Conference Social Responsibility
Building a sustainable future, together.June 20 and 21, 2024 · Amsterdam
Eat, drink, return, wash, repeat
At TNW Conference, food and drinks were enjoyed from reusable tableware! Together with our catering partner The Food Line Up, TNW introduced a transition program from single-use to reuse, where we used reusable utensils, cups, plates, and packaging at our event.
We had three reusable collection hubs, for returning tableware and cups. Together with your help we achieved this! Aside from the main collection hubs, smaller trash bins were provided across the venue where you could also leave your reusable cup and throw away other residual or organic waste.
Leveraging sustainable energy sources to power our event
Our partnership with Taets Art and Events Park and the city of Amsterdam allows us to fast-track our goals and reduce the dependency on power generators.
We take pride in our event design which incorporates LED lighting in 80% of our features, including the stage and expo lighting. Our aim is to not only create a visually stunning ambiance but also minimize our environmental impact.
Creating a sustainable future
TNW is determined to reduce, reuse, and recycle as many elements related to the production as possible. We are thrilled that over 70% of our build and design materials are carefully chosen for their reusability, with the aim of reducing waste and promoting sustainability. This includes building our exhibition booths with reusable materials and modular components (allowing parts to be reused in future editions), giving printed materials a second life in the form of bags and laptop sleeves, and recycling the carpeting and signage.
We also strongly encourage our vendors to take actions that promote sustainability, such as using eco-friendly materials and reducing their use of single-use plastics. Additionally, we will reduce the amount of single-use plastics to a minimum across our food stands, and only allow for cashless/pin-only payments on-site.
Good travel = Fossil-free travel
We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint, and one way we're achieving this is by working with suppliers who are located within a 40-minute to one-hour distance from our flagship location. Currently, 90% of our suppliers fall within this category. By sourcing locally, we are able to minimize transportation emissions and support local businesses.
We have partnered with DB Schenker, as our trusted freight forwarder, to handle all transportation and logistics of client and partner materials. This allows us to provide sustainable shipping options, such as utilizing eco-friendly packaging materials and optimizing transportation routes to reduce carbon emissions. Through our partnership, we aim to promote sustainable practices and reduce our environmental impact.
We strongly encourage attendees to use public transportation or carpool to the venue. To facilitate this, we provide convenient and sustainable transportation options such as ferry services from Amsterdam central station and shuttle buses from Zaandam station. For attendees who prefer to bike to the event, we offer secure bicycle parking facilities on site. By choosing sustainable transportation options, attendees can help us reduce carbon emissions and alleviate traffic congestion in the surrounding areas.
Time for a meatless menu
Thanks to our proud partnership with The Food Line Up, Europe's first B-Corp certified caterer, we offer our attendees a completely sustainable and delicious food experience. The Food Line Up sources their ingredients locally and uses only organic and seasonal produce to create their 100% meat-free menu options.
This means all food stalls across our premises serve locally-sourced, vegetarian-only options. By removing meat from our catering venues, we are contributing to drastically reducing our CO2- emissions, and help save large amounts of fresh water and land.
Lastly, to ensure that our menu is not harmful for the environment, we will provide 100% reusable tableware, minimize the usage of single-use food packaging materials, and offer bins across the terrain to collect waste, separated by glass, plastics, and biodegradable materials.
Every drop counts
TNW is determined to limit the waste of fresh water, provide access to good-quality drinking water, and process waste water in a responsible and sustainable way.
As mentioned above, our meat-free commodities contribute to decreasing our water usage. While a pound of beef can feed five people, it requires an estimated 7,000 to 9,500 liters of water to produce — whereas the equivalent amount of plant protein only requires a fraction of that total, approximately 1,600 to 2,200 liters of water.
To promote responsible water usage, we strongly encourage both vendors and attendees to minimize their water consumption at our event. In order to facilitate this effort, we provide convenient "fill-your-own" water stations, we will also be offering durable and reusable bottles for purchase on-site to all staff and attendees.
Fostering a diverse and inclusive event
At TNW, we believe that the tech industry should represent and celebrate all backgrounds, ideas, and experiences. The key to building great solutions is diversity in perspectives and insights.
Every year, we invite a wide variety of thought-leaders on stage, from representatives of leading and upcoming tech companies, to independent creators, activists, and authors. We endeavor to curate a diverse and interdisciplinary lineup of speakers who can inspire our audience to use technology as a force for good.
We also strive to build and uphold an inclusive and diverse audience. Women currently remain highly underrepresented in the STEM workforce, with a recent study showing that women hold only 26% of all tech-related roles.
We at TNW take exception to these statistics. In order to achieve equal representation in the industry, we will offer discounted tickets to all women in tech.
Last but not least, we believe that young digital talent should get the opportunity, inspiration, and education they require to progress in their careers. As such, we have been working with several companies to further advance employer branding, talent acquisition, and education.
We’ve also teamed up with universities, business schools, to build an environment that provides equal access for all those in the ecosystem. With our T500 program, we’re aiming to help youngsters who are looking for a job in tech, and facilitate meetings between job-seekers and employers.