Opus Agency’s Robert Bartolucci, ESG director, and Howie Cockrill, EVP of group operations and general counsel, advise corporate clients on sustainability strategy and implementation — from company-wide initiatives like Scope 3 emissions data all the way down to ideas for greening their meetings. As the agency expands its sustainability offerings, they’re out to set the record straight regarding misperceptions some planners have about sustainability.
In the U.S., sustainability is driven more by corporate pressure than government policy, says Cockrill. Opus’ multinational clients are following the CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive), which rolled out early last year and requires detailed environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosures.
“Our multinational clients don’t operate in silos,” he said. “What’s required in Europe and in other places around the world impacts what’s happening here from a corporate standpoint. We’re already seeing some European standards — like Scope 3, supply chain scrutiny, carbon-scored venues, and green clauses making their way into contracts and RFPs — in the U.S., regardless of the federal politics.”
From Optional to Operational
2026 is going to be a tipping point in the U.S., says Cockrill — the year that event sustainability goes from optional to operational.
“Because we’re going to see more sustainability reporting requirements going into effect under the CSRD, that is going to require even more reporting. Multinationals are going to have to continue flowing down those reporting requirements to their vendors and their supply chain. That’s going to cascade throughout the meetings industry.”
However, Bartolucci says there’s still a big disconnect within companies between their sustainability departments and their objectives and the events department. “They’re not really talking to each other.”
He expects to see companies start fighting back against anti-sustainability sentiment. “I think the bigger companies are just going to try to comply with what they have to comply with and keep their heads down, so as to not upset the administration. But I do feel like some of the smaller, more agile ones that have very strong sustainability programs and goals are going to reaffirm their commitment in 2026, to show their stakeholders and their employee base: ‘We’re serious about this. We’re not going to slow down, because it makes business sense.’
“We may already be seeing a little of that now, but we’re going to see the pendulum swinging back in 2026.”
Potential Savings
There’s a misperception that sustainability is complicated, or is going to cost more. “It’s not rocket science, it’s choices,” Cockrill said. “It’s what kind of carpet you decide to use, or whether you want to add meat to the menu.”
The first step is to think about where the event is taking place, the city and the venue. “Partnering with a facility like the Javits Center in New York City, which have very sophisticated sustainability teams and their own policies in place, they’re going to ensure that waste is properly sorted, and most likely they can provide a lot of good data that other venues cannot,” he said.
“Would that mean it’s automatically more expensive? Not necessarily. That’s definitely something that we want clients to think about.”
The two experts agree that more companies will realize that sustainability is not just about doing good for the planet, but that there’s a value proposition. One example, food donations, offers tax advantages that most companies do not take advantage of.
“It’s not necessarily about spending more, it’s about wasting less,” said Cockrill. “Clients don’t want to pay for something they have to throw away; they want to use it for the next event because that saves them money.”
“As companies realize that this is not just about doing good for the planet, there’s cost savings and efficiency — there’s money to be had — that’s going to become ingrained into people’s mindsets,” said Bartolucci. These little things that contribute to ROI, I feel, will become second nature.”
