SUSTAINABLE WEDDINGS, THE FUTURE FOR THE PLANET

Sustainable Weddings With tonnes of plastic, paper and food wasted every year, weddings on the whole can be a pretty wasteful day. You want your wedding to be a day you never forget, but this doesn’t mean that you have to compromise on the eco-friendliness of your big day. You probably hear the word sustainable a lot nowadays, but it can sometimes be tricky to work out how you can make sustainable changes in your own life. When you’re organising the event, here are a few things to consider. You might also want to familiarise yourself with the basics of energy consumption, such as the kWh to ensure that you know what to look for in a venue.

 

 

Go for an environmentally friendly wedding venue

You might think that reducing plastic is the surefire way to make sure that your wedding is eco-friendly. And while this is true to an extent, your venue could be by far the worst contributor to climate change. Big venues such as hotels or function rooms can use up a lot of energy on one single day. If you want to make sure that your wedding venue isn’t harmful, then you should make sure that their energy is supplied sustainably, for example from an eco-friendly supplier, or solar panels. Knowing the basics of energy consumption is the easiest way to evaluate the environmental impact of your wedding venue. You might even want to make sure that you understand how to read an energy bill, as this can help you learn where changes can be made to save energy.

 

Firstly, choose a sustainable caterer who reflects your values surrounding sustainability

The most important culinary choice you can make on your wedding day is to make sure that your food is all locally sourced. From the meat to the desserts, make sure that your caterers order in food from local producers. Not only does this actively support local business, but it also makes sure that there are no unnecessary travel costs associated with your big day. You could even opt for a totally vegan or vegetarian menu to go the extra mile. However, we know this isn’t for everyone, so sourcing local produce is definitely a priority.

 

Scrap single-use plastic

You’ve almost definitely heard that single-use plastic is one of the worst contributors to the degradation of our wildlife. But, you might have overlooked how much big events, such as weddings, contribute to this environmental disaster. This is mainly through confetti and balloons, which just get thrown away after the end of the night. Not biodegradable, these plastics stay on our planet for years and can do real damage to the environment and to many species. However, lucky for you future brides and grooms, there are alternative options you can choose when it comes to decorating your venue. Many companies now produce biodegradable plastic confetti and balloons, so that’s one less thing to worry about! Why not check out this company to see prices and delivery options.

While you’re moving away from plastic, you might want to consider the quantity of paper that you use for your wedding. Wedding invitations traditionally come via the post in paper form, however given that weddings can boast pretty long guest lists, so that’s a lot of paper invitations! Lots of people are now deciding to only send out email invitations. Not only is this miles better for the planet, but it’s also a lot cheaper!

 

Why bother creating a sustainable menu when your venue isn’t so environmentally friendly?

You might think that reducing plastic is the surefire way to make sure that your wedding is eco-friendly. And while this is true to an extent, your venue could be by far the worst contributor to climate change. Big venues such as hotels or function rooms can use up a lot of energy on one single day. If you want to make sure that your wedding venue isn’t harmful, then you should make sure that their energy is supplied sustainably, for example from an eco-friendly supplier, or solar panels. Knowing the basics of energy consumption is the easiest way to evaluate the environmental impact of your wedding venue, as this can help you learn where changes can be made to save energy.

Making these three small changes will have positive effects on planet earth, and you won’t have to feel guilty about the eco-friendliness of your big day!

This article was supplied by our wonderful friends at Papernest, a free service that manages any paperwork when moving!