Sustainability at The CCD

As the world’s first carbon-neutral constructed convention centre, The Convention Centre Dublin is one of Europe's most environmentally-friendly venues.

Having achieved ISO 14001 accreditation in 2011, we are committed to long-term sustainability. In 2021, we secured ISO 20121 accreditation becoming one of a small number of Irish venues to hold this standard. ISO 20121 is a recognised international accreditation that demonstrates our commitment to running sustainable events. With a structured approach addressing climate change, waste and biodiversity, everyone at The CCD is committed to achieving our sustainability vision.

We consistently strive towards on-going improvement in our business practices with a view to leading environmental best practice across our industry. Find out about our accreditations

Our vision is to become Ireland’s most sustainable venue and a leading expert in sustainable event delivery in Europe. We have identified four ambitions to achieve our vision, together with the support of our industry partners, clients and delegates.

  1.     Carbon neutral by 2025
  2.     Community 
  3.     Sustainable hospitality
  4.     Eliminate single use plastics by the end of 2023

 

The CCD net zero carbon

Carbon neutral by 2025

From the energy we use, right through to our industry-leading recycling procedures, we are continuously expanding on our sustainability practices and are committed to reducing The CCD’s carbon (Co2) footprint and being a Carbon neutral business by 2025.

 

Since 2019, we have taken steps in each of these areas to bring us closer to our net zero carbon ambition by 2025:

Electricity: We changed our electricity supplier in January 2021, which has led to a reduction in our carbon emission output for electricity to zero. That is a 67.5% drop in our CO2 emissions already!

Gas: We are exploring options for renewable gas and researching carbon offsetting where switching is either not possible or unavailable at the moment.

LED lighting: We have replaced light fittings across The CCD with LED light fittings which are more efficent and better for the environment. Check out our video of The CCD Auditorium Light Change, when we successfully upgraded the existing lighting in our 2,000-seater Auditorium to LED lighting.

Food Waste: While food waste represents only 10% of our 2019 CO2 emissions, our aim is to reduce this to zero and we are actively exploring initiatives such as converting food waste to fertiliser.

Landfill: We have a proactive waste management strategy and are doing further research to find viable landfill alternatives, including converting waste to energy.

Offsetting Carbon Emissions: We now offer clients the opportunity to offset all of their event carbon emissions for events held at the venue.  This will be achieved by calculating the event’s total CO2 emissions output and matching that to a number of indigenous Irish trees that will be planted throughout Ireland. In June 2021, we planted some indigenous trees in Co. Wicklow alongside our carbon offsetting partners, Grown Forest to mark the start of our carbon offsetting offering, equating to approximately 250kg of carbon sequestered in one year.

 

 

Community at The CCD

Community

We continue to bring to life our sustainable development goals of inclusivity and community impact as part of ISO 20121. The key focus will be on the community around The CCD including the people who live around the venue, and local business in the area. 

 

The CCD Sustainable Hospitality

Sustainable Hospitality

At The CCD, not only are we are committed to offering sustainable dishes, but we also promise food safety, freshness and small farm economics, as well as environmental sustainability. We use indigenous suppliers from all over Ireland who champion sustainable practices and ensure that our food is fresher, tastier and as nutritious as possible.

 

The CCD - Gold Healthy Venue Accredited

Gold Healthy Venue Accredited

We have been awarded with a Gold Healthy Venue accreditation from the World Obesity Federation’s Healthy Venues Awards programme – only the third venue in the world to be granted this accreditation.  To achieve this, The CCD focused on a range of criteria that promote healthy eating, physical activity, healthy events and overall workplace health. 

 

The CCD - Plastic free cash catering

Eliminate Single Use Plastics by the end of 2023

By committing to eliminating single use plastics from all of our events by the end of 2023, we can help to reduce the amount of plastic in oceans and landfills. In April 2021, we removed  single use plastics from our cash catering food offering and replaced them with green packaging. Delegates and clients attending events at The CCD can now enjoy takeaway items in sustainable packaging.

 

 

 

From the energy we use, right through to our industry-leading recycling procedures, we have taken a vested interest in being a green venue throughout and specialise in hosting sustainable events.

 

Waste Management

Waste Management at The CCD

We have a comprehensive waste management policy in place to help manage the generation and segregation of waste. We continually work hard to monitor and improve our recycling figures, which rank consistently above 95%. CCD Cleaning and CCD Hospitality work in tandem to assess how to best manage the creation, segregation and recycling of waste, not only within the building, but also for every event. As part of this initiative, we have custom-built recycle friendly bins to help delegates help us in our mission to reduce, reuse and recycle. Read on for more information on our current eco produce.

