Black Hat Announces Sustainability Pledge

Pledge stems from Black Hat’s commitment to become a net zero carbon business by 2030

Black Hat, the producer of the cybersecurity industry’s most established and in-depth security events, today announced the launch of its Sustainability Pledge.

This Pledge outlines the initiatives Black Hat will be prioritizing across all of its events, as part of its commitment to positively impact the cybersecurity community and planet, continue to deliver a responsible and inclusive event, and also plan to become a net zero carbon business by 2030.

“As the event series where the best minds in security come together, we recognize our responsibility in ensuring our community feels represented and knowledgeable of how Black Hat is delivering sustainable events,” said Steve Wylie, Vice President, Cybersecurity Market Group at Informa Tech. “In publishing our Sustainability Pledge, we hope that those who attend our events, along with all partners who make our events possible, will reflect and find ways they can each continue to contribute in helping our team make Black Hat events the best they can be.”

The initiatives of Black Hat’s Sustainability Pledge include:

Inspiring Sustainable Development

To inspire sustainable development and help address the wide range of sustainability, diversity, and inclusivity topics in the cybersecurity community, Black Hat USA 2023 is featuring Briefings, a Community Lounge, and Community Program to increase awareness, amplify new purposeful partnerships, and strengthen access to the cybersecurity industry.

Highlights include:

• Briefings:
  • Diversity Microtalks: Perspectives on Creating Change – Held by cybersecurity industry leaders, this Briefing will include three practical microtalks: Reducing Your Team’s Energy Costs: An Inclusion Microtalk; Breaking Barriers: a Data-Centric Approach; and Microaggressions and Turnover: Three Ways to Reduce Quiet Quitting.
• Community Lounge: To provide a platform to discuss current issues around diversity and inclusion in the cybersecurity industry, one of Black Hat’s newest additions, the Community Lounge, will focus on a range of sessions, covering topics such as women in cybersecurity, including distinct issues women commonly face in this industry, as well as solutions to how the industry can continue to strive for a more diverse and inclusive community.
• Community Program:
  • Climate Change and Cybersecurity: Building a Resilient Future – This session will explore the relationship between climate change, cybersecurity, and information security (InfoSec) in promoting environmental sustainability, and feature topics including the carbon footprint of InfoSec, reducing energy consumption, sustainable procurement, protecting critical infrastructure, and supporting renewable energy systems.

To expand accessibility to Black Hat’s events, Black Hat is hosting its annual Student and Veteran Scholarship programs, and partnering with the following organizations on additional scholarship opportunities: Black Girls Hack; The Diana Initiative; Executive Women’s Forum; Women in Security and Privacy; and Women’s Society of Cyberjutsu.

Minimizing Environmental Impact

Beginning in 2022 and continuing for 2023, Black Hat USA made the decision to no longer incorporate aisle floor carpet within the design of the Business Hall floor, diverting approximately 102,870 square feet of carpet from being sent to the landfill after the close of Black Hat USA 2022. For 2023, digital signage will continue to be prioritized, while exhibitors and sponsors are encouraged to consider sustainability in their procurement choices. In addition, Black Hat continues to partner with its venue, the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, on energy efficiency measures and food waste management to reduce event emissions for 2023.

Designing Socially Responsible Events

Black Hat ensures it includes sessions within its program that highlight Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion within the cyber community, and Black Hat USA 2023 will provide pronoun ribbons, available at Registration, while Black Hat’s mobile app will feature an optional field to display pronouns. Black Hat regularly reevaluates its events to prioritize accessibility, and Black Hat USA will feature attendee resources such as dedicated seating, a prayer room, childcare, and Mothers Room, while On-Demand Access will feature captioning on recorded content.

To learn more about Black Hat USA 2023’s commitment to sustainability, please visit https://www.blackhat.com/us-23/sustainability.html.

For registration and additional information on Black Hat USA 2023, please visit https://www.blackhat.com/us-23.

About Black Hat

For over 25 years, Black Hat has provided attendees with the very latest in information security research, development, and trends. These high-profile global events and trainings are driven by the needs of the security community, striving to bring together the best minds in the industry. Black Hat inspires professionals at all career levels, encouraging growth and collaboration among academia, world-class researchers, and leaders in the public and private sectors. Black Hat Briefings and Trainings are held annually in the United States, Canada, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia. More information is available at: blackhat.com. Black Hat is brought to you by Informa Tech.

About Informa Tech

Informa Tech is a market leading provider of integrated research, media, training, and events to the global Technology community. We're an international business of more than 600 colleagues, operating in more than 20 markets. Our aim is to inspire the Technology community to design, build, and run a better digital world through research, media, training, and event brands that inform, educate, and connect. Over 7,000 professionals subscribe to our research, with 225,000 delegates attending our events and over 18,000 students participating in our training programmes each year, and nearly 4 million people visiting our digital communities each month. For more information, please visit www.informatech.com.

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