This month:

• Green Leader Q&A with Tijl Couzij, at Into the Great Wide Open and Lab Vlieland. 
• Guest Blog: Pauline Bourdon shares highlights from a Julie's Bicycle hosted Symposium on Culture and Climate Action in Mexico.
• AIF Congress announce Vision for Sustainbale Events on the schedule & onboard:earth as charity partner. 
• Event Production Show 2026: Vision for Sustainable Events to host three panels sharing event sustainability advances. 
• Sustainable Supplier Case Study: Big Green Coach provides first fully electric shuttle bus service.
• Live events sustainability achievements in 2025  recognised and celebrated in Industry Awards. 
• Resource Spotlight: MIT Climate Machine report on the climate impact of live music.
• Music Declares Emergency Launches ‘HOPE OVER FEAR’ Campaign. 
• An overview of upcoming events and news from across the industry.

Please consider paying £5, £10 or £15 to support Vision's monthly newsletter. Donate HERE.

Contact bethan@visionsustainableevents.org to share newsletter ideas and news. 

Tijl has worked in the sustainable innovations and festival sector for many years, including with Dutch festival, Into The Great Wide Open, from its very first edition. At Lab Vlieland, he – with a dedicated team - initiates and develops circular, climate-positive and regenerative solutions. His work focuses on initiating practical ideas and connecting festival-based innovations to broader societal transitions. Read his answers to our 20 Event Industry Green Leader questions: HERE>>

Last month, we spoke with Dawn Wood, Co-Director of Between the Trees Festival. Read her answers HERE>>

In this guest blog, Pauline Bourdon, Founder of sustainable events and touring consultancy Soliphilia, and Forum Member at Vision for Sustainable Events, shares learnings from her recent panel at the Symposium on Culture and Climate Action, hosted by Julie's Bicycle at the Festival Internacional Cervantino in Mexico.

Pauline joined the Symposium to share updates on Vision for Sustainable Events’ Green Code of Practice project and the forthcoming Show Must Go On Climate Transition Plan for the UK Live Events Industry and extended her trip to attend the Mexican edition of digital music festival MUTEK, and a regenerative community at Huerto Roma. Read her key takeaways HERE>> 

The Association of Independent Festivals (AIF) has launched the schedule for Festival Congress, which returns to Bristol on 5th February 2026. Vision for Sustainable Events' Chair, Chris Johnson, will join the line-up to share insights into '30 Climate Actions that Events Can Take.'

AIF Congress 2026 is supporting charity onboard:earth in their mission to move events towards low-carbon travel and unite in environmental restoration: AIF is tackling travel impacts by working with Great Western Railway to offer 80% off train fares, and a £5 donation from every Congress ticket sold will go to onboard:earth to support ecosystem restoration. View the schedule HERE>>

Vision for Sustainable Events will host three panels at the Event Production Show, ExCeL, Thursday 26th February 2026, to discuss the findings and ‘how to’ implement recommendations of the third edition of The Show Must Go On report (SMGO), launching February 2026. 

• Reading the Roadmap: Insights into how SMGO signposts best practice in event sustainability, with key authors and contributors.
• Bring the Energy: Sharing recent advances in powering events efficiently and sustainably.
• Taking the Sustainable Journey: New initiatives, tools and best practice in tackling travel and transport impacts at events, with charity onboard:earth, You.Smart.Thing and Industry guests. 

Register for #EPS26 Tickets HERE>> 

Sustainability efforts and achievements in 2025 have been recognised and celebrated in Live Events Industry Awards throughout December. Congratulations to: 

• Radio 1 Big Weekend, for winning the UK Festival Awards Green Award. Check out their Sustainability initiatives HERE>> 
• LIDO Festival for winning the LIVE Green Award. View their Sustainability Policy HERE>> 
• LS Events and LIDO Festival for winning Best Sustainable Initiative at the Access All Areas Awards for implementing a battery-first energy strategy including green hydrogen power. Read the case study HERE>> 

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Climate Machine with support from Coldplay, Warner Music Group, Live Nation, and Hope Solutions have released the first comprehensive annual carbon emissions calculation of the live music industry in the UK and US.

The study analyses data from over 80,000 events across the UK and US, capturing greenhouse gas emissions across all major impact areas and identifying key areas where both industry players and fans can take measurable steps to reduce emissions.  The report and insights can be found on the MIT Climate Machine website HERE>>

Music Declares Emergency have announced ‘HOPE OVER FEAR’, a new campaign to build on their NO MUSIC ON A DEAD PLANET Movement. The project sees the charity partner with Music Venue Trust, with hubs working alongside MVT’s network of Grassroots Venues, creating spaces to gather and take part in local, community regeneration. Find out more HERE>>

We love the super-positive feedback we receive about this newsletter, and appreciate having an enthusiastic base of thousands of green event lovers like ourselves. But despite AI, it doesn’t write itself (yet)! We are asking you, our dear monthly readers and supporters, to contribute the cost of just a pint or so, so that we can continue to deliver industry updates to your inbox.

Please consider paying £5, £10 or £15. Donate HERE online - it'll take a minute, and make a world of difference to Vision as a collaborative not-for-profit industry project.

Our selected news picks from across the Live Events Industry and beyond, including jobs, events, blogs, reports, and what the Vision team has been watching, listening to, and reading this month:

• Co-op Live and M&S Bank Arenas among AGF’s Greener Arenas for 2025, in Access All Areas HERE>>
• Shambala Festival share their Interactive Reporting Platform 2025 highlighting key sustainability wins HERE>>
• Project Salt Run Update: Hannah Cox is running 100 marathons in 100 days across India to raise £1 million for Climate. She is over half way and there's still time to donate HERE>>

Our newsletter reaches over 4,900 UK event professionals interested in sustainability. Send jobs, events, resources and articles to feature here to: info@visionsustainableevents.org