SINGAPORE, 17 May 2024: The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has launched several initiatives to raise sustainability standards across the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions (MICE) industry to reinforce its position as the ‘World’s Best MICE City’.
To promote a greener and more sustainable future for MICE events, STB launched its Legacy Toolkit, a Singapore MICE Industry Carbon and Waste Baselining Study, and announced its ambition for carbon-neutral participation at international tradeshows.
“Since the MICE Sustainability Roadmap launch in 2022, the Singapore Tourism Board has remained steadfast in our commitment to fostering a more sustainable and impactful MICE industry,” said Singapore Tourism Board Deputy Chief Executive Yap Chin Siang.
“We are pleased to share that the initiatives we unveil today will not only steer the MICE industry towards a more sustainable future but also provide tangible ways in which event organisers and planners can make meaningful, lasting impact in Singapore. We will continue to collaborate with stakeholders and uphold our ambition to be the World’s Best MICE City,”
Empowering a Legacy Toolkit
The ‘World’s Best MICE City’ global positioning campaign, launched in March, aims to strengthen Singapore’s pioneering role as a sustainable MICE destination and ensure that business events can leave a positive and lasting impact. Singapore is committed to supporting the impact ambitions of events by inviting event organisers and planners to co-create business events that yield meaningful outcomes. The legacy toolkit assists stakeholders in creating a clear framework titled ‘FIRM’ — Frame their vision, Ideate their initiatives, Realise action plans and Measure impact.
It also contains case studies to inspire legacy possibilities in Singapore. The legacy planning process fosters greater engagement between event organisers, venues, local communities and stakeholders.
The legacy toolkit can be downloaded here.
STB will pioneer understanding carbon emissions when participating in international MICE tradeshows. From 2024, it aims for carbon-neutral participation at key international tradeshows, namely IMEX Frankfurt, IMEX America, and IBTM World. This long-term goal is part of the proactive approach to environmental stewardship, which aims to significantly reduce its carbon footprint as an exhibitor at these platforms.
IMEX Frankfurt 2024 is the first tradeshow where STB commits to holding itself accountable to robust standards in the journey to carbon-neutral participation.
It aims to adhere to ISO14068 standards, which were newly published in December 2023 and provide principles, requirements, and guidance for achieving and demonstrating carbon neutrality. Following ISO 14068, STB will take a hierarchical approach that prioritises emission reduction and removal over offsets, offsetting residual emissions only. Singapore is one of the first destinations to hold itself to this standard, demonstrating its commitment to responsible decarbonisation.
With STB’s deliberate efforts to create a more sustainable pavilion and track its carbon profile, it will utilise this information to derive and refine carbon reduction measures for future tradeshow participation. Please refer to the Annex for examples of STB’s emission reduction and removal measures at IMEX Frankfurt 2024.
The enhanced Singapore MICE Advantage Programme (SMAP), rolled out in March 2024 to attract MICE organisers to Singapore. It offers a range of new and revamped benefits supplied by partners such as Singapore Airlines, Changi Airport Group, tourist attractions, and F&B experiences. More information about SMAP and other assistance schemes is available at www.visitsingapore.com/mice.
2024 also marks the 50th anniversary of the Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau (SECB), a group of the Singapore Tourism Board. The SECB’s efforts will continue to centre on shaping and retaining Singapore’s exceptional reputation for business events.
Singapore has secured second place on the ICCA Worldwide City Rankings 2023, advancing more than 10 places from the 2022 results. Furthermore, Singapore has maintained its position as Asia Pacific’s Top Meeting City for 21 consecutive years, reaffirming its unparalleled appeal and capabilities in hosting world-class meetings and events.
More information is available at www.visitsingapore.com/mice/en/plan-your-event/sustainability/mice-sustainability-roadmap/
The legacy toolkit can be downloaded through this link: https://www.visitsingapore.com/content/dam/mice2-0/tools-and-resources/guide-downloads/legacy-toolkit/legacy-toolkit.pdf
