$89,250: Cost avoided by reusing banners from Oracle OpenWorld at other events.

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1 OpenWorld 2008 painted San Francisco Oracle red...and green. Significant steps were taken to improve, measure and verify Oracle s approach to event planning in a way that sustains the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit. The following report outlines our successes and challenges in 2008, and recommendations for OpenWorld Best Practices Verification of Oracle OpenWorld 2007 revealed a fairly high baseline of sustainable practices. This was achieved with no formal sustainability policy or practices, both of which Oracle has since worked hard to develop and solidify in Major milestones in 2008 included: Creation of a company-wide sustainable meetings policy and practices. Development of request for proposals and contract language for primary areas of meeting management. These documents have been used to inventory vendor practices for OpenWorld and to update and amend contracts where possible. Creation of an online, internal, sustainable meetings wiki. Training for Oracle staff, including workshop and five sustainable meetings webinars which can be accessed on-demand through the internal wiki by staff throughout the globe. Meetings with all vendors to communicate green expectations. Completion of green surveys by all vendors to establish baseline best practices. Engagement of Meeting Strategies Worldwide to conduct an on-site verification of OpenWorld Greening Oracle OpenWorld 2008

2 EVENT HIGHLIGHTS 965: Number of trees that were saved by reducing the size of the OpenWorld 2008 Site Program. In addition 411,585 gallons of water and 692 BTU s of energy were saved by reducing the number of pages and printing using 100% post-consumer recycled paper. $11,600: Costs avoided by providing streamlined online schedulers, demo requests and maps, and not pr ing name badges. Paper use avoided in this process saved an estimated 3 trees. 61%: Minimum waste diversion achieved by Moscone Center and the Metreon (62%) through recycling and composting programs. All major meeting venues provided comprehensive recycling and composting. 500,000: The number of plastic bottles avoided by providing water stations and not bottled water. Typical cost for this amount of water is estimated at $1.5 million. The environmental savings of this decision translate into conservation of 594,000 liters of water, 36,900 kg of carbon dioxide, 6,750 kg of oil and 745,000 megajoules of energy*. $135,000: Cost saved by replacing existing non-sustainable railroad signage with a cardboard based alternative that was recycled. This represents a 75% reduction in costs for this type of sign. 45%: Percentage of banner signage that will be re-used for future events. $89,250: Cost avoided by reusing banners from Oracle OpenWorld at other events. 75%: Reduction in on-site paper use at Oracle OpenWorld since : The reduction in coaches needed per day to shuttle attendees at OpenWorld by expanding walking routes and adjusting shuttle frequency. $60,000: Cost saved by reducing shuttles at OpenWorld. 69%: The percentage of host hotels that recycled. 61% also provided a linen reuse program. 18: Number of media articles about the green initiative published within 30 days of OpenWorld. 65%: Minimum percentage of local food used for events outside of Moscone. This percentage varied from 65% of frozen food used to 80% of fresh food used. About 20% of food served was organic. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

3 EVENT REPORTS In order to help Oracle understand and track the environmental performance of OpenWorld, Meeting Strategies Worldwide has prepared the following post-event reports. These reports have been created using the MeetGreen Calculator. Practices included in and measured by the Calculator reflect leadership-level green meeting practices that exceed Convention Industry Council green guidelines and US Environmental Protection Agency procurement policy. Each practice is weighted according to the positive environmental impact of a decision made. Minimum points are achieved for intention while maximum points are awarded for measurable action. For example, requesting recycling at the convention center receives minimum points, while tracking and achieving a high recycling diversion rate would receive maximum points. Reports show the percentage of total points possible achieved by the Oracle OpenWorld. Having verified Oracle OpenWorld 2007 and 2008, Meeting Strategies Worldwide is pleased to provide the following illustration of overall environmental achievements in each of the following eight areas of conference management: 1. Destination Selection 2. Accommodation Selection 3. Transportation Selection 4. Meeting & Venue Selection 5. Food and Beverage 6. Exhibition Services 7. Communications & Marketing 8. On-site Practices Greening Oracle OpenWorld