Eco Produce

CCD Hospitality take care to ensure that all their products are eco-friendly. We use 100% recycled napkins and wooden stir sticks, and all our disposable coffee cups are broken down to SRF waste. In addition, the vast majority of our food produce, including all beef and chicken supplies, are locally sourced. This ensures our meals are fresh and in season whilst also supporting local farmers. In addition, all chocolate, tea and coffee supplies are fair trade. While CCD Cleaning also use reusable micro-fibre cloths and mops made from recyclable materials that are laundered on site, as well as recycled paper products and re-fillable soap dispensers.

Location and Travel

The CCD is a 10-minute walk from the city centre and is easily accessible by public transport. With plenty of hotels, restaurants and entertainment within walking distance, your delegates will automatically reduce their carbon emissions without even realising it!

Water Usage

To ensure minimum water usage, we use sensor taps in all wash hand basins and sensor flushes in all urinals. 

Lighting and Energy

We focus on reducing overall energy consumption by using a sustainable energy supplier and integrating sustainable systems such as our Integrated Building Automated System (IBAS). We have also installed a thermal wheel heat recovery system and an Ice Storage Thermal Unit (ISTU), which chills water overnight to form large ice blocks that melt during the day to provide air conditioning for the entire building.

Our clever building design makes use of natural light in all foyer spaces and small meeting rooms. Most of our meeting spaces are fitted with motion sensors, which automatically turn off lights when the room is empty, and all of our exterior lights use energy-saving LED bulbs. We also automatically activate sleep-mode for all PCs and equipment in the office.

Our Sustainability Policy

At The CCD, we are committed to long-term sustainability in reducing our impact on the world. As the world’s first carbon-neutral constructed convention centre, The CCD has always been future focused and is committed to long-term sustainable excellence and addressing any sustainable development issues.

Sustainability continues to be an integral part of our core values and is a cornerstone of our five-year corporate plan, our strategic initiatives, sustainable development objectives, and embedded in our day-to-day operations.

We strive towards continuous improvement in our business and event delivery practices, with a view to leading event sustainability in Ireland and exceeding our stakeholders’ and interested parties' expectations.

We commit to engage and influence, where possible, our interested parties, including our service partners, contractors and suppliers that share the same values as us around our principles of sustainability. They will be made aware of our sustainability policy and how they can support our sustainability objectives.

 From the energy we use, right through to our recycling procedures, we have taken a vested interest in being a green venue throughout and we seek to specialise in hosting sustainable events. We actively engage with clients to offset their carbon footprint. We facilitate scope 1,2 and 3 offsetting to clients where required.

We commit to our principles of sustainability within our scope of operations and promote the principles of stewardship, integrity, inclusivity and transparency in all that we do.

We are committed to promoting positive impacts while identifying and minimising any adverse impacts around sustainability including the environment.

Our sustainability objectives will ensure continuous improvement for scope of operations and will be intertwined with the business strategic initiatives.

The CCD will do all that is reasonable to ensure that key sustainability impacts relating to events, procurement, utilities, transport, employees, visitors, delegates and the community in general are assessed and reviewed financially, socially and environmentally.

We comply with all applicable legal and regulatory, financial and social obligations and other requirements that relate to our sustainable aspects.

The CCD will practice good governance around all data we report on and ensure it is validated and accurate to the best of our knowledge.

Our Health & Safety Policy

At The Convention Centre Dublin (CCD) we aim to provide a safe and healthy work environment for all of our staff in The CCD including those remote working, our Service Providers, sub-contractors and other third parties including patrons/visitors/members of the public. 

The objectives of The CCD Health and Safety Policy are:

  • To promote standards of health, safety and welfare within The CCD that comply with the provisions and requirements of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, Safety Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007, and all other statutory provisions, regulations and Codes of Practice in the Health and Safety area. The standards practiced by The CCD shall be no less than these requirements. Safe working is a condition of employment.
  • To follow all Government guidelines on health.
  • To provide a safe place of work ensuring the design, provision and maintenance of same is in a condition that is safe and without risk to health.
  • To provide a safe place of work with safe access and egress and provide and maintain safe plant and equipment.
  • To carry out risk assessments bespoke to our work activities and develop a safety statement to address those risks identified.
  • To provide staff with the information, instruction, training and supervision that they require to work safely and efficiently and to develop safety awareness among staff/sub-contractors.
  • To define the responsibility of all staff for health and safety matters.
  • To provide a competent person, where necessary, for the purpose of ensuring the safety, health and welfare at work of staff and delegates/guests of The CCD.
  • To encourage continual improvement in occupational health and safety.
  • To ensure that all new legal requirements are identified and adopted as our minimum acceptable performance standard.
  • To monitor and review the Safety Management System on an ongoing basis.

