A note on sustainable gifting:

Try to give gifts that won’t end up on the floor or in the trash. Yes, we all love glow sticks. But, they aren’t really the type of gift that would make it home with you after the event. Be thoughtful and intentional with your gifts to avoid unnecessary waste. Is this something someone can reuse? Is it sentimental? Will it make them smile?

Here are some gifting ideas to inspire you for your next festival:

Necklaces and bracelets - you can make kandi (to trade or gift), or try your hand at jewelry making with other types of beads and charms. Bonus points if it has something that lights up! Kandi perlers are always meaningful gifts because they take time and creativity to make.

Pins or patches

Flower crowns

Pendants

3D printed trinkets - pendants, rings, jewelry, figurines, etc.

Lanyards for keys - you can get these printed with custom designs for specific events!

Stickers

Mini flashlights - look for the UV blacklight ones!

If you have a polaroid camera, offer to snap a photo for someone and give them the polaroid to take home.

Lollipops or Jolly Ranchers - individually wrapped candies are best.

Chapstick

Tiny hands - if you know, you know.

Koozies

Diffraction glasses - paper ones are a more affordable option.

Temporary tattoos - offer to apply them for someone to avoid trash on the ground.

Bubble wands

Containers for cigarette butts - I’ve seen people transform old Altoids or Icebreakers containers for this. Keep litter off the ground!

Condoms

Mini water guns

Earplugs

What does it mean to leave no trace?

Leave no trace refers to the idea that you bring everything home with you that you brought to the event — right down to each individual piece of glitter. Pack in, pack out. This way, we stay aware of our effect on the land and rave with awareness of our environmental impacts. Conscious event-goers leave the land in beautiful shape.

Why is this important?

Ravers must develop a sense of personal responsibility when it comes to cleaning up after themselves. There are obvious consequences to leaving trash behind. Aside from hurting Mother Earth, festival producers are less likely to bring an event back if attendees don’t take care of the grounds.

Personally, I’ve witnessed a few local, outdoor events get shut down because ravers did not take care of the land. How embarrassing! When you leave no trace, you prove that you can handle the responsibility of attending an outdoor event—not only by picking up after yourself, but also by leaving the area in better shape than when you arrived. If you want to continue to attend awesome events, integrate these leave no trace practices into your festival lifestyle.

What you can do:

• Create a sustainability plan with your festy squad and act on it. Make sure everyone in your camp understands the process. Act with intention and diligence.
• Start by minimizing the amount of potential trash you’re bringing, from the beginning. This starts in the supermarket. Avoid unnecessary packaging, plastic water bottles, paper plates, plastic cups and cutlery, etc.
• Avoid all plastic and paper in your camp kitchen. Yes, paper plates and solo cups can be convenient. But, they are horrible for the environment! Invest in reusable plates, cups, silverware, and cooking utensils. Bring a bucket, sponge, and biodegradable dish soap to wash dishes at your camp. Ditch the water bottles for large jugs and refill a reusable water bottle. You’ll be surprised at how much trash you save by eliminating plastic and paper in your camp kitchen!
• Cut down on pre-festival Amazon purchases and bringing any unnecessary gear that could go to waste. When you pack with purpose, you channel a sustainability mindset.
• Bring a separate (different colored) trash bag for recyclables.
• Camping festivals will have a special area to drop recyclables vs. trash. Collect beer cans and bottles separate from your main trash disposal. Be diligent! If you see a friend putting a beer can in the main trash, ask them politely to use the proper disposal. Some events even offer prizes for collecting bags of recyclables!
• If the festival is in a state that gives a cash refund on cans, consider donating your extra cans to an unhoused person, or donating the money from the cans to a local charity or shelter.
• Bring some trash bags and take 30 minutes each day to collect everything you see. Encourage your festy fam to do the same.
• Try a “line sweep” - scan the area with a group of friends, standing about an arms’ distance apart and moving forward. You can bring reusable gloves or a trash grabber if you’re not comfortable picking things up with your hands.
• Recognize the different types of litter you’ll see at an event. If you see something on the ground, take the 5 seconds and pick it up in the moment! If there isn’t a nearby trash or recycling can, stick the trash in your pocket or backpack until you can find a receptacle.

Some types of litter you should look out for include:

• Tent stakes and abandoned camping gear
• Cigarette butts
• Glass like beer bottles
• Plastic like packaging, baggies, duct tape, empty water jugs and bottles, glow sticks
• Metal like bottle caps, nails, or screws
• Costume pieces like glitter, sequins, feathers, and jewelry

This list is just a starting point.

Remember that adopting a sustainable approach at festivals isn’t easy. You may develop your own tips and tricks that help your camp stay on top of it - and that’s okay! See what works for you and your squad. The most important thing is that you make a conscious effort to leave the grounds in better shape than when you found them. Mother Earth (and the festival producers) will thank you.

I recommend doing an “audit” of your personal festy practices to identify the areas where you can reduce your environmental impact. Implement some changes at your next event, then do another check-in to see where you can improve. This is an ongoing process - and it takes each and every one of us to truly leave no trace!

