Hi DreamGroup!
Do you have some suggestions for ways to
host an eco-friendly wedding?
Thanks,
Karly (soon to be Mrs. Reeves) - ;)
Hello Karly,
Thanks for bringing up a great ongoing point
of interest these days! I actually wrote
an article about this exact topic a few months back so thought I'd share it again with our readers... It outlines some easy ways to reduce your carbon footprint (big and small) and even some inspiring resources to learn more.
Sustainable
Weddings…A Convenient Truth
~ by Genève McNally
The idea of hosting a sustainable wedding
has become quite the hot topic over recent years due to an increase in the
concern for the effect global warming is having on our planet. The realization that a wedding, although
significant and deserving, is adding to the problem because of the high
consumption of goods and polluting it brings with it, couples are choosing to
make their weddings more environmentally friendly by incorporating several Eco-conscious elements into their wedding day.
Incorporating sustainability into one's wedding makes sense
considering the amount of time we spend on the road in our cars attending to
wedding details pre and post event, the travel emissions expended through
guest travel and honeymoon voyages, and finally, the endless hours spent
on our computers researching wedding options and printing all the
necessary documents needed in carrying out a successful wedding. There are many ways to do your part in
making your wedding more sustainable, here are just a few:
Vendor Selection:
A great way to help
make your wedding low-carbon is reducing the gas emissions released into the
environment by choosing to work with vendors that operate close to your place
of residence or at the very least close to the venue at which your wedding is
to take place. You will likely need to
visit your vendors and venues several times leading up to the wedding and
opting to work with ones close to home will limit the amount of time spent in
your car driving and thus cut the amount of gas emissions being radiated into
the atmosphere. Alternatively, host your
ceremony and reception at the same venue to cut down on travel emissions on the
wedding day.
Food & Drinks:
Hire caterers and
work with venues who “operate green” by recycling and offering sustainable food
options like using local and seasonal produce, chemical-free organic
foods, offer fair trade, organic coffee and tea, and ones that incorporate
food products like free-range chicken and sustainable seafood like wild
salmon into their menu options. Grouse
Mountain Resorts, Capilano Suspension Bridge, Culinary Capers, Savoury Chef, The Butler Did It Catering, and Cactus Club are just a few of the restaurants, caterers, and venues
making noticeable efforts to reduce their environmental ‘footprint’ by
initiating in-house Sustainability Programs.
Green Table, a local group
dedicated to promoting sustainable food related businesses, is a great resource
-- visit www.greentable.net for a
list of its members. Furthermore, you can elect
to offer locally harvested wine and beer – which is not difficult considering
the wealth of world-acclaimed wineries and breweries situated throughout BC.
Stationary:
For items like
invitations, programs, place cards, seating charts, menus, and thank you cards
hire stationers that work with recycled papers where possible and who
make use of the environmentally friendly vegetable or soy based inks. Lately the option of burning the invitation into wood or tree bark has been popular! There is an excellent variety of
stationary products that fit the recycled/Eco-friendly category and they aren't the brown and natural coloured papers we have associated with recycled
papers of the past. So may choices these days! Another fabulous
option that will take your stationary needs to the next level is to send
save-the-dates, invitations, and thank yous via e-mail. Paperless Post is a DreamGroup FAV. www.paperlesspost.com
Be sure to mention to your guests either on
the back of the invitations or programs the measures taken to help make your
wedding sustainable. It’s a great opportunity
to educate your family and friends!
Out of Towners:
Ask guests that are
flying in to consider purchasing carbon offsets (a.k.a. environmental credits –
visit www.safeclimate.net for more
information) for their flights to counterbalance the gas emissions being spent
during their trip (www.davidsuzuki.org
lists companies where offsets can be purchased). If you are uncomfortable asking guests to
incur these extra costs, you may wish to purchase them on those guests' behalf
in lieu of favors. Recommend nearby
hotels, preferably ones that offer in-house ‘green’ programs and follow
sustainable environment practices, to out of town guests so that they do not
need to drive far distances to and from the venues. Some of Vancouver’s Eco-friendly hotels
include The Four Seasons, The Fairmont Properties, The Marriott Pinnacle, Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Vancouver Downtown, and Delta Hotels. Encourage guests to rent hybrid or fuel
efficient cars or to buddy up with other guests and carpool on the wedding
day.
Flowers & Décor:
Select locally and/or
organically grown flowers to make up your table arrangements and bouquets. Have potted flowers as centerpieces which can
be given away to “one lucky guest” at the end of the night or transplant them
into your garden to be enjoyed daily.
Reclaim items that your friends may have had at their weddings like
corks used as place card holders, etc.
Instead of cut flowers use rocks and/or seashells and all natural
beeswax candles to create that perfect centerpiece. Pinterest http://pinterest.com/all/?category=wedding_events offers a HUGE database of photo inspiration and DIY tips on how to incorporate environmentally friendly elements into your wedding. And when you are done... sell them at DreamGroup's next Bridal Swap on April 7th 2013 at The Roundhouse in Yaletown. www.bridalswap.ca
Favours
This is one area
where every couple can make their weddings more sustainable by offering guests
edible delights like organic chocolates, teas, or honey as their thank you
gifts. Couples may choose to purchase tree saplings that are indigenous
to the BC area to give to their guests with the message to plant them somewhere
special in memory of the couple's wedding day. A wonderful favor option, and most definitely
sustainable, would be to make a donation in each guests’ name to your favorite
charity. Try one of these two deserving
charities -- the Canadian Cancer Society (www.cancer.ca) & BC Children’s Hospital (www.bcchildrens.ca).
Without question, it is everyone’s duty to
try to create a positive effect on the environment in some way and what better
way to celebrate the uniting of your families by doing your part to ensure
that future families have a healthy planet on which to live. Explore your options… The Internet provides a
wealth of information on sustainable products, local ‘green’ businesses, and
the efforts being made to lower gas emissions and neutralize the carbon dioxide
being put into our atmosphere daily.
Visit www.ecowedding.org – an
online magazine for Eco-savvy brides & grooms -- for articles and
additional ideas on increasing wedding sustainability. And look at it this way, since climate change is
a global issue, any type of emission reduction or environmentally friendly
effort (big or small) you make today will have a positive effect on our planet as a whole
tomorrow.
Lots of great information!! Hope it was helpful Carly. :O)
Wedding Planner signing off! Until next week… keep those questions coming in! Submit your questions by emailing us at askaplanner@dreamgroup.ca
Wedding Planner signing off! Until next week… keep those questions coming in! Submit your questions by emailing us at askaplanner@dreamgroup.ca
Cheerio,
Genève
 |
| Click here to See Inside the Book |
Genève McNally, Principal Planner, DreamGroup ProductionsGenève first began her wedding career in 1999 as the Catering Manager for one of Vancouver’s most sought after wedding venues, Brock House Restaurant. In 2004 Genève and college friend Sarah Shore ambitiously started up what is now one of Vancouver's longest running and most trusted wedding planning companies, DreamGroup Productions Inc.
These days, in addition to working with her clients in a full planning capacity, Genève focuses her attention on the sales and marketing aspects of the company and is most often the friendly voice you will chat with when first inquiring with DreamGroup. Genève is known to inspire and excite both clients and industry associates alike with her exuberant personality and joie de vivre! Her ability to be refreshingly candid and her in depth knowledge of the wedding industry have earned her the friendly moniker “Two-Cents McNally”. Genève also teaches the Wedding Planning classes offered through the dg Academy and is the chief correspondent behind DreamGroup's weekly Blog feature Ask a Planner.
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