“Sustainability in managing events is not just about ensuring that the event is

financially viable by generating profit or breaking even.”

With reference to relevant literature and practical examples, discuss the above
statement.
Introduction
The concept of sustainability in events management was adopted from the Bruntland
commission report that defined sustainable development as “development that meets the
needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs” (United Nations General Assembly, 1987). Accordingly, sustainable event
management considers the current and future social, economic and environmental elements of
sustainability, addressing the needs of event visitors, the event industry, the surrounding
environment and host communities, in order to establish more environmentally friendly
events (Musgrave and Raj, 2014).
Sustainability of an event is assessed based on the triple bottom line (TBL) approach and be
environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. Economic sustainability primarily
relates to the ability of the event to sustain itself financially, breaking even or, where
possible, making a profit. Other economic considerations of economic sustainability relate to
other aspects such as job creation, infrastructural development, improved living standards for
the host communities and an array of impacts which shall be discussed later on. Most event
organisers err in that they are primarily concerned with the profitability aspect of an event,
often ignoring other impacts of events on both the host communities and the event
attendants.
The second pillar is environmental sustainability, this aims to reduce the impacts of the
event on the natural and man-made environments. Natural environment includes air quality,
geological factors, water quality, depletion of natural resources, flora and fauna. The man-
made environment relates to buildings and visual impacts, changes in land use, infrastructure(
Raj and Masgrave, 2014). It was out of concern for the environment that the concept of
sustainability was developed. Events have both negative and positive impacts on the
environment, Sustainability aims to increase the positive impacts while minimising the
negative impacts on the environment.
Social sustainability is the last pillar of sustainability and this explores the impacts of events
on the local communities around the event site. All events should aim to improve the well
being of local communities through infrastructural development, cultivating cultural pride
and improving the quality of life.
It should be understood that each of the components of the TBL are important to achieve
sustainability. They cannot be isolated from each other when trying to achieve sustainability
but rather they should be explored holistically as they are interdependent. Pursuing economic
sustainability alone does not result in sustainability, the three pillars are all related in varying
and complex ways. Economic impacts can lead to environmental and social impacts and vice
versa and, as such, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts (Mair,2020). When planning
an event it is critical for organisers to consider the whole TBL model, both the long term and
short term failure to do this results in myopic views of the events that do not really benefit
the host communities or attendees.
The following discourse explores the various dimensions of sustainable events and seeks to
explain their relationship. It also explains how profitability is an important indicator of
sustainability but however is not the only consideration when planning events, there is need
to examine the event from both a short term and long term perspective as what might be
profitable in the immediate future may prove to be costly in the long term.
Economic sustainability
Often sustainability is considered to mean the short-term financial or economic situation of
the event such as the potential to break even and even make profit. This however is not the
case as the concept of event sustainability explores the future impacts of the event. Mair
(2020), states that there is longer-term potential for events to boost local business and jobs
and the knock-on effect this has on communities and society. While the initial decision on
whether to host an event is driven by the need to at least cover the costs of an event
(breakeven) or make profits events have more economic costs and benefits that determine
whether or not they are sustainable.
Most events are used to overcome the problem of seasonality in the tourism industry as they
have potential to create huge demand in seasons that would otherwise have very low visitors.
This helps the boost business for the low season. Brazil had the good fortune of hosting the
World Cup in June and July, the normal winter in the southern hemisphere, and hence a time
when tourism is generally low, overall international tourist arrivals in Brazil during the 2014
World Cup were roughly one million above what would have been normally expected during
that time period! (Matheson,2018). These visitors are willing to pay higher prices the
facilities hence events are a good strategy to keep local businesses afloat during the low
season.
In addition to profitability economic sustainability also looks at job creation. When an event
is hosted in a country or community it creates jobs for the local community at all stage s of
the event. Looking at mega events such as the Olympics and World Cup there is need for
construction of the facilities during the preparatory stage, during the event there is need to
cater to the needs of the participants and organisers, events create both paid and volunteer
jobs. Sustainable events ensure that the needs of all the workforce are met.
Events have the ability to boost other local businesses that are not directly involved in the
event hence boosting economic development for the region or city. The Harare International
Festival of the Arts (HIFA) creates business not only for performing artists it has ripple
effects on other industries such as accommodation, food services and transport.
Events must be economically viable, they have to be maintained in the long run. Holmes et
al., (2015) argues that for the event to be financially viable, it should contribute to the
development of viable enterprises in the region in which it occurs, and should trigger
economic activity that can be maintained in the long term. This poses questions for some
events that generate huge profits in the year they are hosted but leave communities with
superstructures that they cannot manage. The 2014 World Cup is one such example, four of
the twelve stadiums were constructed in cities that had no football team in the top division of
the Brazilian league. In one of the cities, Manaus, there was a second-division team that had
an average of 1,500 spectators per home game Now they have to bear the burden of having to
sustain a stadium that seats 42,000 and costs over $3 million annually to maintain
(Borga,2020). In 2016, Cape Town deputy mayor admitted the Cape Town stadium was
running at an annual loss of R40-million 6 years after the 2010 World Cup ( Business Times,
2018). This is a challenge consistent with most mega events, some Olympic facilities of
Athens 2004 that have remained unused (Preuss,2009).

