Sustainable events in Barcelona: certifications, carbon footprint and checklist

What is a sustainable event and why will clients ask for one?

A sustainable event is one planned by measuring its environmental, social and economic impact and making decisions to reduce it. Paper cups and a tree planted at the end achieve little without a method: measure, reduce, offset what cannot be avoided and report with data.

More and more clients require it, for three reasons. Companies include travel and events in their sustainability reports. Scientific associations weigh up the destination's sustainability when choosing a congress venue. And attendees notice: a plastic bottle on every chair no longer goes unremarked.

Barcelona makes it relatively easy. It has a public programme that certifies tourism businesses, venues with ISO standards, public transport that reaches the major venues and a sustainable events guide from the convention bureau itself.

Is Barcelona a certified sustainable destination?

In 2011 Barcelona became the first urban destination to obtain Biosphere responsible tourism certification, awarded by the Responsible Tourism Institute. In June 2022, Destination Barcelona received Biosphere Platinum status, the first in the world to achieve it according to Barcelona City Council. In March 2025, the Cambra de Comerç (Barcelona Chamber of Commerce) announced the renewal of Platinum status and a record 1,141 Biosphere certifications in the destination: 168 new members and 973 renewals, 565 of them in the city of Barcelona.

The programme behind this certification was launched in 2017 as the Commitment to Sustainable Tourism, led by the Diputació de Barcelona (provincial council) with the Cambra de Comerç; Barcelona City Council and Turisme de Barcelona joined in 2019. In 2026 it adopted the name Barcelona Destino Sostenible and its website lists 1,198 certified and accredited organisations.

What matters to you as an organiser:

• It is free for tourism businesses in the city and province; it is funded by the City Council and the Diputació.
• It requires continuous improvement. Each member business follows a code of good practice (climate change, environment, social, economy and culture), receives advice and submits a plan each year with at least three new actions.
• It helps you screen suppliers. Ask hotels, restaurants and venues whether they are members and in which year they renewed.

An honest note: the programme's new website does not explicitly mention the Biosphere certification. If you want to cite the destination's certification in your sustainability report, ask Turisme de Barcelona for the current certificate before publishing.

Certifications and labels you will come across

The Barcelona Convention Bureau's sustainable business directory lets you filter venues and suppliers by certifications such as the Biosphere commitment, EarthCheck, ISO 14001, ISO 20121, EMAS, the EU Ecolabel or the Generalitat de Catalunya's environmental quality guarantee label.

What do Barcelona's major venues offer?

CCIB. Certified to ISO 20121 since 2018, ISO 22000 for its kitchen since 2019 and ISO 50001 since 2025. It has calculated its footprint since 2009 and offset it since 2020. At the end of each event it can provide the client with energy and water consumption data and waste separation figures, which you need for your own calculation. In 2025 it generated 579.94 tonnes of waste and recycled 90%. It has collected and recycled exhibition carpet since 2012 and offers reusable carpet and recyclable signage.

Fira Barcelona Gran Via. Its sustainability policy states that the Gran Via venue holds ISO 14001:2015 for environmental management and ISO 50001:2018 for energy efficiency, and that it is committed to meeting the Biosphere certification requirements. For transport, during MWC the metro serves the venue with the L9 (Fira station) and the L10 (Foc station), and there is an electric shuttle to Plaça Espanya.

For other venues, hotels and unique venues, we always ask for the same information: current certifications, consumption data per event, waste management and catering options. You can compare venues in our congress centre comparison and on our congress centres page.

How is an event's carbon footprint calculated?

We use the GHG Protocol scope logic, which is what the official calculators follow:

At most events where attendees arrive by air, travel is the largest item. That is why the decision with the most impact is the choice of venue and dates: a destination with good direct connections reduces stopovers and kilometres.

Useful tools:

• MITECO calculator for organisations. Voluntary, it covers scopes 1 and 2 and allows year-on-year comparison. Useful for the energy element, but it does not include scope 3.
• Venue data. The CCIB, for example, provides consumption and waste figures at the end of the event.
• Net Zero Carbon Events resources. The industry initiative is working on a common roadmap and a reporting initiative for the sector.
• Registration with travel questions. Origin, mode of transport and hotel nights. Without this data, scope 3 is an estimate.

If you then want to offset, do so with verified projects and explain in your report what you reduced first. The MITECO register follows exactly that sequence: calculate, reduce, offset.