 

All CCD staff, Service Providers and sub-contractors are expected to co-operate with management in ensuring that high standards of health and safety prevail. CCD Staff and Service Providers are informed of their legal responsibilities and duties, which are outlined in the Safety Statement.

Managers and Supervisors must accept responsibility for people and areas under their control and must implement and integrate all health and safety procedures into everyday management activities. All staff must take personal responsibility for their own safety and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions. Feedback on the effectiveness of health and safety measures within The CCD is encouraged and discussed on a continuous basis. 

The Safety Statement, together with the arrangements for its implementation, will be available for the benefit of all staff of The CCD, Service Providers, sub-contractors, delegates, guests and visitors to The CCD.

Our Environmental Policy

At The CCD we are committed to long-term sustainability. We consistently strive towards on-going continuous improvement in our business practices with a view to leading environmental best practice across our industry. From the energy we use, to our reduced carbon food offerings, right through to our decarbonisation efforts, we have taken a vested interest in being a green venue throughout and specialise in hosting sustainable events.

 We comply with all applicable legal and other requirements which relate to environmental aspects, and we are committed to preventing pollution and reducing any negative impact of our operations on the environment.

 We inform and involve our staff, service providers, customers and suppliers about issues relevant to developing an environmentally responsible culture. We are committed to using suppliers and sub-contractors who are “environmentally aware”, wherever possible.

 We are committed to effective management of energy and waste recycling, including reducing the amount of harmful emissions, which helps to reduce our carbon footprint.

 Our environmental and sustainability practices cover the following wide range of programmes, initiatives, targets and recommendations.

We are committed to effective management of event generated carbon emissions, energy, waste, and recycling.

Our environmental and sustainability practices cover the following wide range of programmes, initiatives, targets and recommendations.

  • Planning and development: We consider environmental best practice in new innovative projects, refurbishments, and high efficiency equipment upgrades.
  • Resource management: We manage, monitor, and optimize our Building Management System and take positive steps to maximise efficiency.
  • Purchasing: We give preference to those products and services that have minimal or beneficial impact on the environment.
  • Service partners and suppliers: Environmental impact is a consideration when working with existing and new suppliers.
  • Indoor air quality and external air emissions: We strive to minimise the effects of chemicals, pollutants and carbon emissions through our carbon offsetting program.
  • Transport: We encourage the use of public transport and offer our employees a “Cycle to Work” scheme.
  • Waste Management: We have a comprehensive waste management policy in place to help manage the generation and segregation of all waste, including our food waste stream.
  • The CCD take a proactive approach in working with Clients in advance of their event to best reduce food waste, and the carbon footprint of their food choices.
  • Conservation: As a company, we actively support green initiatives and organisations.

The CCD Quality Policy

In line with our vision at The CCD ‘to be the world’s favourite venue, experts in delivering world class events. positively impacting the world around us. We are totally committed to delivering sustainable events with excellence and continuous improvement in all aspects of our events management business. 

 This commitment is reflected in the following company values which we live every day, in our dealings with each other and with our clients, delegates and guests.

  • We are professional, genuine, and have fun along the way
  • We recognise we all have a part to play
  • We deliver on our commitments and have a relentless passion for exceptional service
  • We support, challenge and learn from each other every day
  • We choose to approach each day with positive engagement

In order to deliver exceptional service on a consistent basis, to all of our customers, we recognise the need for a Quality Management System. This helps to ensures that every job is done right, first time, on time, every time, and by appropriately trained and developed staff. We make big things happen by making the little things matter.

Our commitment to you, our customer, is that we will do the following:

  • Work with you to plan a successful event that meets your objectives
  • Offer creative and inspirational solutions to help deliver your outcomes
  • Ensure we are clear about your needs and expectations
  • Provide you with exceptional service and a premium facility
  • Be available to you and keep you informed
  • Keep it as simple and straightforward as possible
  • Make you and your guests feel at home

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