MORE SESSIONS & SPEAKERS REVEALED!
The agenda for the 18th edition of the Green Events & Innovations Conference (GEI18) is beginning to take shape, with everything from emerging tech to touring, boycotts, and the fundamentals of water and sanitation slated for discussion. As always, the focus is on real-world challenges, inspiring insight, practical sustainability solutions, and so much more…
PANEL
Values, Boycotts & Cancel Culture: Who’s Cancelling Who?
Football and festivals, music and sport; platforms of enormous cultural value and impact… and a battle ground for cancel culture. Festivals cancelled by artists, artists cancelled by festivals, artists banned by countries, Eurovision cancelled by countries, sponsors cancelled by events, and football clubs cancelled by sponsors. How do we navigate cancel culture and boycotts whilst standing true to our values and decreasing intimidation and misinformation?
Dan Lambert, manager of Kneecap, COO of Bohemian Football Club and former Irish Diplomat at United Nations; and Dale Vince OBE, chairman of Forest Green Rovers FC, founder of Ecotricity, and UN Sport for Climate Action Ambassador are familiar with these topics. The Palestinian Flag flies at both of their football clubs, and both call for UEFA to ban the Israel Football Association from competing in international tournaments. And both have experience of what happens when you speak out. Hear insights from the eye of the storm in this vital conversation.
PANEL
Green Light for Venues: Live Events Energy Scheme
The Live Events Energy Scheme (LEES) represents a significant shift in how the UK live events sector can access affordable and genuinely renewable energy. This panel will explore how the collective energy-basket model works in practice and what it could mean for venues and promoters long term. We also get insight to venue power initiatives across Europe. Speakers include Music Venue Trust’s COO Beverley Whitrick, Ecotricity’s Antony Wolowiec, and AEG / The O2’s director of sustainability, Sam Booth, with further contributors to be announced.
PANEL
TAKKUUK: Bicep, Indigenous Culture and Climate
We are honoured that the utterly mesmerising artist Katarina Barruk will be gracing the GEI stage in 2026. Katarina's unique voice and indigenous vocal techniques (sung in the critically endangered language of Ume Sámi) combine pop, joik (the ancient music of the Sami people), and improvisational elements.
Katarina’s collaboration with Bicep features in TAKKUUK, the critically acclaimed immersive audio-visual project directed by Zak Norman, the visual artist responsible for stage shows and music videos for artists including Bicep, Squarepusher, Confidence Man, and Charlie Miller who has worked extensively on music and documentary projects worldwide.
Katarina and Zak will join Peter Quicke (Ninja Tune) and Rozenn Logan (In Place of War) to give insight into the creation and purpose of this moving and meaningful masterpiece.
CASE STUDY
Big Team - No Sustainability Without Diversity
Learn how Big Team has been supporting companies within the live event industry with EDI and best practice in open recruitment. Through this work, they have created opportunities for young people who face barriers entering the industry, supporting their access and ongoing development. Big Team is focused on helping young people build sustainable, long-term careers – not just one-off opportunities.
Big Team actively works to diversify the people who create, contribute, and attend festivals, including major events such as Forwards Festival, Waterworks, Love Saves the Day, and Silver Hayes at Glastonbury. They help 18–30 year olds from groups that are currently under-represented to forge paths in the industry and collaborate with industry partners to develop more inclusive festival environments.
PANEL
Bridge Over Troubled Waters
Recent studies reveal parts of Northern Europe are getting wetter while Central and Southern Europe’s groundwater reserves are drying up. 60% of Europe's rivers do not have a good ecological status, while 100% of the UK’s rivers are chemically contaminated. Animal agriculture and human sewage overflows are major water pollution contributors. The human right to clean water is becoming a thing of the past. Hosted by Jane Healy, the sanitation manager of Glastonbury Festival and Boomtown Fair, our expert panel explores how events are implementing solutions that address these challenges. This panel will ask whether events will be considered dangerous or “non-essential” water consumers in the future, competing with neighbours for this scarce commodity, or can they form a vital part of the solution?
CASE STUDY
Beyond the Burger Van:
How Festivals Like Paradise City are Serving Sustainable Futures
From meat-heavy to plant-powered, Petra Daniels explores the revolution in festival catering through the lens of Belgium's pioneering Paradise City (winner of the International Greener Festival Award 2024). This case study digs into the festival’s successes, the academic studies that guide their decisions, and the tasty challenges of making sustainability the headliner act.
PANEL
A Greener Tour – Round VI
Six years in, how far have we come? This much-loved gloves-off session returns to tackle the realities of touring sustainably (or not). From trucking, technical production, stage design and power, to the relationships between the touring world players. This panel brings together industry and grassroots perspectives to reimagine how touring could better serve artists, audiences and the planet.
KEYNOTE CONVERSATION
EarthPercent Hour
“Unleashing the power of music in service of the planet”
For the fifth year, EarthPercent Hour will welcome some very special guests and luminaries to the stage at GEI18.
EarthPercent Hour is always the icing on the plant-based cake of GEI’s programme with previous guests including Brian Eno, Jarvis Cocker, Moby, Aurora, Jacob Collier, and Declan McKenna.
Watch this space for our 2026 guest reveal.
EarthPercent invites artists and the music industry at large to donate a small percentage of their income, making change through organisations that meaningfully address the climate and nature crises. We invite all of our readers to support the great work of this charity, too.
DONATE TO AN AMAZING CAUSE TODAY
More panels and speakers will be announced soon!
Previously announced topics include:
Touring: Climate & Sustainability Policy Research
AI & Sustainability
GEI is our flagship event and is organised in partnership with the world’s leading platform for the live music and entertainment sector, the International Live Music Conference (ILMC).
More Details:
GEI18 will take place on Tuesday, 24th February 2026, the day before ILMC, at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in Central London.
Why you shouldn’t miss it:
Discussions: Explore the latest solutions & innovations for a greener event sector
Talks: Learn from inspiring industry leaders & pioneers
Networking: Connect & collaborate with sustainability experts & sector movers and shakers
Celebrate: Raise a glass to colleagues & green champions at the International AGF Awards
Food & Drink: Enjoy a delicious planet-friendly 5* lunch, refreshments & a final party alongside ILMC delegates**
Tickets
Early-Bird tickets are available until Winter Solstice, 21st December at 3:03PM GMT - secure your spot and save!
GEI18 is kindly supported by a range of sponsors and partners, all of whom are continuing their longstanding commitment to a greener events sector.
If you have a company, product, or service that you’d like to showcase, or if you’d simply like to learn more about GEI18 – including the latest updates, panels, speakers, and downloadable decks – please visit our GEI18 webpage for all the details.
