Cobo Center's 2018 Social Responsibility and Sustainability Report Arrives
The 2018 Annual Social Responsibility and Sustainability Report is out for Cobo Center, showing great strides toward a more sustainable future. The report is full of the accomplishments of the Cobo Center Green Committee in 2018 and its lofty goals for 2019. Read the entire report HERE
"Each year our Executive Green Team meets to review last year's accomplishments and create a strategic plan for the coming year that guarantees Green Committee program improvement," said Claude Molinari, Cobo Center general manager. "In 2019 we've planned audacious goals that will help events become even more green."
Accomplishments for 2018 include hosting a three day workshop by the Events Industry Council with Cobo employees and event planners from neighboring Midwest states for obtaining a Sustainable Event Professional Certificate. The venue also:
1. launched a new process for collecting materials for donations to local agencies after events more out
2. worked in partnership with Bees in the D to foster four honey bee hives on Cobo's Living Green Roof and provide local area education on the importance of growing the bee population
3. submitted an application for the venues third APEX/ASTM recertificaton for green events practices
4. acquired Mamava movable lactation station pods to give parents a quiet, safe place to care for the needs of infants and small children
5. provided free health and fitness events for local Detroit residents
6. provided employee opportunities to volunteer in local Detroit neighborhood beautification projects
7. implemented a new Waste Audit process that allows the inspection of all waste leaving Cobo Center to minimize contamination and maximize diversion
8. expanded the list of composable materials and improved reporting for any load not accepted by compost company
The Cobo Center Green Committee was established in 2011 with members from every administrative department and vendor company in the center. The Executive Green Team set the following goals for the committee in 2019:
1. Achieve third EIC ASTM/APEX recertification
2. Apply for LEED Certification
3. Complete a Living Green Roof observation area
4. Replace electric cart use with bicycle and tricycle use
5. Install a hydroponic garden greenhouse near the Living Green Roof
6. Install Water Bottle Refilling Stations throughout the center
7. Secure a Green Naming Rights Sponsor
8. Implement a food efficiency program to minimize food waste
