Increasing ESG requirements and the growing demand for verifiable sustainability standards are increasingly bringing ISO 20121 into focus for companies in the event industry. With the “Quick Guide ISO 20121 – Sustainability Management in the Event Industry”, the fwd: Bundesvereinigung Veranstaltungswirtschaft e.V. and IFES – International Federation of Exhibition & Event Services have published a practical guide to the application of the international standard ISO 20121. The book is published by Springer Gabler Verlag and is aimed specifically at companies in the event industry.
Step-by-step to standard-compliant implementation
ISO 20121 is the central international management system standard for sustainable event management across the dimensions of ecology, economy, and social issues. Against this background, the norm gains strategic importance, as its certified management system approach is increasingly used in tenders and customer requirements as evidence of credible, systematically grounded sustainability work. However, companies often face structural, organizational and documentary challenges in practical implementation. This is where the Quick Guide ISO 20121 comes in: clearly prepared, structured around the standard’s chapters, and consistently tailored to the requirements of the event industry, it moves from theory to auditable practice.
Structured, practical, auditable
The Quick Guide provides clear, application-oriented guidance for implementing ISO 20121. It shows how effective sustainability management can be established, embedded in existing structures and continuously developed. The guide addresses typical challenges at an early stage, makes responsibilities transparent and provides tried-and-tested solutions. This also includes an audit-oriented and easy-to-implement documentation structure.
Numerous guest contributions by players from the event industry complement the Quick Guide in the chapter “Concrete! Insights into practice”. They show how ISO 20121 can be pragmatically implemented in different company sizes and trades – from event agencies and trade fair construction companies to locations and catering or technical service providers. This provides sustainability and quality management officers, as well as management, with a reliable, practical basis for work.
Developed from practice
The textbook was created from the joint association work of fwd: and IFES as well as the findings from the ISO 20121 convoy training program – a qualification and learning format for the industry. Since 2022, five successful convoys have been conducted, with around 50 member companies participating. “With the Quick Guide ISO 20121, we are making sustainability in the event industry practically feasible – with structure, clarity and a common understanding of how to achieve an effective and auditable management system,” says Marko Roscher, Sustainability Officer at fwd: Bundesvereinigung Veranstaltungswirtschaft.
Availability and Book Presentation
The book is a clear industry signal and contributes to the professionalisation of sustainability: The Quick Guide ISO 20121 is now available online – as an eBook (ISBN 978-3-658-50333-8) and as a softcover edition (ISBN 978-3-658-50332-1)- under the title Quick Guide ISO 20121 – Sustainability Management in the Event Industry.
As part of EuroShop 2026, the Quick Guide ISO 20121 will also be presented in a public book presentation on February 24, 2026, on the Yellow Stage. The author responsible for fwd: Marko Roscher, together with guest authors Patrick Haag and David Baldig, talks about the practical implementation of the standard and its significance for the event industry.
Learn more about IFES here.