4 Conference Summary Report The Conference Summary Report shows the environmental performance of OpenWorld in each area measured. As indicated by the graph OpenWorld 2008 improved significantly in nearly all areas, particularly Destination Selection, Accommodations and Onsite Office. Performance was fairly static in terms of Meeting Venue, mainly due to the high level of practice that was already in place and tracked by the Moscone Center in Opportunities for the greatest improvement remain in the area of transportation. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

5 Total Conference Comparison Report This chart illustrates how Oracle OpenWorld 2007 and 2008 compared to all other conferences tracked by Meeting Strategies Worldwide. Category Reports These charts (eight in total) illustrate the total MeetGreen scores in each of the eight categories of meeting management assessed by Meeting Strategies Worldwide. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

6 Destination Selection Oracle OpenWorld has always been held in San Francisco. Although the city has very strong sustainability programs Oracle had not factored sustainability criteria into the destination selection process. This was done for the first time in Oracle engaged the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau to provide information about infrastructure and practices that support the city s selection as host of OpenWorld. Criteria that were considered included transit infrastructure, the walkability of the convention neighborhood and recycling infrastructure. In addition the CVB helped to locate green vendors and survey host hotels to determine baseline environmental practices. Improvement in this category could be earned by ensuring sustainability is included in vendor contracts. Dedication of Oracle s Wishing Tree in recognition of Oracle s support of children s education at Yerba Beuna Gardens. Activities supported through the program include gardening, arts and crafts, ecosystem and recycling education. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

7 Meeting Venue Selection As the primary meeting venue for OpenWorld, Moscone Convention Center is a key partner in sustainability. The facility operates a comprehensive recycling program that consistently diverts 60% of waste from landfill, with 61% estimated as the overall diversion for OpenWorld. This is achieved not only through recycling and composting, but a community donation program that provides usable conference materials to schools and community service organizations. The facility uses selfgenerated solar power, green-certified cleaners and paper products, and has their own in-house recycling specialist. Oracle OpenWorld benefits greatly from these sustainability programs that are provided on a permanent basis by the facility. Please see the appendix for a comprehensive waste diversion report from Moscone. In addition, sustainability was integrated into offsite venues. Hartmann Studios ensured staffed recycling and composting stations were provided at the opening, appreciation and wrap events. Diversion of materials from landfill at the Treasure Island event was estimated at 56%. The primary hotel venues - the Palace, Intercontinental, Marriott, Westin and Hilton were also advised of environmental expectations by Oracle. In addition, Carlson surveyed all properties providing meeting space. All five properties were confirmed to have waste management, energy efficiency, water conservation and procurement programs in place that met or exceeded minimum Oracle guidelines through on-site verification. The Metreon and Yerba Buena Gardens also operate verified sustainability programs and completed vendor surveys for OpenWorld. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

8 Accommodation Selection Oracle OpenWorld engaged 85 hotels in San Francisco. All hotels were requested to: Provide towel and sheet re-use. Turn lights off in guest rooms when not occupied. Not replace amenities until they are finished or the guest has checked out. Provide recycling for guests. Use green-certified cleaners and recycled content bathroom papers. Because contracts had already been signed with many properties, participation in these practices was voluntary, but verified at some hotels. All hotels were requested to complete a green practices survey. 71% of hotels responded. Based on these surveys we can confirm at a minimum that: 61% of hotels provided linen reuse. 55% turned lights off when guest rooms were empty. 59% did not replace amenities until they were finished or the guest checked out. 69% provided recycling. 46% used recycled-content bathroom papers. 52% used green-certified cleaners. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

9 Food & Beverage Feeding and watering 43,000 people with a small footprint is no simple task. Sustainable food and beverage strategies for Oracle OpenWorld included reduced packaging by providing certain condiments in bulk. Biodegradable disposables were used for all meal functions, including the boxed lunch, and comprehensive recycling and composting was provided. In addition to regular recycling and waste management services provided at Moscone, Hartmann Studios provided recycling stations for all events outside of the convention center. Signage and recycling station monitors were key to ensuring waste streams were not contaminated as was the case in Food waste, boxed lunches and organics comprised 31% of the waste stream diverted from landfill at Moscone, and totaled 43,640lbs. The Treasure Island event diverted 28.5% of waste material to compost and 27.5% to recycling, achieving 56% diversion. In addition water bars were provided instead of bottled water. Pre-filling of water was limited to peak lunch periods in order to keep crowds moving. This prevented use of an estimated 500,000 plastic bottles, with a cost of $1.5 million. The environmental savings* of this decision translate into conservation of: 594,000 liters of water 36,900 kg of carbon dioxide 6,750 kg of oil 745,000 megajoules of energy Greening Oracle OpenWorld

