BBVA's AGM certified as “sustainable event”
BBVA's Annual General Meeting, which took place on March 16th in Bilbao, boasted an event sustainability management system that was compliant with the UNE-ISO 20121:2013 standard, as certified by AENOR. This certification validates the 2018 Annual General Meeting as a Sustainable Event due to its “clear commitment” to the environmentally, socially and economically sustainable criteria defined by the standard.
Certification as a Sustainable Event entails a rigorous process. Firstly, an audit of the documentation occurs prior to the event in question—a shareholders meeting, a convention, a sporting event, etc— in order to determine if the sustainable management system designed, as well as the sustainability targets and the proposed plans to sway suppliers conform to the requirements expected by the UNE-ISO 20121 standard. Then, during the event in question, the auditor will verify in situ if the promised specifications were fulfilled.
The audit conducted by AENOR for BBVA's Annual General Meetings had objectives such as “determine the compliance of the event organization's management system with the reference standard, evaluate its capacity to comply with the applicable legal, regulatory and contractual requirements as well as evaluate its efficacy at meeting the specified targets and identify possible improvement areas.”
Based on these criteria, it was certified that the sustainable management system for BBVA's Annual General Meeting “was sufficiently defined and its implementation was considered adequate throughout the course of the event”.
This certification places BBVA as one of the organizations most committed to sustainability.
The receipt of this prestigious certification places BBVA as one of the organizations most committed to sustainability and proves that the 2018 Annual General Meeting was planned, designed, and organized with the intention of reducing negative environmental effects and strengthening the positive social and economic impact.
Regarding environmental effects, the meeting was organized to minimize the consumption of natural resources, to reduce the emission of polluting gases, to protect the surroundings, and to encourage the recycling and reuse of waste material.
In terms of creating a positive social and economic impact, the organization included aspects such as accessibility and contracting workers who are at risk of social exclusion. Additionally, the use of products from local suppliers was a priority.
The receipt of the Sustainable Event certification for the 2018 Annual General Meeting bolsters BBVA's commitment to a model of sustainable development based on a combination of social, environmental and economic facets in a harmonious and balanced approach.
The receipt of the Sustainable Event certification for the 2018 Annual General Meeting bolsters BBVA's commitment to a model of sustainable development based on a combination of social, environmental and economic facets, in a harmonious and balanced approach.