UBM Live Recognized for Sustainable Development Program

AMSTERDAM, Sept. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading events organiser, UBM Live, today announced that its flagship Amsterdam office received praise from UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, for its systems management approach to sustainable development within its pharmaceutical and food ingredients portfolio of products. UBM Live received the honorable mention in the inaugural "Best Sustainable Development Strategy" award.

"UBM Live has put sustainability at the very core of our business and our future strategic planning," stated Nik Rudge, Managing Director of UBM Live Amsterdam. "It is not just about 'being green', but about bringing an ethical, future-conscious attitude and mindset to every aspect of its commercial activities and strategic thinking. Our pledge to responsible business is exemplified in our BS 8901 accredited events CPhI Worldwide and Fi/Hi Europe, as well as in UBM's NGO events globally. Receiving an honorable mention from UFI validates that we are making significant strides towards achieving our commitment to make our business genuinely sustainable across the board."

As a leading player in the global events industry, UBM Live recognizes its responsibility to achieve a position of sustainability leadership, exploring new ways to make business more sustainable and also setting a positive example for other businesses. This integrated strategic ethos not only covers UBM Live Amsterdam's environmental responsibility, but also their broader commercial and economic activity in the marketplaces and communities that that they operate in. Within the business, UBM Live also fulfils a commitment to principled leadership, regular training and clear communication.

"As an exhibition organizer, UBM Live Amsterdam committed early on to applying the BS8901 standard. Their use of this framework, (now evolved into the ISO 20121 standard) ensured a comprehensive approach to sustainability applications which promises to significantly influence the scope of their operations in the future," said Paul Woodward, UFI Managing Director.

Externally, UBM Live is looking to leverage thought leadership in the events industry to generate an impetus for sustainable change among suppliers, contractors and venues to work towards achieving full value alignment and positive outcomes. In addition to CPhI Worldwide and Fi/Hi Europe receiving the British BS8901 accreditation, UBM Live's Responsible Business Exhibition UK has also been certified with this standard.

In the years to come, UBM Live will continue to review and adapt as new objectives, targets and goals are set for responsible business. Looking forward, UBM Live will keep a focus on how large-scale events of the future will look, and how the exhibition organiser of the future will operate in a sustainable manner.

The next steps for UBM Live EMEA include transitioning to ISO 20121, the standard that will replace the BS 8901 accreditation. This standard emphasises the commitment from top management and the engagement with all stakeholders to work together towards sustainable events. New events introduced to Europe will also take part of this continually developing sustainable events management approach to broaden the scope of sustainability and continue to raise the bar in the industry.

For more information on UBM Live Sustainability, please visit the website ubmlivesustainability.com. 

About UBM Live

UBM Live connects people and creates opportunities for companies across five continents to develop new business, meet customers, launch new products, promote their brands and expand their markets.   Through premier brands such as MD&M, CPhI, IFSEC, Food Ingredients, TFM&A, Cruise Shipping Miami, the Concrete Show and many others, UBM Live exhibitions, conferences, awards programs, publications, websites and training and certification programs are an integral part of the marketing plans of companies across more than 20 industry sectors.