10 In addition, Moscone Center has adopted an approach to food and beverage that considers practices that actively reduce the carbon footprint of food services at the venue. The facility has partnered with an outside company to analyze and identify ways it can further reduce waste. This has led to practices that reduce packaging, encourage local purchasing and divert food waste from landfill. This service is provided at no direct cost to Oracle. Offsite catering provided by McCall s sourced approximately 20% organic food. An estimated 80% of fresh food and 65% of frozen food was local. Moscone, the Westin, Intercontinental, Palace and Marriott all donated leftover food to either the employee cafeteria or local food banks. The Palace donated between boxed lunches per day of the event. McCalls delivered one 14 van of left over food to local agencies. *Resource calculations only include those required to produce the bottle, and does not include cost of bottling the water, printing labels or transport to distributors or retail outlets. Therefore these numbers are underestimates. New sustainable food and bevergage strategies at OpenWorld included providing comprehensive recycling and composting stations throughout the venue as well as water stations, which eliminated the need for bottled water. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

11 Transportation Consolidation was key to cutting down emissions and congestion at Oracle OpenWorld Although ground shuttles were provided for attendees efforts were made to consolidate routes and reduce the number of buses needed. Expansion of a second walking route and changes in frequency of trips to the downtown hotels reduced the equipment needed by 11 coaches each day. This saved Oracle $60,000! Coach companies completing vendor surveys all indicated they practice some form of responsible maintenance that includes recycling or appropriately disposing of used oil, tires, batteries and antifreeze. 100% indicated minimized idling was standard practice, although this was not consistently observed to be the case onsite. A handful of companies were also researching and developing new procedures to curb emissions and increase fuel mileage, such as converting transmissions and installing particulate traps on coaches. More than 70% of shuttle equipment used the most up-to-date technology, which is a more effective way to reduce emissions than bio-fuel. 20% of the equipment was 2008 model buses while 80% of the equipment was model buses. In order to organize move in and move out, vendors are required to tightly schedule and consolidate shipments. Several vendors are tracking the impact of this practice, which is advised for all vendors. For example, AV Images was able to reduce shipments from 11 in 2007 to 8 in 2008 by coordinating with other vendors and working with on-site AV contractors. Approximately 50% of AV equipment was shipped to site, while 50% was provided by in-house suppliers to reduce transportation. Many vendors made an effort to source labor locally, house staff within walking distance of Moscone and promote use of transit. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

12 In addition to greening tranportation by curbing the use of ground shuttles and designating walking routes Oracle OpenWorld s Green Pavilion also provided tips for attendees to reduce and be accountable for their own carbon footprint. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

13 Exhibitions Both Oracle staff and Champion expanded green exhibit features at OpenWorld Highlights of new best practices this year included the provision of an online collateral rack which resulted in 50% less printing than in Online exhibitor kits are provided as standard, saving 200 pages per kit. In addition exhibitors are provided with tips for creating more sustainable booths by Oracle. Champion worked to source more sustainable products for OpenWorld, including EnergyStar lighting and biodegradable trash liners. In total Champion produced 11,215 sq ft of signage, all of which was printed directly on fully recyclable cardboard with UV curable inks. Because no laminates or adhesives were used in signage it was more readily recyclable. 34,740 sq ft of 25% post-industrial content carpet was laid in the conference center. Use of vinyl tabletops was reduced by approximately 30% by pre-cutting these to length. 100% of carpet was either reused or returned to the manufacturer for use as recycled content. All remaining signage was recycled onsite. In addition aluminum framing is reused from show to show. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

