A balloon debate is a lively speaking activity in which participants imagine they are in a hot air balloon that is rapidly losing altitude and must argue why they deserve to stay on board. Each person takes on a character, modern or historical, and uses persuasive language, wit, and creativity to avoid being “thrown out.”

For example, you might find Albert Einstein insisting the world still needs his genius, up against Harry Potter claiming magic could save the balloon, while Taylor Swift argues that her music is simply too important to lose.

In 2023, I decided to use this format to spice up a panel I was facilitating on sustainability at the HRC event (Hotel, Restaurant and Catering) and so, The Great Green Balloon Debate was born.

In 2024, together with HOSPA and GSI (Global Sustainability Index), we held our first full-scale event, which has now become an annual fixture.

The twist? Instead of famous characters, our speakers represent key areas of sustainability, each making the case for why their topic matters most in “saving the planet” and why they alone deserve to remain in the balloon.

Of course, the real message behind the event is collaboration and the importance of working together. But for one night only, the gloves are off. It’s a refreshing alternative to often overly earnest panel discussions and is designed to be insightful and thought-provoking, but above all, genuinely fun.

We were back this year for our third Great Green Balloon Debate and it was bigger and better than ever.

An amazing line up of speakers championing a wide range of topics including the Importance of Water, Sustainable Wine, the Sharing Economy, Designing for Purpose and Greener Politics.

Congratulations to our winner Liam Jones, and runners up Joe Saberton-Coe and Professor Mark Maslin.

And thank you to The Clermont Charing Cross for providing us with such a wonderful venue.

Cutting through all the noise surrounding Sustainability can be a challenge, but that’s exactly what we (me, Jane Pendlebury from HOSPA and Grace Greensitt from Global Sustainability Index) set out to do with our Great Green Balloon Debates.

2025 was our second full event, and reinforced why it’s quickly become one of my favourite events and is an absolute delight to moderate. Thank you to all of our amazing speakers, who represented their chosen fields so brilliantly. And huge congratulations to our winner: Safina Naz and runners up Kate Page and James Shorey.