Grand Rapids is a Sustainable Meeting Destination

Today, finding a city with legitimate green credibility is a key consideration when forming a list of potential meeting destinations – and Grand Rapids, Michigan has earned a spot on the list of cities that qualify.

Sustainability is not only a priority for the city’s venues and hotels — the main touchpoints for planners and their attendees — it is also threaded throughout city government, infrastructure, the transportation system, cultural institutions, private businesses and community initiatives.

Fast Company magazine named Grand Rapids “America’s Greenest City” for its earth-friendly policies. It was ranked the nation’s most sustainable mid-size city by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. It was the first U.S. city designated a United Nations Regional Centre of Expertise on Sustainability Education. It has one of the highest per capita number of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environment) certified buildings in the country.

Experience Grand Rapids is happy to collaborate with meeting planners and local resources – like those below – to host sustainable and socially impactful events.

Sustainable Venues

Large events in the heart of Grand Rapids will undoubtedly find themselves in the compact downtown convention campus, where DeVos Place Convention Center , DeVos Performance Hall and Van Andel Arena have implemented numerous environmental and sustainability initiatives over the years, and are constantly fine-tuning their operations to further reduce energy consumption, water consumption and everything in between.

These three facilities, along with downtown’s Acrisure Amphitheater and new Amway Stadium (opening March 2027), are managed by Legends Global, which aims “to deliver world-class experiences with a lighter footprint.”

That commitment is evident throughout DeVos Place Convention Center, where every effort is made to conserve resources. A membrane-style roof reflects heat away from the building, computer-controlled lighting and HVAC systems minimize power usage, automated faucets and flushing system reduce water use, green cleaning chemicals improve indoor air quality and diminish environmental harm, and a recycling program diverts helps divert waste from local landfills.

DeVos Place also works with its food and beverage supplier, the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel , to send food waste to local farmers for compost and utilize plant-based biodegradable utensils, serving pieces and packaging. Read more about environmental and sustainability initiatives at DeVos Place, DeVos Performance Hall and Van Andel Arena.

The Acrisure Amphitheater, a 12,000+ seat outdoor performance venue opened in May 2026, was constructed to green building principles while transforming a downtown industrial space into a vibrant community hub with greenspace along the Grand River. Much of the historic material excavated at the site – riverbed, incinerator stacks, railroad tracks and more – were used to create the venue’s massive grass berm and seating bowl rather than sent to a landfill.

Sustainable Hotels

The Amway Grand Plaza, which is connected to the convention center by skywalk, has implemented its own sustainability programs, including multi-stream recycling, waste-sorting stations in public areas and the elimination of plastic straws from all eight onsite restaurants and bars. Partnerships with GoodR, a minority-owned food-waste management and hunger relief company, and Kids Food Basket, which works to ensure that all West Michigan children have access to nourishing food, help reduce the hotel’s environmental footprint while advancing social welfare. The Amway has also installed energy-efficient LED lighting, water-conserving low-flush toilets and electricity-saving occupancy sensors throughout the facility. In 2021, the hotel replaced all the glass on its 29-story tower façade, a project that increased energy efficiency by double digits.

The JW Marriott Grand Rapids is another link in the city’s skywalk system. The JW also partners with GoodR to donate unused food from banquet events to a local nonprofit, and it cross utilizes food in back-of-the-house areas. A commitment to local food sourcing extends to the hotel’s onsite herb and vegetable garden. Used cooking oil is recycled to locally to create renewable fuels, and composting and recycling programs are available for associates and guests alike.

Event planners can take advantage of JW Green Meetings options including reusable serving utensils, napkins and tablecloths. Refillable water bottle stations are offered to reduce plastic water bottle use. Audio-visual equipment has been upgraded to low power-usage products. Ongoing capital expenditure upgrades are aimed at further reducing water intensity and energy consumption.

CityFlatsHotel, a 48-room boutique property a five-minute walk from DeVos Place Convention Center, is certified LEED Gold thanks to such green features as energy-efficient lighting and plumbing, high-efficiency heating and cooling units, cork flooring, hypoallergenic bamboo linens, and locally manufactured furniture and décor.

Ten additional downtown hotels offer a range of sustainability features. For example, Homewood Suites and Hampton Inn and Suites are part of LightStay, Hilton Worldwide’s corporate responsibility measurement platform that includes an environmental footprint calculation tool for meetings or conferences. Double-glazed windows, energy-efficient LED bulbs and water-efficient showers and toilets are among the eco-friendly initiatives at the Residence Inn by Marriott Downtown. Holiday Inn Grand Rapids Downtown is an IHG Green Engage Hotel implementing a wide range of green solutions to measure and manage its environmental impact.

Sustainable Food & Drink

Many locally-owned restaurants and breweries source food directly from family farms and orchards just minutes from the city, supporting the local economy and reducing the environmental impact of long-distance trucking. They also prioritize sustainability through recycling, composting and other forms of waste reduction.

The Essence Restaurant Group – which includes downtown’s Bistro Bella Vita as well as grove and Lucy’s – is a prime example. They were green before green was cool!

