Embracing our Corporate Sustainable Responsibilities

Carbon Footprint

We have been measuring our footprint since 2019, analysing our emissions and taking action to reduce them.

Net Zero Ambitions

We have ambitions to become
Net Zero by 2030. This can only
be achieved with the support
from clients and partners.

Impact Investments

To offset our CO2 emissions, we have been investing in cookstoves across Africa. We also partner Justdiggit to cool down the planet.

Take a look at how ACS is embracing its CSR responsibilities

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Our CSR Responsibilities

ACS fully embraces its responsibilities towards the planet and society as an active participant of the UN Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs). It has been a member of the UN Global Compact Group since 2011, and has signed the event industry Net Zero Carbon pledge.

Corporate sustainability starts with a company’s value system and a principles-based approach to doing business. This means ACS operates in ways that, at a minimum, meet fundamental responsibilities in respect to human rights, labour, the environment and anti-corruption.

ACS taking action

In February 2022, ACS appointed Vincenzo Fornoni as Sustainability Manager and also started working with the Climate Neutral Group (CNG), which is an independent organisation dedicated to helping companies reach a Net Zero carbon footprint by 2050.

The CNG climate experts use innovative tools to achieve credible and transparent results. However, due to the covid lockdown years, it was not possible to make comparable measurements of our emissions in 2020 and 2021. CNG made a complete and thorough analysis and report of our carbon footprint for 2022, allowing us to fully offset our emissions for the first time in 2023.

So, what is the process for ACS to achieve its Net Zero ambitions…

Measuring & Reducing CO2 Emissions

In accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which is the official standard set by the Paris agreement. ACS measures its CO2 emissions with the support of the Climate Neutral Group and their ‘SmartTrackers’ system. This analysis includes Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, which has given ACS a proper grasp of where the most impact can be made, in terms of reduction.

ACS's Sustainability Policies

  • Transitioning our vehicle fleet to fully electric
  • Travelling by train to events less than 600 kms away
  • Sourcing local materials and suppliers to minimize transportation
  • Only using LED lighting for congress events
  • Using re-usable carpet tiles (20-50 times) for event flooring
  • Using re-usable ‘Dopper’ drinking bottles to reduce plastic waste

Carbon Offsetting

Reducing our emissions is the most important element in achieving a Net Zero target. However, some emissions cannot be reduced further and the only way to achieve a zero-carbon target is through offsetting investments; in carefully selected, sustainable projects that reduce CO2 on location in developing countries. With the advice and guidance from the Climate Neutral Group, ACS made a Gold Standard offsetting investment in cookstoves across Africa. This allowed ACS to fully offset its 2022 carbon emissions.

Social impact initiatives

Alongside ACS’s offsetting activity, ACS has been busy with social impact initiatives, and is proud to partner Justdiggit, whose mission is to regreen Africa and cool down the planet. Justdiggit uses regenerative agricultural practices to reverse desertification on the African continent. They work with local farmers and communities to transform dried-out areas of land into the thriving ecosystems they once were. This is achieved by digging half-moon holes, which capture scarce rainwater and direct it toward growing plants, helping reforest the edges of the southern Sahara. Since 2022, ACS has donated funds to regreen up to 900,000 m2 of degraded land in Kuku, Kenya.

Education from within

To ensure that sustainability is both understood and becomes part of the company’s DNA, ACS has established a Sustainability Board. This board meets every 3 months, and comprises various employees who work in different functions and departments within the company. Information material has been created to distribute within ACS to broaden the understanding of the sustainability strategy and activities within the company. Employees are encouraged to offer feedback to help fine tune policies and further improve best practices.

Mission to reduce single-use plastic waste

ACS is on a mission to reduce single-use plastic waste within the event industry. Every ACS employee has their own Dopper drinking bottle, which they take to client projects and events. According to Dopper research, every minute 1 million single-use plastic bottles are sold worldwide! Dopper is fighting this accumulating problem by challenging any excuse to keep buying these highly polluting single-use plastic bottles. It is estimated that every Dopper bottle prevents 40 single-use plastic bottles a year from entering our ocean. The Dopper bottles are certified as fully circular, so no new plastic has been used in their production.

Want to make your next event more sustainable?

Contact one of our specialists to find out how!