Sustainability in Events Management: Planning, Designing and Delivering

This textbook will help students plan and deliver sustainable events that align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Sustainability in Events Management provides upper-level undergraduate and postgraduate students with a comprehensive framework for designing, managing and evaluating events that balance environmental, social and economic priorities. In line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this textbook connects theory with practice to prepare students for responsible and impactful careers in event management.

Focusing on the triple bottom line (TBL) of people, planet and profit, this textbook explores how sustainability can be embedded across every stage of the event lifecycle from selecting venues and catering suppliers to stakeholder engagement and post-event evaluation. Students will learn how to measure sustainability performance, manage long-term impacts and apply ethical and economic considerations to diverse event contexts.

This textbook includes:
- Learning outcomes that clarify objectives and guide progress
- Reflective questions to build critical thinking and applied analysis
- A glossary of key sustainability and events terms
- Real-world examples from the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Hong Kong’s Bun Festival, connecting theory to live industry contexts
- Structured evaluation models for continuous improvement

Sustainability in Events Management provides students with the insight, tools and confidence to deliver events that contribute meaningfully to sustainable development worldwide.

Hugues Séraphin is Principal Lecturer for Tourism, Hospitality and Events Management at Oxford Brookes University, UK.

Emma Delaney is Senior Teaching Fellow at the University of Surrey, UK, where she is the co-director for teaching and learning.

Chris Smith is Senior Lecturer in Event Management at the University of Winchester, UK. He was previously General Manager of the Guildhall Winchester, and continues to be involved in the management of festivals and events across the UK.

Vanessa Gowreesunkar is Associate Professor in Tourism at the Indian Institute of Management Sirmaur, India.