The Gilmore Collection, encompassing downtown’s Bobarino’s Pizzeria, B.O.B’s Brewery and other local favorites, highlights its sustainability strategies on its website. San Chez Bistro, serving a blend of authentic European, Mediterranean and Latin American dishes to downtown patrons since 1992, does the same with its Responsible Restaurant Practices.

Sustainability is a core principle of Vivant Brewery + Spirits in Uptown Grand Rapids. From its LEED-certified building to its status as a B Corporation meeting the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance to its annual Beer the Change sustainability report, Vivant is a shining example of sustainable transparency and accountability.

Walkability

The Downtown GR Convention Neighborhood is compact and easily walkable, eliminating the need for a vehicle to get around. There are more than 300 restaurants, shops, cultural sites and entertainment venues within a 10-minute walk of the convention center.WalkScore.com hailed downtown as a “Walker’s Paradise” in 2026, awarding it 98 out of 100 possible point on its walkability index.

Public Transportation

The Rapid , Grand Rapids’ easy-to-use public transportation system, is additional evidence of the city’s commitment to sustainability. The Rapid Central Station in downtown GR is the first LEED-certified transit facility in the U.S. and the first to feature a “green roof” with plants growing on top to absorb rainwater.

More than 100 of The Rapid’s buses are equipped to use renewal natural gas from the City of Grand Rapids’ biodigester, which breaks down organic waste and turns it into a carbon-negative vehicle fuel. In July 2027, The Rapid will take delivery of eight compressed natural gas and renewable natural gas (CNG/RNG) buses, replacing the last of the diesel-powered buses in its 130+-bus fixed-route fleet. It’s another step in The Rapid's Zero-Emission Bus Rollout Plan for Clean Transportation, which establishes a pathway toward a fully zero-emission fleet by 2048. 

The Rapid’s Downtown Area Shuttle (DASH) offers free transportation around the city center as another environmentally conscious alternative. Just look for the bright pink bus as it circulates around hotels, shops, attractions and other points of interest.

Respect for the Environment

From the Grand River that runs behind DeVos Place Convention Center in downtown Grand Rapids to the clear, fresh waters of Lake Michigan, an inland sea 30 minutes from downtown, to The Fruit Ridge, an agricultural mecca 10 minutes from the city center, this region is blessed with abundant natural resources. The West Michigan Environmental Council was formed way back in 1968 to protect and enhance our natural environments, and its work continues to this day.

A newer organization, Grand Rapids Whitewater , has spearheaded a project to reestablish aquatic diversity and suitability for native fish and mussel species, and significantly improve fish passage and available spawning habitat throughout a 2.5-mile stretch of downtown’s Grand River. In the works for more than 15 years, phase 1 of the Grand River Restoration Project began construction in July 2026 and is slated for completion in late 2027.

The river restoration is one of a series of downtown developments – including the new Acrisure Amphitheater, the renovated Grand Rapids Public Museum and the 85-mile Grand River Greenway land and water trail running right through the city center that are reconnecting the river to the community. Together, these developments constitute one of the nation’s largest active river revitalization efforts.

A City Committed to Sustainability

The city of Grand Rapids is a recognized leader in urban sustainability, focused on achieving community-wide carbon neutrality by 2050. The city’s Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP) is a road map for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preparing for the impacts of climate change on people, the environment and infrastructure. Measurable goals for 2025-2030 include achieving 80% electricity grid decarbonization, reducing energy usage by 20% in 5% of all existing residential buildings, electrifying 5% of existing commercial buildings each year, and increasing ridership  for public, active and shared modes of transportation by 20%.

A city-owned biodigester was opened in 2022 to divert bio-waste from landfills and turn it into renewable energy and fertilizer. A three-acre ground-mounted solar array helps generate power for the city’s water filtration plant and the city is pursuing a plan to install solar panels at a 190-acre former landfill site to help power buildings, street lights and signals in the coming years.

The city is a founding member of the Grand Rapids 2030 District, a public-private partnership committed to drastically reducing the city’s carbon footprint by 2030. It is also one of 11 U.S. cities aiming for a zero net carbon goal for all buildings by 2050 through the Zero Cities Project.

Visit the city’s Office of Sustainability on the web for more on its sustainability journey.

Community Service Projects

These examples of why Grand Rapids has earned its status as a city focused on sustainability have only scratched the surface.

Members of the community also get involved in environmentally friendly activities and volunteer efforts – many of which conference organizers and attendees can get involved in to lower their event’s carbon footprint and drive positive environmental change in Grand Rapids and Kent County. Whether it’s supporting parks, the Grand River, nature centers, water quality, or tree planting, it’s easy to find an outlet that matches your talents and interests.

Is sustainability a priority for you and your attendees? Our Convention Services Team can work with you to make your meeting more sustainable. You may also consider making your meeting a Great Lakes Green Event by implementing sustainable practices and making a donation to the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Trees Initiative, which aims to plant 250 million trees across the region by 2033.

Explore our FAQ about sustainable meetings in Grand Rapids and read more about Green Grand Rapids.