14 Communications & Marketing Oracle OpenWorld employed innovative and visible ways to engage in greening. Pedal Power and Ready, Set, Connect stations were set up throughout the site where attendees were invited to cycle to power anything from laptops, to cellular phones and margarita machines. The Green Pavilion and Marketplace also provided an opportunity for attendees to see products and receive education related to sustainability. blasts were issued to attendees advising them about how to be green during OpenWorld. Sessions were also digitally recorded for rebroadcast. It was evident that Oracle clearly communicated environmental expectations to all vendors. No vendor was unaware of the sustainability initiative and many were providing typical and additional green practices for the event. Event partners were so thorough in communicating this through their supply chains that in some cases hotels were getting requests from multiple vendors to complete green surveys. The size of the OpenWorld Program was reduced by 240 pages a reduction of 60% from The program was printed on FSC-certified paper using vegetable-based inks, saving an estimated 965 trees. Name badges were also not pr ed, resulting in both materials and shipping savings of over $11,000. George P. Johnson created a sophisticated online registration and scheduling system that has enabled registration, submissions and evaluations to become 100% paperless. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

15 On-Site Practices Pre-planning for sustainability was followed through at OpenWorld by adopting sustainable on-site practices that included staff training, office practices, signage and audio-visual. Carlson took steps to reduce the size of the show guide by minimizing white space, printing doublesided and reducing the use of colored ink. With over 400 multi-page guides being produced, efforts to reduce the amount of paper and ink used yields significant cost and environmental savings. Finding the right balance between providing materials online while still needing to print materials for site-staff to have on hand is an ongoing challenge, but attempts are being made to reduce. RAC also noticed reduced paper use on-site. In 2006 OpenWorld used 80 cases of paper. This dropped to 40 cases in 2007 and to 25 in A reduction of almost 75%! The business center onsite at Moscone made use of 100% post consumer recycled content paper that was FSC-certified. In addition copiers and printers were set to energy efficient settings and default double-sided computers were used onsite at OpenWorld, 90% of which were laptops with EnergyStar features. All desktop monitors were shut off at close of business. Oracle OpenWorld 2008 used 37.5% less paper for on-demand printing and copying than Greening Oracle OpenWorld

16 Oracle OpenWorld 2008 was particularly innovative in its approach to audio-visual. All AV vendors were provided with newly created minimum guidelines for AV that emphasize the provision of more efficient technologies and operating practices. In addition to practices already mentioned, the use of special lighting outside the keynote hall was eliminated. All equipment was also completely shut off and secured each night of the show, reducing energy use. Signage is an area of concern when it comes to reducing OpenWorld s event footprint. The event uses a staggering number of signs to meet attendee needs and promote branding. 7483: Number of signs used at OpenWorld. 1984: Number of signs produced by Oracle that were 100% recyclable. 100% of Green Room signs were recyclable. 50% of signage produced by Hartmann was printed on biodegradable materials. 100%: Percentage of signs produced by Oracle that used solvent-free inks. 160: Number of vinyl banners featured in the show. 20%: Percentage of banners produced by Oracle that are being reused from previous events. $89,250: Cost avoided by reusing banners. 45%: Total percentage of signage anticipated to be re-used from OpenWorld This includes 25% of new signs produced in 2008 and 60% of signage produced by Hartmann. 225: Number of railroad signs (large free standing floor signs) that were produced from sustainable sources and recycled. These signs are able to be returned to the manufacturer for credit but were recycled in : Number of reusable holders purchased for use as table tents. This replaced 650 one-time use laminated tents. A key question in future will be how to reduce the number of signs while achieving other important objectives. Efforts were taken to reduce signage by consolidating multiple one-time use signs into digital media. This meant one large electronic display took the place of four or five signs that would have previously been one-time use. The size of signs was also slightly reduced to lessen waste and approximately 25% of signs will be re-used at other Oracle events overseas. Savings by re-using banner signage is estimated at $7-$10 per square foot, or nearly $90,000 in Renewable and recyclable cardboard substrates were used for some signs, which were produced at 75% less cost that previously used substrates, saving $135,000. The substrate can potentially be returned to the manufacturer for credit. This was not done in 2008 as this signage could be recycled more cheaply onsite. Some vinyl signage was used as renewable alternatives were cost-prohibitive (35-40% higher cost). Greening Oracle OpenWorld

