EC&O Venues has won the Association of Event Organisers (AEO) award for Environmental Sustainability in recognition for Earls Court and Olympia’s industry-leading environmental initiatives.

The award was presented to Rachel Parker, customer service director at Earls Court, at the AEO Awards ceremony on 30 June. “We are extremely proud of our environmental sustainability record over the past year and this award is testament to the importance we place on environmental issues,” she said. “The commitment and dedication of the venue teams at both Earls Court and Olympia has been truly outstanding and they all thoroughly deserve this award.”

Earls Court and Olympia have implemented a number of environmental sustainability initiatives, including large-scale on-site recycling of exhibition and office waste, the installation of sustainable carpet and an energy-saving programme. “We set ourselves a huge challenge when we kicked off our environmental sustainability programme and its success, and this award, is due to a team effort between the venue staff, our service partners and the support of our customers,” said Debbie Law, customer service director at Olympia.

Commenting on the EC&O Venues’ success, Trevor Foley, the AEO’s group chief executive, said: “Protection of the environment and sustainability are becoming more and more significant in these times and it is vital that the exhibition and events industry plays a major role in these highly important activities. The AEO applauds the lead taken by EC&O Venues in developing a programme aimed both at saving costs and, most importantly, actively addressing these crucial matters.”