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When planning our wedding, I read a lot of interesting articles about how to plan a “green”, eco-friendly event. In general, I am always open to learning new ways to reduce my carbon footprint.
I was sifting through the latest issue of Parade Magazine yesterday. In the “Ask Marilyn” section, Marilyn vos Savant made an interesting comment about efforts to greenify weddings these days. She pointed to air travel as one of the main reasons that weddings have a larger footprint than other events their size. Her suggestion: “To really go green, couples could invite only local guests and beam the event to everyone else via webcam.”
For me, it posed some thought-provoking questions, and I’d love to hear what others think about this. I am not one to judge anyone for their choices. My maid of honor and bridesmaid flew from New York to LA to attend our wedding. Mr. G’s aunt flew from Korea to LA to attend. A few other friends flew from out-of-state. The remainder of our guests were local.
Would you sacrifice having your long distance loved ones attend your wedding, for the sake of reducing your carbon footprint? And as long as we’re on the subject, would you trade a lavish international honeymoon to stay local and “green”? Where do you draw the line?
This would be something I would leave up to the guests. I do, however, think it is a GREAT idea for the guests who cannot make it under any circumstance. (Elderly grandparents, international friends) Not only would it be green, but it would share this important day with everyone.
I think I saw somewhere that you can donate money to purchase trees/the planting of trees that would counteract the carbon footprint of your wedding. Not sure where I saw it though.
Not a chance. Sorry, I am all for doing what we can within reasonable means to help the environment, but there is a point where people take it waaay too far.
I am not opposed to a local honeymoon, but it wouldn’t be because I didn’t want to fly somewhere for fear of my carbon footprint.
Great questions for discussion, Mrs. G!
Our donation to help the turtles is our biggest nod to the environment — closely followed by the local ingredients we’ll be serving at the reception.
I agree with Gator that this would be an awesome idea to include people who for one reason or another can’t make it to the wedding.
I agree with Mrs. Quiche.
Helping the environment in little ways as we can is important, but I’m certainly not sacrificing spending the biggest day of my friends’ lives with them (or asking them to not spend my wedding day with me in order to save the earth)! A honeymoon is a once in a lifetime experience, and I’m not willing to give that up (or any trip abroad) for the minuscule impact it will have on the environment.
I think there are other ways of contributing anyway without asking your friends and family not to travel for your wedding, etc.
I’m with Mrs. Quiche on this one. I will reduce my carbon footprint in other ways but can’t invite only local guests. I would estimate 70% of our guests will travel including us. We don’t live near any family so a local wedding would be pretty lonely.
Since we are traveling to our wedding, a local honeymoon does not really apply. We are trying to plan a honeymoon to take place between the wedding and where we live to reduce our flying time and jet lag.
You could do what we did and carbon offset your wedding. We did it through Carbonfund.org. Read about how I figured it out here:
http://www.weddingbee.com/2009/04/22/happy-earth-day/
I agree with Mrs. Quiche and Lattelove as well. A marriage is a celebration. I’m sorry to leave many carbon foot prints for that one day - but in my mind, my marriage is worth it.
no, i wouldn’t. it’s important for me to share the day in person with my loved ones (who are going to come from all across the globe). also, i love to travel and will not give up traveling the world. i feel that there could probably be more peace in this world if people would just travel more and meet other people. i don’t feel the connection made via a webcam is the same as the one made in person.
i would love to reduce my carbon footprint, but i am going to do it in other ways that won’t take away from my sanity (seeing my loved ones and traveling keep me sane———even if for just a bit:-)
our caterer is going to get most of the food locally, i am not using real flowers (at least not the amount i had intended to use) and i am going to use a lot of recycled/recyclable materials. i still have a year, so there’s probably more things i will do.
i will say, if my guests chose not to come for “greener” reasons, i would be supportive of it. to each their own!
I read that article, too. I hadn’t thought of the travel before. I think it’s one thing to have a green wedding, and another thing to have a green wedding and tell everyone you’re having a green wedding.
FWIW, if we only had local guests at our wedding, only my FILs would be in attendance.
If you truly wanted to “go green” with this suggestion, I suppose you would NEVER see your out of town friends and family? I don’t know - I think a wedding is one of the bets excuses to see people who you can’t see often otherwise. If you can’t travel to see someone’s wedding, when would you travel/visit?
I would like my wedding to be as eco-friendly as possible; but I would not sacrifice having friends and family there. I have thought about having the wedding further north since most of our families live up there, but then my friends from down here would have to travel so I don’t know if it would make much of a difference.
Gator does have a great point about people who can’t come anyways. My grandparents have a hard time getting around and that would be the perfect way to include them!!
Mrs. Peep Toe had a great post about carbon offsets (see her Happy Earth Day! post). She suggests Terrapass and Carbonfund.org. There are also some venues that are “green.” My favorite in the DC area is Woodend Sanctuary, which is owned by the audobon society - part of the payment for the venue counts as a donation.
I think it’s great that more couples want to have a eco friendly wedding and hopefully it’s not a fad that will die away. However, I think it’s great to do every little thing, bc I truly believe every little bit helps. However, not to the point where I’m going to tell friends and family who have to fly to my wedding that they can just watch my wedding on webcam! Not quite the same thing!
I think though, overall, it’s more important to apply your eco conscious thinking to your day to day life after the wedding as well.
I would LOVE to have a sustainable caterer or Farm To Table cuisine at our wedding. But w/o a venue yet who knows!
I would draw the line there. If it’s something that really bothers you, you could always go to carbonfund.org.
But it brings up some interesting questions–How do you introduce this idea to your guests and family? And how do you “invite” out of town guests?
One of my friends went “greener” (there is no truly green wedding), by having two events. They had one in California for her family, and then flew to the UK to have one for his family. It was a lower carbon footprint than having one event where half the people had to fly. They then bought carbon offsets to attempt to make it a carbon-neutral event.
It probably still wasn’t a perfect solution, but worked well for them.
I think you are much better off buying carbon offset credits to counter your guests travel than not inviting them. I know I would be insanely offended to not be invited to a wedding because the couple cared more about the environment than me!
It also seems really tacky, like a way to ask for gifts but not invite your guests to celebrate.
We will be webcamming our ceremony to the family that can’t come, but they are still welcome to come.
We are talking about going on a cross-country train trip for our honeymoon, which will dramatically reduce our carbon footprint, cost less, and also be fun.
I would be completely againist the idea of webcasting my wedding only because all of my family lives far away and I want them there (insert temper-tantrum here). On the other hand, if I was really worried about my carbon footprint I may forego the international honeymoon in favor of something more eco friendly.
Also, I work for an environmental firm and they all laugh at the idea of buying carbon credits to offset your footprint. Once the cabon is released, it’s released, you can’t go backwards.
My FH’s uncle owns a farm and the EPA actually has sent him a bill for his cows “emissions output”. Seriously? Doesn’t this go to far?
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Mrs. Glitter, Los Angeles Age and Occupation: 27, Research Consultant/Writer Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Accounting Engagement Date: May 6, 2007 Wedding Date: June, 2009 Venue: Millenium Biltmore Hotel About Me: I was born and raised in West Los Angeles, California. I spent eight years in the Northeast working and completing my education. Having split time between two sides of the country has given me a true appreciation for both coasts. It has also provided an overabundance of cross country drives, flights and long distance relationship fun/misery! I love my family, my doggy Emma, fabulous wine, Anthropologie, politics, reading, being outdoors, exploring new cities, and good movies! My fiance and I are complete opposites, but somehow we have managed to fall completely and hopelessly in love.
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