Sustainable Exhibits at the General Assembly

General Assembly (GA) planners encourage exhibitors to apply these principles as they prepare exhibits and table displays:

• Do green practices matter?
   
• Exhibitor Terms and Conditions, what you can expect
   
• Tips and Resources, before, during, and after GA
   
• Waste Management Practices
   
• Frequently Asked Questions

Green Exhibitor Award Program

This program was launched in 2010 to recognize exhibitors who are taking extra steps to reduce their impact. Last year the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth was selected to receive a free advertisement in the GA program as the exhibitor meeting the highest number of green guidelines.

Carbon Offsets

Exhibitors are encouraged to donate $6 to reduce carbon emissions. Donations go to Carbonfund.org, a non-profit organization that educates the public about climate change and works with individuals, businesses and civic groups on CO2 reduction programs.

Decorating Materials

The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) has a long-standing partnership with Heritage Exposition Services to provide materials and set-up for the Exhibit Hall. This year Heritage developed a sustainability policy and procurement criteria for their business in response to a direct request from the UUA. Many of the changes under this policy are invisible to GA participants. For example, all carpeting is made from more durable, 25% post-industrial content and is in its third year of re-use. Trim pieces that could not be salvaged represent a mere 2% of carpet used. Carpet reuse not only presents significant environmental benefits by reducing manufacturing footprints, it also means Heritage can eliminate Visqueen, a wasteful plastic film that many trade shows using new carpet employ to protect carpet from damage. Carpet padding also includes recycled content and furnishings, booth panels, drape and framing are all collected for reuse. Heritage staff and local labor also worked with Global Green Integrators to collect 221 pounds of film plastics like shrink wrap and tabletop material for recycling locally.

Printed Materials

Exhibit hall waste was determined to be a key contributor to not achieving waste goals in 2011. As a result, monitoring and sorting of materials left behind in the exhibit hall was stepped up in 2012. Still, several exhibitors abandoned significant quantities of waste, primarily paper. In 2013, we will provide suggestions to exhibitors to prevent over-printing, and will consider penalties for exhibitors who leave materials behind.