Eco-Business has partnered with Singapore-based event technology provider GlobalSign.in to use their virtual event platform, GEVME for managing and hosting sustainability events across the Asia Pacific region.

GEVME technology is to be deployed for Eco-Business’s flagship annual sustainability innovation challenge The Liveability Challenge, which will be staged virtually in July, and Unlocking Capital for Sustainability 2021: Building Back Better, a sustainable finance event to run in a hybrid virtual and in-person format, in September.

The partnership marks the latest use of GEVME for events in the sustainability space. GEVME has been used for events such as SWITCH 2020, TravelRevive 2020 and more recently Geo Connect Asia 2021 where it provided integrated services for both online and physical audiences, including a physical safe check-in process.

Within the GEVME platform, GEVME Virtual was used by Danone to host their first ever virtual Danone Day and by Chab Events for the INSEAD Alumni Forum 2021. The latter event, held completely virtually, was attended by 1,000+ people from more than 150 countries and had a 360 WalkThrough feature, creating an interactive and immersive experience.

GEVME’s platform is used by event professionals to build, operate and monetize unique virtual events. They can save time by selecting one of the professionally designed virtual venues that act as a template from the venue store. They can then customise it fully using the visual venue editor that is built around the concept of modular blocks.

The environmental benefits of virtual events

Measures taken in response to the Covid-19 pandemic have meant that almost all businesses now conduct their events virtually, which has come with environmental benefits. 

A comparison of a 6-hour virtual event and an in-person equivalent found that the emissions of the physical version were 66 times higher than the virtual event based on air travel alone.

Virtual events massively reduce food waste too. A report showed that 15 to 20 percent of food catered for a physical event is thrown away. With a virtual format, event organisers no longer have to grapple with the “fear of running out” and avoid over-ordering. Waste generated from disposable packaging and physical event posters is also prevented.  

With the sustainability of virtual events in mind, Eco-Business trialled GEVME’s registration platform for events such as A greener technology footprint: Do consumers have a choice?, Sustainability Exchange: The Showcase, and most recently, Carbon Targets in Malaysia: Challenges and Opportunities. 

Eco-Business managing director Jessica Cheam said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has driven events online, and sustainability has become a key priority for event organisers. As Asia Pacific’s leading sustainability publication, sustainability is paramount for our events. We’re delighted to partner with GEVME to take our virtual events to a new level of sophistication and environmental consciousness.”

Veemal Gungadin, founder and chief executive of GEVME, said: “At GEVME, we have always looked at developing new solutions to make the events industry more sustainable. With events now moving online, we are excited to partner with an organisation like Eco-Business to power their virtual events with the latest technologies and provide a platform that facilitates exchanges around sustainable development.”