of Arts in Climate Change. Ben Challis

2.30pm PANEL: Sustainable Power Solutions Whilst travel is known to be the highest contributor to a green field event’s GHG emissions, on site power is something that is possibly more within the control of organizers, and area where a demand from green solutions is seen to be rising in conjunction with some of the technological advancements of our society. This panel brings together a range of expertise on power – from festival organisers, education, long established generator and large scale power providers, to those with smaller scale innovative solutions. The panel will discuss what is available on the market at present, what is being done, what are future the challenges, and where do we go from here? Panelists: Andy Mead (Firelfly Solar) Juliet Ross-Kelly (Eco Action Partnership, Isle of Wight Festival) Helen Heathfield (Julies Bicycle) Sam Jenner (Eco Charge Technologies) Rob Hutchinson (Innovation Power) Tom Davidson(Buffalo Power) and Moderator: Claire O’Neill(AIF / A Greener Festival)

3.45pm PANEL: Travel Solution for Music FestivalsWith audience travel now acknowledged as the biggest contributor to the music industry’s carbon footprint, panellists will discuss what festivals are doing to reduce car travel to festivals. Questions to be asked include what are the most and least polluting options of travel? Are there any new initiatives on the horizon? And what works and what doesn’t? Panellists Lucy Brooking Clarke (Glastonbury Festival) Kevin Green (Big Green Coach) Zoe Burton (Liftshare.com) Robin Bennett (Wood/Truck festivals) and Moderator: Teresa Moore(Bucks New Uni)

5.15pm Drinks Reception and 6.30pm Close