Green Event Certification

The Green Events Certification program grants RSO’s financial reimbursement up to $500 and recognition for utilizing more sustainable practices at club events.

The mission of our program is to support clubs in choosing more sustainable alternatives by subsidizing the additional cost often associated with opting for environmentally conscious alternatives. All RSOs who are interested in improving sustainability are encouraged to apply! Through this program, your event can receive one-on-one guidance in planning your event to be more sustainable and reimbursed for up to $500 if you meet our sustainability criteria. 

Application Instructions

The application is formatted as a “Sustainability Checklist,” comprising five categories, each with several criteria. Internal events are defined as events hosted for only RSO members. External events are defined as events that extend to the greater community. This may include collaborations with other RSOs, or events hosted by your RSO that are open to more than members of the RSO exclusively.

The broader categories containing the individual criteria are as follows;

  • Internal Sustainability: efforts to implement sustainable practices into internal events and/or event planning practices that are solely internal to your RSO. 

  • Advertising Waste Reduction: efforts to eliminate waste from the process of advertising an external event.

  • Transportation: efforts to reduce the environmental impact of transportation to and from an internal or external event. This can include the transport of guests/speakers to events. 

  • Food and Catering: efforts to provide more sustainable food alternatives at an internal or external event. This may include the utensils and dishware provided at the event. 

  • Innovation, Miscellaneous, and Extra Efforts: any extra efforts to improve the sustainability of an event. Please write any sustainability efforts that do not fall under any existing criteria under this category. 

Your event must meet a minimum of 30 points overall (3 criteria met) in order to be considered for certification. If the event will have any type of food or snacks, one of the criteria under the category “Food and Catering” must be met. As prerequisite requirements, you will be required to write a statement of intention, and a brief event description, confirm the expected number of attendees, and confirm that you have a sustainability officer (or equivalent). Within the Google Form, the “Sustainability Checklist” is attached. Make a copy of the Sustainability Checklist (Addendum 2) and fill out the rows where your event meets the criteria with “Yes”. Submit the checklist as a pdf within the Google Form application. 

The fourth prerequisite for certification is that you consent to a certain portion of your reimbursement being donated to the Shuumi Land Tax. For Size 1 Events, $5 will be donated to the Shuumi Land Tax. For Size 2 Events, $10 will be donated to the Shuumi Land Tax. For Size 3 Events, $15 will be donated to the Shuumi Land Tax. 

Refer to Documentations and Methods (Addendum 1) to ensure that your compliance is properly documented within two weeks of the event. In addition, we strongly suggest browsing the Resources and Guide for Sustainable Purchasing (Addendum 3) for sustainable alternatives to many services and products for your event. Questions? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions for more information. 

Funds will be distributed based on a tiered system. The tiers are based on the size of the event that is seeking certification: 

Event Size Tier System

The amount funded to certified events will be based on size of the event: 

  • Size 1 Events : 0 - 30 people 

  • Size 2 Events: 31 - 45 people 

  • Size 3 Events: 45 + people

Events of exceptional size will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and are subject to receiving additional funds.

Please contact greencertificationaudit@gmail.com for more information. 

Summary

Prerequisite Requirements:

  • Brief event description (on application)

  • Written paragraph statement of intention for use and documentation plan (on application)

  • Proof of payment of the Shuumi Land Tax: depending on the size of your event, we will donate between $5-$15 to the Shuumi Land Tax

Application Requirements to Receive Funds: 

  • The event must meet a minimum of 30 points overall (3 criteria met) (if there are no points met in any individual category, please explain why this category is not applicable).

  • If any type of food/snack is provided at the event or during event promotion, at least one criterion within the “Food and Catering” category must be met. 

  • Documentation must be sent to greencertificationaudit@gmail.com within two weeks of the event taking place.

Next Steps

If approved, you will be contacted by our auditing team with information about the amount of reimbursement you will receive, and permission to use our “Green Event Certified” seal of digital promotional materials for the certified event.

Questions? Email us at greencertificationaudit@gmail.com