Checklist for each part of your event

Venue and dates

• Venue with a current environmental certification (ISO 20121, ISO 14001, ISO 50001 or membership of Barcelona Destino Sostenible)
• Public transport access less than a 10 minute walk away
• Energy and water consumption data committed to in the contract
• Dates that avoid peak occupancy, so you are not pushed into distant hotels

Transport

• Travel question at registration
• Hotels within walking distance or with a direct metro to the venue
• Public transport cards in the attendee pack where possible
• Coaches only where public transport does not reach, with high occupancy and optimised routes
• Airport transfers grouped by time slot

Catering

• Seasonal menu and locally sourced produce
• Vegetarian or vegan option as the main choice, not as an alternative
• Head count confirmed 72 hours ahead to adjust quantities
• Prior agreement to donate suitable surplus food
• Water in jugs or dispensers, no individual bottles
• Reusable tableware; if not possible, compostable with separate collection

Waste

• Signposted separation points in every area
• A member of staff checking the points during the event
• Waste report by stream at the end
• Removal plan for stands and set design with a known final destination

Materials and communication

• Programme, badges and surveys in digital format
• Generic undated signage, reusable at future editions
• Hired carpet and structures rather than purchased
• Useful or local gifts, or none at all
• Printing only when necessary and on certified paper

Suppliers and social dimension

• Sustainability questions in the request for proposal
• Local suppliers who are members of recognised programmes
• Accessibility: ramps, accessible toilets, subtitles or a sign language interpreter if the audience requires it
• Fair working conditions for set-up and service staff

Sustainability questions for your request for proposal

Include these questions when you request proposals from venues, hotels and suppliers. The answers let you compare on a sound basis:

1. Which environmental certifications do you hold, with what scope and until what date are they valid?
2. Can you provide energy and water consumption data and waste data by stream at the end of the event?
3. What percentage of the energy you use comes from renewable sources and how do you certify it?
4. How do you get there by public transport and how long is the walk from the nearest stop?
5. What seasonal, locally sourced and plant-based menu options do you offer?
6. Do you have agreements in place to donate surplus food?
7. Which set-up materials are reusable or recyclable and where do they go after breakdown?
8. Are you a member of Barcelona Destino Sostenible or another recognised programme?
9. What accessibility measures does the venue have?

The two official guides worth reading

Barcelona Convention Bureau sustainable events guide. A tool for integrating sustainable practices into events in the destination, with tips, examples and a checklist with different levels of requirement, designed for planning, delivery and post-event evaluation. The BCB also runs a legacy programme for congresses.

Barcelona City Council waste prevention guide for trade shows and congresses. Published in an interactive format, it advocates prevention before management, reusing materials, digitising processes and encouraging sustainable mobility, with examples for catering, stand building and communication.

Sustainable event timeline

Indicators for your report

Common mistakes that undermine credibility

A sustainable event is judged by its data, not its messaging. These are the mistakes we see most:

• Announcing a "carbon neutral" event without having measured it. Without a calculation based on a method and data, there is no neutrality to defend.
• Offsetting without reducing. Planting trees does not fix a poorly connected venue or a caterer that throws away half the food.
• Focusing only on what is visible. Replacing plastic cups is fine, but the big impact lies in transport and energy.
• Welcome gifts nobody uses. They are material that ends up in the hotel bin.
• Signage with the edition's date and logo. It prevents reuse.
• Asking for certificates without reading the scope. A supplier may hold ISO 14001 at one of its sites and not at the one it is offering you.
• Not reporting afterwards. If you do not publish the results, nobody knows what you achieved and you cannot improve at the next edition.

How to get attendees involved

The event's sustainability also depends on the people attending. Some measures that work:

• Practical information before arrival. How to get from the airport to the hotel by public transport, which metro line goes to the venue and how long it takes to walk between the hotels and the venue.
• Reusable bottle or cup only if it genuinely replaces disposable containers during the event.
• Travel survey at badge collection or in the event app.
• Option not to receive a gift or to donate it.
• Short, specific messages on screens and in the app: where the water points are, how to separate waste, what will happen to leftover food.

How we work

We do not sell labels. What we do is apply these criteria from the very first proposal: we suggest venues and hotels connected by public transport, request data from every supplier, design catering and materials to generate less waste and, at the end, give you the information you need for your own calculation and report. It makes the most difference at congresses and conventions, because there are more attendees and more days.

If you are preparing a congress, you may also find useful our guide on how to organise a congress in Barcelona and the background on MICE tourism in Barcelona.

Tell us about your event and your company's sustainability goals. We will send you a proposal with criteria and suppliers within 24 business hours via our contact page.

Sources

1. Cambra de Comerç de Barcelona: nota de prensa sobre el Compromiso para la Sostenibilidad Turística y la renovación Biosphere Platinum (06/03/2025)
2. Ajuntament de Barcelona: Biosphere Platinum for sustainable tourism management
3. Barcelona Destino Sostenible (turismesostenible.barcelona): preguntas frecuentes
4. Barcelona Destino Sostenible: portada del programa
5. Barcelona Convention Bureau: Barcelona sostenible y segura
6. ISO 20121:2024 Event sustainability management systems
7. CCIB: gestión sostenible
8. Fira de Barcelona: política de sostenibilidad
9. MITECO: Registro de huella de carbono, compensación y proyectos de absorción
10. Net Zero Carbon Events
11. Sostenible.cat: Guía de prevención de residuos para ferias y congresos (Ajuntament de Barcelona)
12. MWC Barcelona: cómo llegar a MWC y 4YFN
13. 4YFN: Transportation
14. Comisión Europea: transition pathways, certificación voluntaria de turismo sostenible en Barcelona