Partnerships for climate neutrality

In 2021, we became one of the first major international trade fair organisers to join the Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge, which aims to reduce the CO2 emissions of events worldwide to net zero by the end of 2050. Since 2022, we have been working towards the climate protection goals of the German trade fair industry, which aims to achieve climate neutrality by 2040. However, we are going one step further: we aim to be climate-neutral by 2030, both as a company and with our events in Cologne. Reducing our energy consumption by 35 percent by then is just one part of our ambitious roadmap.

Marketing the city

Cologne is a true trade fair city. As part of the Trade Fair City Initiative, we bring topics and trade fair flair into the city centre via events and campaigns, which has been met with much enthusiasm. Not only guests and Cologne's citizens are pleased about the expansion of leisure activities and cultural events. The programmes bring several hundred thousand additional visitors to the city every year. To further strengthen the regional economy, we work together with the City of Cologne's economic development agency.

Together we present ourselves with global marketing activities in international growth markets.

Sustainability on two wheels

As an employer, we are committed to sustainable mobility and offer our employees the opportunity to travel in an environmentally friendly way with our work bike program, which includes e-bikes and standard bicycles. This contributes to climate protection and encourages an active lifestyle.

Training for a sustainable future

We view training as a key element of our sustainable commitment, as we have for over 40 years. We invest in young talent, promote their development and place great value on practical, future-oriented training. Together, we not only shape careers, but also provide an example of a sustainable and responsible corporate culture.

Cross mentoring programs for female high potentials

Since 2014, we have been actively supporting the professional and personal development of female employees by enabling two mentees to participate in each cycle and integrating two mentors into the programme. The core of the program is mentoring, in which each mentee is accompanied by an experienced manager from another participating company. We also promote networking and joint learning through various events, training sessions and company visits.

Funding and sponsoring

Not only do some of our trade fair highlights focus on sports and culture, we also actively promote Cologne and Germany as a location for these sectors. For example, we support the talented field hockey athlete Jule Fischer with the NRW Sports Foundation Scholarship.

Fact-based information for school students

Koelnmesse supports the MEGAfoN network. With free ad-free access to fact-based news via an app, MEGAfoN encourages school students to form their own opinions and establishes fact-checking skills for news in schools.