At GreenBiz, we strive to mitigate our environmental impact. This year, we’ve set a goal of diverting 100% of the waste generated by the conference. We are working with Waste Management, in collaboration with the Oakland Convention Center and the VERGE 19 exhibitors, to minimize waste generation and optimize waste diversion.

At VERGE 18, these efforts resulted in 91% diversion from landfill. Watch this video to learn how you can help make VERGE 19 even more successful by adhering to the Zero Waste Guidelines, observing posted recycling and composting signage, leaving outside food or beverage containers outside the event, and reducing food waste buy only taking what you will eat at meals.

We are offsetting 110% of VERGE 19’s carbon emissions with the help of Natural Capital Partners, by supporting verified carbon offset projects that impact multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Guatemala Water Filtration and Improved Cookstoves, Guatemala Water Filtration and Cookstoves, Seneca Meadows Landfill Gas and Water Access in Sub-Saharan Africa. Three of our selected projects feature improved cookstoves, which enable women to spend less time and resources cooking, and more time with their families or enterprise activities and education. Additionally, the health of families improves thanks to reduced indoor air pollution. Attendee travel, energy consumption, waste emissions and other carbon impacts associated with VERGE 19 will be offset with the help of Natural Capital Partners.

Last year at VERGE 18, we achieved certification as a Carbon Neutral event and we hope to do the same this year at VERGE 19!

We'll balance VERGE 19's water footprint with the help of Bonneville Environmental Foundation and Change the Course, restoring approximately 820,000 gallons of freshwater to critically depleted ecosystems across North America. The Change the Course campaign is a national water initiative founded by BEF, National Geographic, and Participant Media. The initiative engages the public and the business community in reducing water footprints and returning water to nature. For every personal pledge to conserve, Change the Course returns 1,000 gallons to rivers and wetlands in need. Change the Course partners with on-the-ground conservation groups to fund innovative restoration projects that restore water and enhance water security.

We're partnering with Copia and MGM Resorts to redistribute all of our surplus food to nonprofits in the Oakland community. Today in America, 40% of the food we produce goes wasted, while 1 in 6 people are food insecure. What this means: hunger in our country is not a scarcity problem, it's a logistics problem. Copia is the first technology-enabled food recovery solution. They've built industry-leading logistics to solve hunger and food waste at scale, and GreenBiz is proud to be part of the solution. 

MGM Resorts' Mobile Blast Chiller will quickly and safely cool down the excess hot food produced for VERGE, to then be transported to Oakland nonprofits. 

Last year at VERGE 18, we redistributed 254 pounds of food, provided 212 meals to local non-profits and saved 92,636 gallons of water through our partnership with Copia. 

Our partnership with TerraCycle will allow us to divert more waste by repurposing non-recyclable and non-compostable material. TerraCycle is a highly-awarded and globally recognized recycling company that develops recycling solutions for difficult-to-recycle waste streams, repurposing the collected materials into affordable, innovative products. TerraCycle is widely considered the world's leader in the collection and reuse of non-recyclable and post-consumer waste.

At VERGE 18, TerraCycle helped us to recycle an additional 7.8% of our waste, beyond what a traditional recycling facility would be able to handle. This included thin film plastic, disposable coffee cups (brought in from outside the conference walls), candy wrappers, and other miscellaneous items. We look forward to continuing this partnership and recycling even more challenging items at VERGE 19!

We strive to use sustainable materials in all aspects of our conference production. Aosa Print & Display provides beautiful, durable, recycled and recyclable signage, designed to look great and stay out of the landfill. We create our banners and backdrops from fabric made of 100% recycled PET printed with no VOC water based inks. Signage boards are 100% recyclable and made from 30% PCW, and wooden boards are made from FSC certified baltic birch. Metal signs are 100% recyclable and made from 100% domestic metal. Lastly, our backdrop for the event is 100% digital in an effort to use fewer materials. 

In the place of printed programs, the CrowdCompass AttendeeHub app offers the best option for accessing the program on-site, connecting with fellow attendees and keeping up with all that VERGE 19 has to offer. Be sure to download the app or access it on your desktop to view the most up-to-date event program. By using the conference app, you are helping to reduce paper use at VERGE 19. Thank you! Instructions to download the app will be available on our website in September.