17 THE JOURNEY AHEAD Attendee Engagement & Awareness Train and educate attendees to be green at OpenWorld and beyond. Online forums, event programs, pre-event s and signage were just a few of the methods Oracle used to engage attendees in the sustainability initiative. The visibility of these messages prepared attendees to expect a different way of meeting. As a result vendors noted positive or no negative feedback regarding the provision of bulk water stations, consolidation of shuttle routes and reductions in the onsite program. With each new initiative undertaken Oracle needs to carefully consider how to best meet attendee expectations and prepare them for new experiences through pre-event communications. Vendor Engagement & Awareness Contract for best practices and benchmarking. Centralize sustainability initiative coordination. Provide forum for vendor information exchange. All Oracle event partners were very much aware of and engaged in sustainability initiatives. A high rate of return on Green Vendor Survey was experienced and suppliers were prepared to discuss their practices during on-site vendor interviews. The majority of vendors had minimum practices in place before the formalization of the OpenWorld sustainability initiative. Oracle has been successful in inventorying these practices and communicating expectations that new practices should be developed and implemented on an on-going basis by vendors. The next step is to actively engage vendors in identifying measurables that benchmark the economic, environmental and social impact of sustainable practices and formally capturing this data in subsequent years. Some duplication of effort was noted where vendors received multiple requests for sustainability information from different individuals. For example certain hotels received four vendor surveys to complete. This could be avoided by establishing a point person to manage the collection and maintenance of this information. Vendors expressed an interest in having a mechanism to meet or connect online to share resources. In order to be more eco-efficient many vendors took the initiative to coordinate storage and transportation. In addition some vendors indicated they had links to suppliers that would be helpful for other vendors, but were unsure how to share this information or if it was acted on. Having a formalized mechanism to facilitate and track communications like this could be helpful. Greening Oracle OpenWorld

18 Reduction Look at additional opportunities to reduce, particularly in terms of signage. Challenge vendors to propose new ideas for reducing waste at source by researching and designing new products and services. Oracle OpenWorld is a massive event. Given the number of attendees at the event, reducing the amount of materials used to produce the conference is the most effective strategy to minimizing its carbon footprint. In 2008 Oracle explored and successfully implemented several reduction measures, including cutting back on the number of pages in the on-site program and show guides. Staff needs to continually re-consider at each point in the decision-making process: Is this really needed?. This is particularly recommended for signage. This is a challenging question given attendee and sponsor expectations and desire to well-brand the event. It is one that must be addressed, however, in order to continue to improve sustainable performance and reduce impact. Oracle is encouraged to challenge signage and material vendors to research and develop innovative reusable technologies for OpenWorld. Signage vendors might be requested to explore washable and reusable banner substrates. With its buying power Oracle has the opportunity to drive research into new meeting materials and technology that can be capitalized on by other event planners and conferences. Measurement Identify performance indicators for sustainability and set targets to reach for. Improve reporting by contracting with vendors to track economic, environmental and social impact data. Oracle OpenWorld 2008 has successfully established an expectation of sustainable practice and inventoried green practices in place by vendors. The key opportunity moving forward will be capturing economically, environmentally and Oracle OpenWorld Green Pavilion. socially relevant data to show return on investment. It is strongly recommended all vendors and staff identify what can be measured to benchmark this on an on-going basis. Costs avoided and saved by greening is particularly important to track and can be acquired by requiring vendors to report on this. Attention should be paid to how these measurables can be tracked across all events produced by Oracle. Social Responsibility Explore additional opportunities to demonstrate social responsibility at OpenWorld. Into the future Oracle may want to consider how Open- World and other corporate events can be used to demonstrate corporate social responsibility. Staff and vendors already participate in and/or have expressed interest in projects that range from expanding San Francisco s Non Profit Hotel Collaborative to using OpenWorld as a platform to employ disadvantaged youth in new, green collar jobs. Oracle is encouraged to promote dialogue about these ideas and explore feasibility. Case study prepared by: Meeting Strategies Worldwide 6220 NE Glisan Portland, OR T: F: operations@meetingstrategiesworldwide.com Making a difference. One meeting at a time. Greening Oracle OpenWorld