Environmental sustainability
The concept of sustainability was developed as a result of concern for the environment. The
idea is that the earth’s resources are finite and human needs are infinite there is need to strike
a balance between the two to ensure the environment is able to sustain both current and
future generations (Edgel, 2020). Event environmental sustainability looks at the event’s
ecological footprint, examining the carbon emissions, waste management, energy
consumption and impacts on flora and fauna.
Sustainable events result in minimum impacts on the environment. Crowd management in
outdoor events is crucial to ensure minimum loss of flora and fauna, the provision of proper
waste management facilities such as bins and latrines is an important consideration when
planning events.
Considering the interdependence of the pillars of the TBL, environmental sustainability has
knock on effects on the social and economic sustainability of an event. Consumers of
products and services are becoming increasingly aware of the impacts of their actions on the
environment. This consciousness of one’s actions extends even to decisions on events, there
is a high consumer demand for ecologically conscious products and services. Henderson
(2011) argues that while integrating sustainable management within events is a method to
preserve hosting environments, it can also be an efficient way to attract potential event
visitors.
To be sustainable, consumption must be within the biophysical limits of the overall
ecosystem, there is need to consider the environmental carrying capacity. It is important to
understand that each ecosystem has its carrying capacity and if this is exceeded not only does
the quality of the event decreases but so does the environment. Today’s event planners need
to be cognisant of this factor so future generations do not pay for the actions of the current.
Socio cultural impacts
Sustainability often emphasises environmental and economic impacts of events while
overlooking socio cultural impacts. Festivals and events have a significant impact on the
quality of life of communities which should be evaluated to ensure sustainability. They often
result in social bonding, providing communities with substantial economic, entertainment,
social and development benefits (Fredline et al, 2006). Preuss (2007) defines event legacy as:
“all planned and unplanned, positive and negative, tangible and intangible structures created
for and by a sport event that remain longer than the event itself.” Tangible (or direct or hard)
effects are related to concrete elements such as facilities built for the mega-event while
intangible (or indirect or soft) effects refer to non-concrete aspects related for example to the
image of the host territory.
Events give the opportunity to renovate or build infrastructures in the host territory thanks to
the availability of financing otherwise difficult to obtain (Hiller, 2000). In particular,
infrastructures concern new buildings specifically related to the event (i.e., stadiums,
entertainment facilities, etc.) but also general infrastructures such as roads, airports, health
related and mobility/access-related infrastructures. All these have a positive effect on quality
of life and this effect is fully mediated by community pride.
Image and culture benefits are “soft” effects generated by hosting a mega-event (Preuss,
2007). A mega-event can improve or/and transform the international image of the host
country. Qatar is small Islamic nation, hosting the World Cup is a tool to build Brand Qatar
and show the world what the country is capable of. Events can also be viewed as an occasion
of cultural growth for residents. In particular, they allow exchanges among different cultures.
The 2010 World Cup popularised the ‘Vuvuzela’ displayed how soccer is enjoyed differently
across cultures (Kirk, 2010).
Event planners must realize potential negative impacts of events on the communities.
Problems such as overcrowding and noise pollution ny result from events. To achieve event
sustainability there is need to manage the timing of events as well as crowd control. Hosting
an event during the peak season of the tourism season may result in overcrowding the
facilities impacting both the local communities and participants.
Conclusions and recommendations
There are formidable barriers when attempts are made to translate the principles of
sustainability into action within events (Jones et al., 2006), such as lack of reliable
information, individual and organizational inertia, employee perceptions and the lack of using
planning and performance standards. Events are fragmented – made up of many stages, many
suppliers, many performance indicators and many clients. Therefore, any attempt at
introducing a sustainable policy should be integral to all elements of the event. Undoubtedly
the ‘elements’ of an event refer to pre-, live and post event, and, as such, the life cycle and
entirety of event management must be considered.
Often the decisions to organise and host events are taken from different stakeholder
viewpoints. Good economic rationale is a strong indicator coupled with the social and
cultural benefits to a destination, raising awareness of community/social issues, and
enhancing the exchange of ideas, networking and business contacts. The scope of any
framework should encompass those working, participating and attending the event, consider
social inclusion as a key principle to widening participation and encourage interest from all
aspects of the surrounding community. A holistic approach to sustainability relates to all
pillars of sustainability rather than economic considerations only.
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