A major milestone for the global movement to reduce waste and accelerate reusable stand construction across the exhibition industry.
Hosted by Net Zero Carbon Events and supported by IFES
Better Stands by Net Zero Carbon Events has been named the winner of the UFI Sustainable Development Award 2026, in the category Best Carbon Reduction Initiative.
The annual award, presented by UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, recognises outstanding initiatives that demonstrate best practice, measurable carbon reduction, and collaborative progress across the exhibition sector. The 2026 theme focused specifically on carbon reduction, highlighting initiatives that are helping the industry move towards more efficient, lower-impact ways of working.
Better Stands was selected from a strong group of finalists, including Queen Sirikit National Convention Center, RX Global & Fiera Milano, and Singapore EXPO, and Best Practices: Bella Center Copenhagen, bematrix, CORFERIAS, Koelnmesse GmbH, MCH Group, and PETSHKA.
The award marks an important moment for Better Stands, which was rolled out globally just over a year ago and has already gained significant traction across the exhibition and events value chain. Hosted by Net Zero Carbon Events and supported by IFES, the programme provides a practical framework to help the industry move away from single use stand construction and towards more reusable, efficient and sustainable build practices.
In its first year of global rollout, Better Stands has built a strong membership across Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, with organisers, venues, service providers, assessors, exhibitors and associations all contributing to its progress.
The movement has been built around a simple but powerful principle: progress happens faster when the whole ecosystem works together. By giving the industry a shared language for reusability, Better Stands supports better planning, clearer procurement conversations, reduced waste, improved site efficiency, safer builds and a more consistent approach to responsible stand delivery.
Early results are already showing the value of this approach. Events now several cycles into Better Stands implementation are beginning to see measurable improvements, with higher levels of reusable stand achievement, stronger exhibitor engagement and more practical collaboration between organisers, contractors and venues.
“This award is a huge moment for everyone involved in Better Stands,” said Ellen Osborne, Chair of the Better Stands Steering Committee. “To receive this recognition just over a year after the global roll-out is incredibly encouraging. It reflects the commitment of a community that shares a vision for change and has had the courage to turn that vision into action. What started as a shared ambition has become a global movement, demonstrating that collaboration can achieve far more than any organisation can achieve alone.”
As Secretariat for Better Stands, IFES has played a key role in supporting the programme’s global development, helping to connect stakeholders, strengthen education, build assessment capacity and encourage wider adoption across markets. Jörg Zeissig, IFES President and Co-Chair of the Better Stands Initiative, said: “Winning the 2026 UFI Sustainable Development Award is a remarkable achievement for the Better Stands Initiative, and I am, on behalf of many supporters and team members, immensely proud of what our global community has accomplished together so far.
This recognition reflects the commitment of many stakeholders such as organisers, venues, service providers, exhibitors, assessors, and associations worldwide who have united behind a shared vision. Together, they are proving that reusable stand-building practices can deliver meaningful, industry-wide change and positive impact.
Better Stands offers a practical, tangible solution that makes sustainable action easier to adopt and helps our industry move from intention to implementation. This award is a powerful encouragement to continue scaling that impact worldwide and implement more features to measure success.”
The win follows a year of increasing visibility and uptake for the programme, including the continued development of assessor training, growing interest from venues and service providers, and stronger integration of Better Stands into event sustainability strategies.
Better Stands enters its second year with a clear focus on expanding education, tools, training and participation, while continuing to support the industry in building more reusable supply chains and reducing the environmental impact of exhibition stand construction.
“This is an exciting milestone, but it is also a call to keep going,” added Roger Lehner, Better Stands Project Manager. “The momentum is real. The benefits are visible. Now the opportunity is to scale this progress and make reuse a standard expectation across the global exhibition industry.”
“Better Stands is another prime example of what is possible when the events industry comes together under the shared goal of sustainability,” says Johanna Fuhlendorf, Programme Director of the Net Zero Carbon Events Initiative. “By providing a simple framework, Better Stands has proven that reusability is both practical and scalable sector wide. We are proud to host this important initiative and are thrilled to see the project team being recognised for their important work.”
About Better Stands
Better Stands is hosted by Net Zero Carbon Events and supported by IFES.
Better Stands provides a consistent framework to measure the reusability of exhibition stands. Stands can achieve Bronze, Silver or Gold Better Stands levels, recognising the work of exhibitors and stand contractors adopting reusable build methods.
Assessment can take place through pre-certification, where contractors gain recognition for reusable build approaches ahead of an event, or through onsite assessments conducted by trained assessors.
At launch in June 2025, Better Stands had been implemented at more than 400 events in over 37 countries, with more than 50,000 stands assessed under the Better Stands criteria during the development phase.
About UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry:
Founded in 1925, UFI has been the voice of the global exhibition industry for over a century. UFI’s core mission is to represent, connect, and advance the exhibition community worldwide, serving trade show organisers, exhibition centre operators, major national and international exhibition associations, and selected industry partners.
