On 21 November 2017 at 15:00, Andy Mabbett <a...@pigsonthewing.org.uk> wrote: > I'm interested to see how we can make our conferences, not least > Wikimania, and other events more green and, particularly, use less > plastic. > > I see from: > > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Sustainability_Initiative > > that: > > <quote> > > On February 24, 2017, the board of trustees of the Wikimedia > Foundation adopted the following resolution as a result of this > initiative: > > The Wikimedia Foundation is committed to seeking ways to reduce the > impact of our activities on the environment. We aim to always act > responsibly and sustainably as possible, including favoring renewable > energy for our operations. We believe that a long-term commitment to > sustainability is an essential component of our work towards the > Wikimedia mission and vision.To this end, the Wikimedia Foundation > makes the following commitments: > > * We will seek to minimize our overall impact on the environment; > * We will consider sustainability as an important part of decisions > around servers, operations, travel, offices, and other procurement; > * We will use green energy where it is available and financially prudent; and > * Starting in 2018, we will include an environmental impact statement > in our annual plan. > > </quote> > > for example: > > * use cotton (not plastic) lanyards; or avoid lanyards altogether > * don't give away cheap plastic pens, etc. > * avoid bottled water, where tap water is potable, otherwise use glass bottles > * avoid sandwiches in plastic (or plastic-lined) packs > * avoid disposable cutlery and plastic plates > * ensure waste is collected, appropriately sorted and recycled > > How can we build this into our movement? > > Should it be a consideration in assessing grant funding applications? > > Would a more specific resolution from the board help? > > Who at WMF has oversight responsibility for these issues? > > -- > Andy Mabbett > @pigsonthewing > http://pigsonthewing.org.uk > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe>
Thanks for raising the topic. It's been raised before, but there should be more public credit given to events and conferences that make the extra effort to be green. I definitely support this being a more visible goal, along with helpful checklists, for funding events. Logically the "environmental impact statement" should be seen to flow down as requirements on all affiliates, something I'll be looking for in 2018. The biggest environmental impact from our conferences, comes from staff and volunteers flying around the world, when the WMF and affiliates could do more to encourage virtual meetings and to manage a stronger virtual engagement. At the moment virtual participation at WMCON or Wikimania is often limited to the odd livestreamed presentation or small working group supported by a video hangout; it's at a low level and it would be nice to see far more experimentation with technology and virtual presence. The deliberately small choices you mention of avoiding plastic or encouraging attendees to do something simple like reuse and refill one cup for the day, or ensuring that caters are serving local food with low mileage,[1] makes a lot of sense. Even if this added slightly to an event's expenses, I think everyone would applaud the deliberate selection of venues and suppliers that make low environmental impact a priority. Links 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_miles Fae -- fae...@gmail.com https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Fae _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, <mailto:wikimedia-l-requ...@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe>
