As I continue to attend events both locally and in other parts of the country, I’ve begun to notice there are many aspects of event planning where unsustainable choices still seem to be the default way of doing things. One
Food waste is often the type of waste at events that planners feel the worst about. Even if we didn’t grow up recycling at home, many of us were raised with a strong message about the importance of not wasting
I’m going to go out on a limb and make a bold assumption: If you’re an event professional, when you chose your career you probably weren’t looking to do a lot of math. Neither was I. However, there’s one math
Imagine you’re attending an event. You just finished a delicious small plate and a cocktail, and you’re ready to move into the next room for some great entertainment. You spot a recycling station and head there to dispose of your
Have you ever wondered if an item is recyclable or not, then tossed it into the recycling bin “just in case”? If so, you’ve participated in “wishful recycling,” the practice of recycling items we hope are recyclable without being totally
When people think about reducing the amount of waste an event sends to the landfill, their minds often default to recycling as the main option. However, donating leftover event materials is another way to significantly reduce event waste, with the
Note: These tips apply to composting and zero waste programs as well as recycling programs. When planners think about having recycling at their events, they often think about the program from the guests’ perspective. Will the recycling system be easy
I spend a lot of time up close and personal with trash. I’ve written before about how sorting waste is oddly satisfying. But I haven’t told you how invaluable it is to see your event’s waste first-hand. You can make
We’re all familiar with the pyramid of dietary guidelines from the FDA—that heavily-advertised illustration designed to help people eat a balanced diet. But what if I told you there was a second food pyramid? Instead of illustrating a balanced diet,
One waste-reduction opportunity I’ve noticed recently is one I’ve known about for years, but I never wrote about it because I thought it was too much of a no-brainer. But I encountered it more than once in the last