For 2019, Ireland’s festival count has increased even more with loads of great new music events popping up around the country. Tickets have already sold out for Electric Picnic and Altogether Now but there are plenty of others to whet your appetite over the next few months such as Love Sensation, The Playing Fields, and Tipp Classical. There are 3 festivals kicking off this Friday, and which will continue all weekend :-
BEATYARD – This quirky festival returns for its traditional spot in Dublin’s Dun Laoghaire. Beatyard is a nautical adventure to uncover and celebrate all things music and art.
ALTOGETHER NOW – All Together Now is a 3-day camping festival, where everyone with a ticket has the opportunity to make the beautiful Curraghmore Estate their home on the August Bank Holiday Weekend. Festival revellers will stay in everything from tents, campervans and bespoke accommodation across the festival weekend.
INDIEPENDENCE – One of Ireland’s festival success stories over the last decade, INDIE has grown over the years from its initial three thousand capacity at Deer Farm into a fully-fledged summer spectacular with up to 15,000 people expected in 2019.
But how do you ensure you have an eco-friendly festival? Here are 5 tips :-
- Attend a festival with sustainability at its core: When organisers launched All Together Now in 2018, they wanted to take the opportunity to create a sustainable and environmentally friendly festival where they could set their own standards. With sustainability at the core of their ethos, they are passionate about creating and promoting the message as best they can. In order to increase awareness of their environmental initiatives, they plan to roll out educational videos, informative clear messaging on their social channels and to host a dedicated area at the festival where festival-goers can go and learn about sustainable, fair-trade products. In addition, festival attendees can learn about factors affecting climate change and what they can do to play their part and make sustainable choices in life, both socially and environmentally. They are committed to reduce waste drastically on site, use green suppliers where possible, and use environmentally friendly, compostable materials at their festival.
- Travel: Road transport is now the largest and growing source of CO2 emissions in Europe, accounting for one-fifth of all emissions. With the average car producing 2.5kg of CO2 per litre of fuel, lift sharing has the potential to reduce a festival’s carbon footprint considerably. We can have a real impact on our carbon footprint if we reduce the number of car journeys. Obviously hopping in a car with just one other mate gives you all that luxurious space, but consider your carbon footprint.Car emissions are one of the biggest environmental issues at music festivals. The Association of Independent Festivals states, “more than 66% of people travel to their festival of choice by car, with more people than ever travelling in a car of two or fewer people. So, how about using public transport such as trains and buses, car share, cycle, or walk to your festival.
- Leave no trace: According to theAssociation of Independent Festivals, other than car emissions, abandoned tents are one of the biggest issues festivals face when it comes to sustainability. Not only camping equipment, but staggering amounts of leftover food, plastic containers, drinking cans are left on the fields after a weekend’s festivities. While tents and camping equipment are not fully recyclable they are fully reusable. Camping equipment shouldn’t be considered disposable. If, by the end of the festival you have no intention of bringing your tent home with you, please deposit it at donation banks located in the festival campsites. Please do not abandon your tent for others to come pick it up after you. Over the course of the weekend please look after your camp, after all, it is your home for 3 days and 3 nights.
- Use a Reusable Cup: We dispose of over 22,000 takeaway cups and lids each hour in Ireland, that’s a phenomenal amount of waste of our planet’s resources for something we use in a few minutes. Designed to reduce the waste caused by disposable coffee cups, this reusable Collapsible Cup from EcoCups.ie is a revelation. We have designed the EcoCup to be collapsible so that it can easily fit into your pocket. We care about the planet and so do you, making the EcoCup ideal for expressive, environmentally conscious individuals. Also, save money – Most cafes offer BYO cup discounts. See here for more details. Or fill the EcoCup with homebrew and save even more! It is ultra-portable, reusable, leak-proof and collapsible. Designed by coffee lovers, it’s a convenient alternative to bulky travel mugs and limits the wastage from disposable coffee cups. We have made the simple to use EcoCups with recycled materials, it is BPA free and contains no phthalates or glues. The design is uniquely innovative as we have made the body of durable mouldable food grade silicone which can be collapsed down to a two-inch disc.
- Use a Collapsible EcoStraw: How can you ensure that you never take a plastic straw? By always having your own of course! EcoStraws.ie have a couple of fun options that can guarantee your commitment to sustainable living, in the form of collapsible straws. We think the Collapsible EcoStraw is the cleverest straw on the market. Each straw is made from food grade 304 Stainless Steel and collapses, like magic, to store in a handy keychain case. A simple but clever folding mechanism allows the Collapsible EcoStraw to go from full-length to collapsed almost automatically, making it ideal as an on-the-go straw. A compact and robust straw which comes in a choice of 5 fun colours and is guaranteed to attract attention. Be a leader in the fight against single-use plastics by always carrying a Collapsible EcoStraw.
We are EcoStraws; an Irish company with a passion for the planet. EcoStraws.ie supply a complete range of eco-friendly reusable straws and 100% biodegradable disposable straws, as well as other associated products. Our stock of reusable eco-friendly straws include Stainless Steel, Glass, Bamboo and Silicone straws. Our biodegradable EcoStraws are available in Wheat, PLA, and Paper, and we even stock Edible Straws so you can have your straw and eat it too!
By choosing our products you are making a difference. By sharing our message you are helping to educate. EcoStraws/EcoCups help us to live in harmony with the natural world around us. Our ethos helps us to protect it from damage and destruction.
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