About Us
As of February 2025, Positive Impact has a community of almost 2,000 global event professionals, over 40 corporate Head of Events, over 40 Corporate Head of Sustainability, over 160 SMEs with a Race to Zero commitment, over 5 memorandums of understanding with United Nations bodies.
For almost 20 years not for profit Positive Impact have been providing engagement, collaboration and education to create a sustainable event industry. You could describe Positive Impact as the ‘critical friend’ of the global event sector.
In 2023 we began to focus on bringing needed innovation to life by supporting two projects:
Technology to make it easier for your event to have a positive Impact
Positive Impact is the only event sector body to be a Race to Zero Accelerator, UN SDG Action mobiliser and to have education certified by the world’s largest and leading CPD accreditation working across all sectors, so our education is accessed by heads of marketing, HR and sustainability.
Our funding comes from everywhere and nowhere, and every penny, cent or yen is used to advance the event sector so every time an event happens the UN Sustainable Development Goals are advanced and events are recognised as ensuring 'participation and inclusion in decision making’ (UN SDG16).
This is a timeline of Positive Impact's journey and the creation of a sustainable event industry. It reflects initiatives from:
The United Nations
Positive Impact
CEO Fiona Pelham
Key developments in the creation of a sustainable event industry.
Investing in the planet on Earth Day through a sustainable event strategy
Read this report from Earth Day 2022 where Positive Impact ran a 24hr global initiative exploring how to invest in the planet and advance corporate sustainability goals through a sustainable event strategy.
Exploring the role of gender equality in creating a net zero carbon future and what this means for your event strategy
To #breakthebias in line with International Women’s Day, corporate event planners were invited to an exclusive salon* on 22nd March 2022, exploring the role of gender equality in supporting their event strategy to advance sustainability commitment and the UN SDGs.
Breaking the bias on International Women’s Day
To celebrate International Womens Day 2022 and to empower you to use your voice to #breakthebias in the event sector, Positive Impact created a basic toolkit.
Being recognised as UNFCCC Race to Zero Accelerator
Nigel Topping, UN Level Climate Champion for COP26, welcomed Positive Impact as one of 13 recognized accelerator programmes to support action on net zero goals.
Imagining what 2022 could look like for the global event sector
Every year the Positive Impact team look to predict what the year ahead could look like for the global event sector. This audio covers our thoughts on what could happen in 2022.
Making a difference in the world
Read our Participate campaign report to understand the difference that Positive Impact made in 2021.
Enabling conversations to support companies to create a sustainable event strategy
The 2021 Corporate Salon Series provided an opportunity for unanswerable questions to be explored - a vital resource during a period of reinvention for the global event sector.
Communicating our engagement with UN Global Compact key principles
In December 2021, Positive Impact completed our first Communication on Engagement for the UN Global Compact to outline our actions to advance the UN Global Compact key principles: Human rights; Labour; Environment and; anti-corruption.
What the European Green Deal could mean for the event sector
In 2020 Positive Impact friend Lena Grobusch drafted an overview of what the European Green Deal could mean for events.
Supporting the event sector to join the UNFCCC Race to Zero at COP26
Discover how Positive Impact have supported the sector to have a net zero carbon commitment and join The Race to Zero.
Exploring how visit Britain could make a net zero commitment and join the UNFCCC Race to Zero
On 9th November 2021, Positive Impact and Visit Britain delivered a webinar to explore the role of events in achieving net zero commitments.
Engaging with UN Global Compact on the role of events in achieving net zero commitments
On 20th October 2021, Positive Impact and UN Global Compact Network UK carried out a corporate only roundtable to explore the role of events in achieving net zero commitments.
Leading a virtual event for the Embassy in Hungary to support the Hungarian event sector
On the 8th of October, Positive Impact hosted a virtual event with the British Embassy in Hungary to support the Hungarian event sector to follow the leadership of the UK government and start making and understanding net zero carbon commitments.
Exploring the role of human and child rights in event planning and strategy
Positive Impact and corporate event planners explored the role of human and child rights in event planning and strategy to advance SDG 16: peace, justice and strong institutions.
Collaborating with #Act4SDGs
The Global Week To #Act4SDG’s has taken place annually since 2016 With the intention of inspiring action to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals are 17 goals which will create a world that works for everyone.
Engaging the Global Event Sector in the UN SDGs with Acceleration Action 2021
Engage the global event sector so that by 2030 events are enabling inclusion and participation in decision making and accelerating progress towards the UN SDGs.
Gathering support for a climate action framework
This report is a review of the roundtables Positive Impact have run with UNFCCC on the climate action framework, gathering support for the sustainability initiative from across the value chain of the event sector as well as the UK government and COP26.
Celebrating Earth Day 2021: Report
This report provides a summary of Positive Impact’s Earth Day celebrations and the many opportunities to participate throughout the day in advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Exploring the connections between human interaction and restoring our Earth
Aligned with the theme of Earth Day 2021: Restore Our Earth, Positive Impact invited corporate event professionals to join their peers to explore the connections between human interaction and restoring our Earth.
Asking who will be responsible for future generations being able to meet?
In the lead up to Earth Day on 22nd April 2021, Positive Impact asked the question: This Earth Day, will you be responsible for future generations being able to meet?
