“Our goal is to have an event that is carbon neutral, plastic free, paper low and produces zero waste,” really? And people are advised to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by riding bicycles? 

What about the 8000+ visitor riding CO2 spewing jet aircraft all around the globe to get here and then again back home?

At the 2012 IUCN World Conf in Korea, aviation was responsible for nearly 90% of total GHG emissions, and that figure was arrived at by ignoring climate science. For example, the IPCC has estimated that the climate impact of aircraft is 2-4 times the effect of CO2 emissions alone. These extra factors are usually included in aviation CO2 calculations (RF), but IUCN ignored them in 2012?

Will IUCN take the low road again in calculating Carbon offsets needed to be neutral? This issue is thousands of times more important than riding bicycles. 

Let's hope Chad or Nathan look into the issue of aviation CO2-eq (very relevant to Hawaii). This would be journalism, not IUCN PR.