Sustainability at L59

Besides startups, unicorns & technology, Estonia is also known for its wonderful nature, richness of seasons, biodiversity & exceptionally clean air. Our team – the people behind Latitude59 – has a deep appreciation for the environment around us. We consider it our personal & professional responsibility to make as sustainable choices as we possibly can. When it comes to organizing a world-class conference, this means:

FOOD, DRINKS & CATERING

We have Ringo to help us out with reusable cups, dishes & cutlery – after using a Ringo food container please make sure to place it in the Ringo bin (they are bright yellow & easy to spot), so they can venture back to their home at the Ringo company to be washed & reused.
It’s important to stay hydrated! High quality drinking water is available for all the attendees for free (tap water in Estonia is safe to drink). We encourage everyone to bring their own water bottles and use reusable cups for hot beverages.
Options for vegan food & plant-based coffee milks are available at the food court.
We don’t throw away edible food – leftovers will be shared with the team, the volunteers, the food-sharing organisations, or will be donated to those in need.
All the coffee, tea & sugar offered at Latitude59 is organic and/or fair trade.

WASTE & RECYCLING

We are producing as little as possible & reusing what’s possible. We avoid disposable building materials, banners & design elements; our focus is on circular-first when it comes to the production of the event.
Swag can be fun, but please reconsider its necessity. We’ve limited significantly the number of different types of merchandise, books & magazines handed out in demo & partner areas. Flyers, stickers & any other usual suspects left unattended will be collected & removed by our team.
When it comes to waste, the best option is to avoid creating it in the first place. The second best option is to put the trash exactly where it belongs – please follow the categories & guidelines indicated on the waste bins to make sure all waste is collected & sorted correctly.

SAVING ENERGY

May is a lovely time for enjoying Tallinn’s sights & views on foot. Or on a bike or a scooter. Or through the window of public transportation (free for conference attendees). When in a pinch, using rideshare options through apps like Bolt can also help you get around.
The easiest way to save energy is to give up disposable items – we do that & encourage you to do the same.
We are calculating our footprint & analyzing all our steps to a more sustainable conference. We are eager to learn & make the next Latitude59 even more sustainable than the previous one. Always.

It is important for us to organize the conference in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way. We have taken the following steps to be more sustainable:

We are producing as little as possible and reusing, what’s possible!
1. We avoid disposable building materials, banners & design elements as much as possible.
2. When producing swag and gifts, we are preferring practical, sustainable and local products and immaterial gifts. We avoid disposables.
We use only reusable cups, dishes and cutlery, our official partner is Ringo.
Free high quality drinking water is available for all the attendees. We encourage everyone to use their own water bottles or reusable cups for refilling.
There are always vegan food options and plant based coffee milks available for attendees. Edible food won’t be thrown away, it’ll be shared with the team and volunteers, handed over to foodsharing organizations or donated for those in need.
Latitude59 is aiming to produce as little waste as possible and a separate collection of waste is used in order to send as much waste as possible to circulation. Conference attendees, as well as partners, production units and the team are expected to follow the sorting categories.
We are aiming for energy efficiency – we use as little electronics and electrical machinery as possible, prefer energy efficient items and switch off what’s not in use.
We encourage Latitude59 attendees to arrive at the venue by public transportation, by bike and walking instead of arriving by their own cars.
We are analysing and measuring our steps to a more sustainable conference. So the next Latitude59 will be even more environmentally friendly.

5 EASY STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO BE MORE SUSTAINABLE AT LATITUDE59

Tallinn is a very attractive and walkable city – please walk to the venue, ride a bike or use public transport (free for conference attendees).
There is clean drinking water available for free. Bring your own water bottle and/or coffee cup. Clean reusable cups are available at the venue.
If you have any waste to throw away – please take a moment to sort it according to given categories.
Consume reasonably! There will be very little swag and handouts available for attendees.
If you have a spare lanyard at home, bring it with you instead of taking a new one at the venue. If you get your lanyard at the conference, leave it at the collection point after the event for reuse next year!

In 2024, Acento is supporting Latitude59 in becoming a more sustainable event and in measuring the ecological footprint of the entire 2-day conference at Kultuurikatel . Our ever-lasting goal is to keep on making smarter choices that are good for the people as well as the environment.

Read more about measuring the ecological footprint of Latitude59 2024 here.