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How to create a sustainable wedding ceremony
Over the last five years, reports have shown that more soon‑to‑be‑wed couples are consciously making decisions to minimise their impact on the environment and local wildlife. According to the Sustainable Wedding Alliance, the average UK wedding “produces about one‑third of a metric tonne of solid waste and emits 14.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Annually, the sector generates an estimated 100,000 tonnes of solid waste, including over 4,000 tonnes of unrecyclable plastic, and wastes roughly £488 of food per event.”
Creating the perfect eco‑friendly wedding ceremony isn’t going to be realistically possible for all couples. However, some small changes that time‑sensitive couples can make to reduce their impact (even by a fraction), include sending digital invitations instead of physical ones, creating your own confetti from the grounds of the venue (for example, gathering leaves and hole‑punching them to create your own unique confetti), or even asking for donations to a UK‑based tree‑planting initiative instead of gifts. These are just a few easy wins for couples who simply want to make small, meaningful changes.
If you want to create greater change, we’ve put together some additional suggestions below.
Select a local and easy‑to‑reach wedding venue
Choosing to get married at a venue close to home, or within a central and easily accessible location for your guests, is one of the best ways to reduce your wedding’s carbon footprint. It reduces travel time for everyone (including your wedding suppliers) and if you can encourage guests to take public transport, car‑share, or even hire a mini‑bus, this will further reduce excessive travel to and from the venue.
The same applies to wedding suppliers. Selecting those based near the venue can make a big difference, and choosing suppliers who work with seasonal UK produce can go a long way in reducing carbon footprint as well as food waste. To add a bit of humour, you could ask guests to bring a Tupperware box with them to take home any leftover food, further reducing waste on the day.
Source eco‑friendly and seasonal wedding décor
Flowers, table decorations, venue aesthetics, place cards, seating cards, and bespoke personalised backdrops to name but a few tend to be used for one day only, which can create a considerable amount of waste.
One of the best things couples can do is create wedding décor with multiple functions. For example, investing in dried flower bouquets which can later be displayed or framed in the home as a memento. Creating decorative features using wildflower‑seeded paper, which can then be planted in the garden after the ceremony to create a wildflower paradise for local wildlife, is another lovely option. You could also use hire services so that materials can be reused time and time again or if you have the time handmake your items to prevent single use waste.
Choose pre‑loved wedding clothing
Reports show that couples tend to wear their wedding clothing only once, which can have a negative impact on landfill. Historically, there has been a negative perception of wearing pre‑loved clothing, however attitudes have changed in more recent times, as couples seek out quality, style and branded clothing which tends to be more affordable. It enables couples (especially brides) to choose a wedding garments that reflects their personality, wedding theme aesthetics whilst at the same back giving back to the environment in a meaningful way feeling good about the positive impact they’re making on the environment.
Links:
- Sustainable Wedding Alliance: https://sustainableweddingalliance.com/why-does-the-wedding-industry-need-to-be-more-sustainable/
- Deighton Lodge Barn Wedding Venue and Accommodation in York: www.deightonlodge.com
- DS Wedding Photography: www.dsweddingphotography.com