SSC Partners with MeetGreen in Achieving Zero Waste at the SPLC Annual Summit

In 2018, the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council (SPLC) hosted its annual Summit + Connect conference in Minneapolis, MN, drawing over 400 sustainability and procurement professionals from across the public and private sectors. Behind the scenes, Sustainable Solutions Corporation (SSC) played a key role in the Summit’s ambitious sustainability achievement: working toward a Zero Waste to Landfill event.

This forward-thinking partnership not only resulted in a successful event but also left a lasting operational legacy at the host hotel, demonstrating how collaboration and systems thinking can radically improve sustainability outcomes.

SSC partnered with MeetGreen, the Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel staff, and GreenCircle Certified to design and implement a waste diversion roadmap that set a new standard for sustainable event execution.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Months before the event took place, SSC evaluated hotel operations and identified high-impact areas where waste could be designed out of the process entirely. The strategy emphasized practical, scalable interventions that supported SPLC’s broader goals of responsible consumption and production.

Key roadmap components included:

Replacing disposables with reusables such as plates, cutlery, and drinkware.
Eliminating single-serve packaging, including condiments and sugar packets.
Transitioning to cloth towels in place of paper alternatives.
Strategic kitchen coordination with hotel staff to optimize portion sizes and reduce food waste.
Arranging composting services in collaboration with the hotel’s MMO (Material Management Organization).

RESULTS

Following strict data verification protocols, GreenCircle Certified confirmed that the 2018 SPLC Summit achieved a 100% diversion rate, officially qualifying it as a Zero Waste to Landfill event. This result stands as a powerful testament to the value of pre-event planning, cross-functional collaboration, and third-party validation.

Operational Transformation

The most enduring impact came from the event’s ripple effect. The Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel was so impressed with the processes and outcomes developed by SSC and partners that it chose to permanently adopt the new sustainability practices as standard procedure.

On-Site Excellence: Implementation and Tracking

During the conference, SSC’s roadmap was put into action. GreenCircle Certified, a third-party auditing firm, conducted daily waste audits with support from SSC and hotel staff. Waste was weighed in real time, and daily diversion results were reported to attendees, fostering transparency and engagement.

The initiative was embedded into nearly every element of the event:

The exhibit hall was constructed entirely of reusable materials—resulting in zero construction waste.
Conference signage and scenic elements were produced using recyclable and reusable materials.
Menus were custom-designed to reflect sustainable food values—prioritizing local, organic, and low-impact ingredients while minimizing added sugars.
A robust sponsorship program allowed companies to align their investments with sustainability initiatives like carbon offsets, zero waste, and sustainable coffee.

Zero waste to landfill means that none of the waste created by an organization is disposed directly to landfill or to incineration without energy recovery by the particular facility. To achieve zero waste to landfill certification, an organization must ensure that 100% of its waste streams are directed to a qualified downstream material management organization (MMO) with the intent of diverting all materials from landfill disposal through reuse, recycling, composting, or other responsible recovery methods.
Waste diversion from landfill is the prevention of waste sent to landfill through waste minimization, recycling, reuse, composting and other means as defined by the acceptable means of diversion hierarchy. The goal is to keep valuable resources in circulation and minimize environmental impact by choosing the most effective and responsible disposal methods available.