Weddingbee

Hi everyone, I’m Rhonda from Our Wedding Plus Blog. I’m honored to have this opportunity to guest blog on Weddingbee on such an important topic!

Having a “Green Wedding” may seem like the latest fad but in fact it is quickly becoming a necessity.  Global warming is expected to give us some major problems in the next 40 years and weddings can be a big drain on the environment.  But there are some simple things you can do to minimize that impact without taking away from the elegance of your event.  Here are my five favorite ideas to green up your wedding. 

1.  The Invitations – look for post-consumer or recycled paper for your wedding invitations.  Weddings generate a lot of paper…save the dates, invitations, response cards, reception cards, envelopes, etc.  There are many elegant recycled paper and tree-free invitation options out there such as recycled cotton invitations.  Harvesting tree-free fibers does not disrupt natural eco-systems. Also, processing tree-free fibers requires a lot less energy and chemicals than processing wood-based fibers.  One of my favorites sources, Cast Paper Art has some great hand-made recycled cotton invitations. 

2.  The Rings – You may think, it’s just a ring, and it’s small, what’s the big deal? How much can it hurt the environment? The truth is, large scale mechanized mining used to obtain the gold for that ring can cause destruction to the land and poison the surrounding environment. In many cases mercury and cyanide are used to extract the gold from the rock. There are many options for eco-friendly wedding rings.  One example is greenKarat, a retailer and proponent of eco-friendly gold jewelry.  They provide information about each of their products explaining why it is eco-friendly; you can even track the “ecological footprint” of their product through “Green Assay.”

3.  The Flowers – Beautiful and natural, right?  Not necessarily, many of the beautiful flowers you see are imported from overseas meaning they have quite a “carbon footprint.”  And, unless they are organic, there have been a lot of pesticides used to raise them; in many cases chemical use is unregulated in some foreign countries.  One way to keep it “green” is to use locally grown organic flowers.  You can even try to grow your own flowers for your centerpieces!

4.  The Honeymoon – For most couples this is one of the most extravagant and expensive trips of their lives.  Why not dare to be different?  Try an eco-tourism option!  REI Adventures is one resource that has some great eco-friendly options that allow you to experience the natural beauty of North America and the Caribbean including hiking in the Canadian Rockies, cycling the Blue Ridge Parkway, or hiking, biking and snorkeling in Trinidad and Tobago. REI even offsets 100% of the climate-altering carbon emissions generated by all aspects of your trip by donating to support solar, wind and other renewable energy projects. 

5.  Donate your food and flowers -  Last and definitely the easiest to do is to donate your flowers to a convalescent home and the leftover food from your reception to a homeless shelter or “soup kitchen.”  Spread the joy from your day to those who are less fortunate.  This will be sure to brighten the day for many and also make you feel good too!

Any other green wedding ideas out there?

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