UNE-ISO 20121:2024 certifies the system your organisation uses to plan and deliver events under environmental, social and economic criteria. A requirement that public tenders and private sponsors are increasingly demanding in writing.
ISO 20121 defines the requirements of an Event Sustainability Management System (ESMS): how to identify significant impacts (emissions, waste, accessibility, supply chain), how to set measurable objectives and how to audit them. The 2024 edition, adopted in Spain as UNE-ISO 20121:2024, strengthens the focus on human rights, digital inclusion, circular economy and the social legacy of the event — going well beyond simply 'switching off the lights'.
The Spanish regulatory context has accelerated demand. Royal Decree 214/2025 of 18 March (BOE-A-2025-7439, published in April 2025) requires certain organisations to calculate and publish their carbon footprint, and regulates the verification of events with more than 1,500 attendees. At the same time, IFEMA, local councils and regional governments are incorporating ISO 20121 as an award criterion with explicit technical scoring in their tender specifications. Getting certified is no longer just about image: it is measurable competitive differentiation.
Summum Calidad guides the entire process: initial gap assessment, design of an ESMS tailored to your event typology (congresses, festivals, corporate events, trade fairs), team training, implementation of operational controls and internal audit prior to certification. Certification is issued by an ENAC-accredited body (AENOR, Bureau Veritas, SGS, TÜV NORD…); we prepare your organisation to pass that third-party audit without surprises.
Analysis of the types of events your organisation manages, stakeholder mapping (organisers, venues, suppliers, attendees), identification of significant impacts and evaluation of your current compliance against the standard. We deliver a GAP report with prioritised gaps.
Drafting of the sustainability policy, event planning procedures, sustainable supplier selection criteria, waste and emissions controls, and stakeholder communication plan. Everything documented to the level the standard requires, without unnecessary bureaucracy.
On-the-ground support during the first events under the new system: tracking indicators, recording carbon footprint data, coordinating with key suppliers and practical training for the internal team. We fine-tune the system using real learnings from each event.
We conduct the pre-certification internal audit, identify non-conformities and close them before the accredited body's visit. We coordinate with the certifier (AENOR, BV, SGS…) for the certification audit and support you throughout the process until the certificate is issued.
The operational detail: what we deliver as part of the work and what we keep alive afterwards.
Initial GAP report
Map of gaps between your current situation and the requirements of UNE-ISO 20121:2024, with a prioritised action plan.
Sustainability policy and objectives
Policy document aligned with your organisation's commitments, measurable objectives and per-event monitoring indicators.
ESMS operational procedures
Event planning, sustainable procurement, waste management, emissions control, accessibility and inclusion, and stakeholder communication.
Supplier selection criteria
Questionnaires and scorecards to evaluate and approve catering, audiovisual production, transport and venue suppliers against ISO 20121 criteria.
Annual internal audit
Internal audit programme with findings report and corrective action follow-up to maintain the certificate year after year.
Certification audit support
Technical presence and support during the accredited body's audit, managing required evidence and responding to non-conformities on time.
Event sustainability connects directly with the organisation's overall ESG strategy and carbon reporting obligations: Summum Calidad manages the event management system; Summum Consultoría covers ESG strategy and CSRD reporting if your company also reports at corporate level.
Overall ESG framework for the organisation: ISO 20121 is the operational tool for events; the ESG service from Summum Calidad integrates that data into the corporate sustainability strategy.
View service → calidadThe standard requires measuring and reducing emissions per event; Summum Calidad offers carbon footprint calculation and verification in line with Royal Decree 214/2025 as a complementary service.
View service → consultoríaFor organisations subject to CSRD or publishing corporate sustainability reports, Summum Consultoría integrates ISO 20121 indicators into the annual sustainability report.
View service →It certifies the organisation's event sustainability management system, not a specific event. Once certified, the company demonstrates that every event it manages follows a controlled and continuously improving process. This is what tenders and sponsors value: systematic capability, not the one-off result of a single event.
Companies that organise events (congresses, trade fairs, festivals, corporate events), venues and convention centres, audiovisual production and catering agencies that act as key suppliers, and any organisation that manages its own recurring events (annual conventions, open days, etc.). The standard is scalable: it adapts to SMEs managing 10 events a year as well as venues hosting hundreds of events.
In organisations with some management maturity (for example, already holding ISO 9001 or ISO 14001), the process typically takes 3 to 4 months. In organisations starting from scratch, 4 to 6 months is common. The timeline depends on the volume of documentation to be produced and the team's availability to apply the system in real events before the audit.
Royal Decree 214/2025 (BOE, March 2025) requires certain organisations to calculate and publish their carbon footprint, and regulates verification of the carbon footprint of events with more than 1,500 attendees. ISO 20121 is not legally mandatory, but its management system naturally incorporates the emissions controls the decree requires, serving as a comprehensive framework that goes well beyond a one-off calculation.
Yes. Public bodies such as local councils, regional governments and organisations like IFEMA include ISO 20121 as a technical award criterion with specific scores in their tender specifications. Certification can make the difference between winning or losing a public contract for event organisation. It is also a compelling argument for private sponsors who have their own ESG commitments.