MADRID’S green spaces, parks, gardens and trees play a key role in the quality of life for residents and visitors. This means business event groups can also enjoy the Spanish capital’s natural heritage, historical buildings, state-of-the-art venues and renowned cuisine.
For organisers seeking to achieve a lower carbon emission for their group travel and lessen the impact of their events on the environment, Madrid will help with all this and more.
In 2019, the approval of the Madrid 360 Climate Change and Sustainability Strategy reflected the city’s commitment to the environment. The strategy includes several measures aimed at enabling adaptation to climate change, promoting the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency plans, managing water resources, cutting emissions and waste, and encouraging sustainable transport.
These measures also seek to foster the creation of green infrastructure and low-carbon urban renewal methods.
A City of Trees and Greenery
Madrid’s trees are one of the city’s greatest assets. Over 55 per cent of its streets are treelined, with nearly 300,000 trees helping to improve the capital’s air quality, making Madrid home to the world’s second-leafiest streets.
Recently, reaffirming its commitment to the environment, Madrid was renamed a Tree City of the World, a distinction awarded by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and the Arbor Day Foundation, which promotes good practices and performs actions to raise awareness of the importance of trees and their care.
A Rich Natural Heritage
With more than 200 parks, gardens, and natural spaces covering almost 6,400 hectares of green heritage, Madrid offers countless healthy settings for groups organisers to host team-bonding activities or simply let their groups unwind after a conference.
One standout is El Retiro Park (above and main picture), a historical treasure and UNESCO World Heritage Site in the heart of the capital.
Another is Madrid Río Park, which stretches for ten kilometres along the banks of the River Manzanares and is the ideal place for group activities, walking, exercising or simply admiring the area’s ecological restoration, which has led to the return of numerous species to their natural habitat.
Casa de Campo Park (above) is also close by. Declared an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC) by the Spanish Government, Casa de Campo Park boasts over 1,500 hectares for leisure, sports and recreation, making it an ideal space to organise outdoor activities for your groups.
And that’s not all. Madrid is also developing new green spaces, such as the Metropolitan Forest – a planned 75-kilometre green belt around the city featuring vast open areas.
PLUS platform
In keeping with Madrid’s firm commitment to environmental protection, Madrid Convention Bureau developed the MICE Sustainability Guide and the digital platform PLUS for event organisers. The latter is a pioneering initiative in Spain which helps organisers to effectively manage the social and environmental sustainability of their events in line with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out in the UN’s 2030 Agenda.
The tool was recently upgraded and enables the creation of specific sustainability reports for every meeting organised in Madrid, including recommendations that can be implemented before events are held to minimise their environmental and social impact. The platform can also be used after the event to calculate its carbon footprint.
A major enhancement regarding an event’s carbon footprint is that the platform can now classify emissions by scope (Scope 1: direct emissions; Scope 2: indirect emissions; and Scope 3: supply chain emissions).
Meetings with a Mission
Another of Madrid Convention Bureau’s objectives is to support associations – and private organisations – that want to ensure their conferences and events help bring about change in the city. There is a growing conviction in the sector that event organisation should be underpinned by respect for the destination, and associations and companies are increasingly bringing their missions and visions into line with the aims of the places where they hold their meetings. Madrid Convention Bureau strives to be a key point of liaison, ensuring that meetings held in Madrid leave a positive legacy in the city.
To this end, the PLUS platform itself provides organisers with a catalogue of social organisations in Madrid which they can use to find and select actions with a positive impact to include in their meetings’ agendas. This catalogue is complemented by an open directory of the same social organisations.
Gathering in Madrid, exploring the city on foot, enjoying the fresh air and leaving a positive legacy are just some of the city’s attractions for meetings and events that prioritise sustainability – knowing that together we can build a greener future for Madrid and the planet.
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