31 October, 2017

Trees in and plastic out for CINZ Conference 2017

Delegates at this week’s CINZ Conference in Dunedin are helping to offset any carbon emissions from their journeys by gifting hundreds of native trees to the city.

In a corporate social responsibility initiative run for Conventions and Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) by Ahika Consulting, trees will be planted to restore the Otago Peninsula native forest.

Chair of the Otago Peninsula Trust, Norcombe Barker, who is also executive director of Larnach Castle says they are delighted to be working with Ahika to offset carbon for the CINZ conference.

“Our volunteers work tirelessly to restore biodiversity to Dunedin’s iconic Harbour Cone,” he said.

Chief Executive, Sue Sullivan says plastic bottles, paper cups, bags, and printed brochures are all out at this year’s conference too.

“Instead everything delegates need is on Centium’s EventsAIR App, which includes a new EventStream feature to allow delegates to post photos and videos and comments via the app.”

Bree Jones, Business Events Tourism Advisor at Enterprise Dunedin says the city has donated reusable cups to conference delegates.

“Knowing the amount of coffee our industry lives on, we have been giving away reusable coffee cups and encouraging delegates to use these throughout the conference.”

Niki Bould, Sustainablity Consultant with Ahika presented CINZ delegates with the latest on carbon neutral conferencing, giving them practical advice on how to manage their approach to sustainability and make a difference at every event.

“We applaud CINZ for leading the way with offsetting carbon generated through this conference, and in their reduction of waste commonly associated with conferences. Such practice is growing internationally, and Ahika is excited to be helping CINZ lead the way in New Zealand,” Bould said.

With the theme ‘Ahead of the Curve’, more than 140 CINZ members including owners and managers of key venues, catering companies, accommodation providers, activity operators and regional convention bureaux have been meeting at the Dunedin Centre and Town Hall this week.

An impressive line-up of international and local experts looked at future trends, including Deborah Sexton, President and CEO of the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA), brought here by Tourism New Zealand with the support of Air New Zealand.

Global strategist Holly Ransom, sponsored by Celebrity Speakers and Air New Zealand, gave delegates fresh insights into the mind set of Millennials.

In keeping with the conference theme, CINZ matched different presentation styles to match different ways of learning. Traditional plenary sessions shared the programme with shortened workshops, TED-style talks, and panel sessions

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