Travel Places retains ISO 20121 certification for sustainable events

We have successfully retained our ISO 20121 certification for sustainable meetings and events for a second year, having passed our annual audit to assess the level at which we have met the standards.

Inspired by the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the international ISO 20121:2012 accreditation is aimed at reducing the negative environmental, social and economic impacts of events. The standard has been developed to help businesses put sustainability first. It provides a framework of best practice measures and considerations throughout the supply chain to reduce or prevent negative impacts when managing and delivering an event.

Travel Places first received approval to ISO 20121 in 2022. Achieving the certification and retaining it each year demonstrates our commitment towards a sustainable future and provides our clients with the confidence that we can support them to manage their events using the most sustainable practices.

Matt Warren, Joint Managing Director, said the Travel Places team is delighted with the results of this year’s audit and the feedback received from the auditor: “The external audit is an independent and objective view of work we are doing to consider sustainability throughout our operations. It was great to be able to demonstrate the improvements we have made over the past 12 months, including the development of our internal systems, supplier management and community initiatives, as well as the reductions to our own business emissions.

“This year’s audit recognised these efforts and the feedback we received is testament to our teams’ unwavering support to work towards our own sustainability goals, whilst supporting our clients to do the same.”

What does ISO certification mean for our customers?

We appreciate the impact that travel and events programmes can have on our resources, society and the environment and we’re fully committed to doing what we can to limit that impact, whilst supporting our customers to do the same. Our ISO 20121 certification provides our sports, media and touring clients with the assurance that we are using internationally recognised processes and practice to support them in designing and managing group movements in the most sustainable way. We are audited each year for ISO, where we must show evidence of these processes and our continual improvement of them.

With ISO 20121: 2024 recently published, we are now working towards the standards of this ahead of our recertification in 2025. This updated version reflects the evolving development and importance of key considerations, such as reducing carbon emissions, promoting fair labour practices, and ensuring ethical sourcing throughout the supply chain. It also aligns with global sustainability frameworks, goals and reporting standards such as the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals, Race to Zero and The Paris Agreement on Climate Change 2015.

Our B Corp certification

In 2023, Travel Places became B Corp Certified. Whilst ISO focuses more on the processes we have in place around sustainable event management, how we follow them and the improvements we’re making, the B Corp certification centres around the purpose of our business. Both certifications are driving our business in the same direction and provide an  independent global stamp of approval of the work we do to meet the travel needs of our clients, whilst understanding and limiting the impact on future generations.

Can we help your business?

Using the ISO 20121 management system, we have developed a range of services that enable our customers to make better informed decisions, and to strive for continuous improvement towards ambitious sustainability goals. These include the ability to measure and report on the impact of group travel and events, as well as supporting with ethical supply chain management.

Get in touch with our team if you would like to discuss how we can support your business to achieve a more sustainable travel programme.