By Deepali Jain:
Have a birthday party, a society meeting or a festival celebration in your locality? It is always fun, no doubt. But the next time, take another step ahead and blend entertainment with eco-friendliness. Sounds thrilling, right? This is what a green event is, any event organized in a sustainable manner. All components, be it food, transportation, waste management, marketing etc. have to meet certain criteria. A cherry on the cake — it is a downhill task even on a small scale. Ever contemplated organizing such an event in your society? An event addressing some green issue, perhaps a local environmental problem. Let’s begin methodically and organize the whole process of planning into three parts – before, during and after the event.
Most of the ecological footprint reduction can be achieved through defining a proper framework at the start. Use online media or recycled paper for letting others know about the event. If some brochures have to be distributed, print on both sides. Choose a venue which can be reached by the attendees on foot — like some nearby park and an evening time to exploit solar energy rather than spending on lightings and ACs. I can sense my piggy bank getting overflowed! Arrange for dustbins and make an effort to keep them easily visible, use the backside of used cardboard sheets as placards, opt for silverware, glassware or cloth napkins rather than employing paper or plastic. Prefer organic, locally produced food and beverages. This will minimize the cost and will be healthy for everyone, undeniably a lucrative offer!
During the event, you have to ensure that all the premeditated strategies are diligently implemented. While addressing the environmental problem, keep the people engaged and ask for their opinions or suggestions. They must not feel that the event is a sheer loss of time besides resources. Try to reach to an acceptable as well as a logical decision. Also, be a little pragmatic, seize the opportunity and explain how they will benefit monetarily by showing a little more concern towards this earth — car-pooling, minimizing wastage, switching to CFL bulbs et al. Provide crisp statistics. I bet my bottom dollar, people will be convinced.
After the event, it is advisable to donate the leftover food to some food distribution program. Recycle all the redundant brochures or pamphlets and leave the venue spic and span. But do you realize the most important job – target any friend, aunt or uncle you come across, update your Facebook status, post it on Twitter and boast about how smooth and gratifying the organizing of the event was. It is necessary to convey the message to everyone that green events are a realistic possibility and who knows; maybe one of your targets will be generous enough to acknowledge it by rewarding you and your efforts!