he British Society of Gastroenterology has taken the lead among Medical Professional Societies in declaring that climate change is an immediate global health threat. The BSG acknowledges the concerns of its membership about the deleterious effects of climate change on human health and the adverse impact on the gut health of the population. It supports the NHS’s ambitions of achieving a net zero healthcare system by 2040.

In order to achieve this, the BSG published its own strategy for climate change and sustainability in November 2021. One of the key aspects of this strategy is to embed sustainability in all aspects of BSG activities internally, in its function as a charitable society supporting education and advocating policies. It also strongly promotes sustainability in dealing with other organisations and industry partners. It is a signatory to the UKHACC.

At BSG LIVE’23 in Liverpool, we saw sustainability taking centre stage with the opening talk of the plenary session being delivered by Dr Richard Smith (UK Health Alliance on Climate Change). The BSG knows how important it is to turn these concerns into strong meaningful action, but also realises how challenging this is.

Hence, the BSG asks all its Industry Partners to join hands with us and work towards a more sustainable future.

As responsible and conscientious healthcare professionals, we would like to see the following commitments from our Partners:

1. They should have a publicly available sustainability strategy which shows strong commitment and plans for action.
2. Ambition to achieve net zero in line with national and international goals.
3. Targets to cut dependency on fossil fuels.
4. Investment in clean energy and meaningful, legitimate carbon reduction plans.
5. Promoting social justice and supporting local populations.
6. Commitment to review manufacturing, transportation and marketing strategies.
7. Supporting research and innovation in low carbon technology and understanding the environmental impact of processes and equipment.
8. Reconsider the type and amount of materials they put out on their stands at BSG events, including giveaways.

The BSG invites its Partners to share their own sustainability credentials which will be shared with members on the website.

BSG Sustainable Events

Following BSG LIVE’23, the delegate feedback survey highlighted some areas BSG members would like to see Industry improve on in future conferences with one key trend being that delegates would like to see reduced paper waste and plastic freebies. Additionally, delegates have suggested that Industry run symposia on their own sustainability initiatives, and consider contributing to offsetting the carbon footprint of the conference.

What is the BSG doing?

• Digital-first: The BSG aims to produce minimal conference materials and uses non-plastic lanyards as well as enhanced use of technology to help attendees navigate the event. As of 2022, the BSG has minimised paper waste by introducing digital e-posters at BSG LIVE and is committed to switching off most screens outside of e-poster session hours. The BSG continues to review other areas of event production where equipment could be switched off when not in use.
• Catering: Where possible, we work with venues that use locally sourced food and that are zero waste to landfill.
• Suppliers: The BSG will always check and discuss sustainability policies with any potential venues and suppliers.
• Venue location: The BSG aims to hold events at venues that are easily accessible to members across the UK by public transport with accommodation nearby. At BSG LIVE, all social and ancillary events are accessible within a 15-minute walk of the main event venue, and we encourage the use of public transport.
• Delegate travel: The travel plans of all attendees will be asked at the point of registration. This will include the mode of travel and where they will travel from. We encourage delegates to travel via public transport or carpool with other delegates, where possible.
• Education: Further sustainability sessions will be included within the BSG LIVE and Campus programmes as well as high-profile plenary sessions. The BSG has also included Sustainability as an abstract category. Additionally, the BSG is committed to running webinars and online events for its members all year round which includes BSG Campus. These online events provide extra educational opportunities for members who are unable to travel to face-to-face events, thus reducing the carbon footprint of the BSG events portfolio.
• Reporting: The BSG aims to produce a more comprehensive sustainability report for BSG LIVE which will be produced post-event and will include measuring of the event’s carbon footprint.