Staying green at raves doesn’t have to be a daunting task. You may feel overwhelmed or confused on where to start, but don’t fret—there are easy ways to begin your habit of respecting the space you’re raving in. Here are four simple ways you can stay eco-friendly at festivals: 

Carpool 

Start your festival adventure off on the right foot before even arriving at the venue. Vehicle emissions are one of the biggest environmental issues that are affiliated with music festivals. According to the Association of Independent Festivals, "more than 66% of people travel to their festival of choice by car, with more people than ever traveling in a car of two or fewer people." 

If you choose to take your own car to the venue, strongly consider carpooling with other attendees. Not only are you reducing your carbon footprint, but now you have a car full of ravers pitching in for gas money, sharing the excitement on the way to the show, and jamming out to your favorite songs along the way. If you have the option, use public transportation, rideshare, or shuttle services as your mode of transportation. Not only would you be greatly helping the environment, but think about how much faster you’ll get to the venue without traffic!

Biodegradable Glitter

Glitter is now engrained in rave fashion culture, and probably permanently ingrained in every part of your life as it sticks with you. If you’re one of the many ravers that finds glitter popping up in your car, bathroom, bed, and somehow in your hair, you should know first hand at how durable it is. These little sparkling flakes may make your outfit pop and face shine, but it is still a microplastic and very damaging to the environment. Glitter is commonly eaten by fish, plankton, and birds—which then ends up in the food you eat. 

If getting rid of glitter is where you draw the line, good news! Biodegradable glitter is the perfect accessory to add the finishing touches on any festival fit. This beauty product will fully biodegrade in both wastewater and marine water environments, in the presence of heat, water, oxygen, and microorganisms. Check out the different shades of biodegradable glitter savormeditation has to offer! 

Wouldn’t it be great to re-wear those gem pasties or third eye jewels that you were complimented on all night? A great way of saving the planet and your paycheck is reusing face and body jewels. Just bring in a small bag or the packaging the jewels came with to save them if you tend the take them off before getting back to your home or hotel. A lot of these jewels can easily be worn a second or third time by applying eyelash glue to add a little extra stick. 

Recycle

You know that feeling of walking away from the last set of the night, when you’re over the moon satisfied of the incredible experience you just had dancing to your favorite artists and meeting new friends, only to be disappointed by seeing the heaps of garbage being kicked around as everyone shuffles out of the venue? Instead of just feeling guilt, take action and pick up a few pieces of trash to throw away on your way out. Lost Lands 2019 held the Safari Trash Party, an incredible way to clean up the trash littering festival grounds at the end of the night. Ravers were given trash bags and if they filled theirs to the top they won special Excision bandanas and pins. While this large scale clean up might not be present at every festival, the mentality can be adopted and incorporated in very simple ways. 

Just about every festival now has just as many recycle bins as regular trash bins. It’s not hard to choose to throw your can or bottle in the correct bin, but quite a few people aren’t informed on what can be considered recyclable. You can recycle plastics cups and bottles, paper, cardboard, aluminum cans, and (if the festival you’re at has them) glass bottles. 

A good way to limit trash from piling up on the ground is to incorporate regular clean up during your entire festival experience. Whenever you leave a stage or resting spot, pick up two pieces of trash off the ground and throw them away in their appropriate bins. 

Reduce and Reuse 

A great way to limit the amount of trash you create is to not create any at all! If you have the option to bring in a hydration pack or refillable water bottle into the event, it can help keep trash off the ground and money in your pocket. Need a hydration pack for your next event? savormeditation has your covered with their assortment of fashionable packs. 

Vibedration Hydration Pack

Do you find yourself revisiting the drink booths throughout the day? Instead of adding more plastic cups to your trash count, keep the same container to bring back up to the bartender for your next beverage. It’s a great simple way to stay environmentally conscious while not limiting your partying plans. 

These simple tips can easily be adopted into your festival experience and start to make a huge difference to helping maintain the environment we love to rave in. It’s more important now than ever to help save our earth and do our part to recover from the environmental crisis we’re currently in. Burning Man does not have to be the only event with a “Leave No Trace” policy. We can all do our part to show love to music, each other, and the planet. 

Do you have any additional tips on how to be more eco-friendly at festivals? Let us know in the comments!

I don’t think I can ever really explain how much I love Lightning in a Bottle -- it’s because of a million little reasons -- and one of those reasons is their dedication to bettering our planet. I know that not everyone had a Dad like mine (shout out to my roommates for being open to learning from me), and I know that a lot of new people head to LiB each year, so I want to take some time to share with you some ways you can be more green at LiB, and at other festivals you attend this year!

1. Get some solar lights.

Instead of packing batteries for your flashlight, consider investing in a solar charged flashlight. I have a great one that doubles as a phone charger as well. We also use solar charged string lights around our tent for the night time. This is definitely a more green way to stay lit!

LiB does their part to reduce as much waste as they can with LED stage lightning as much as possible, and compact fluorescent bulbs in all other areas. They also use solar lights too where they can!

2.  Pack a reusable bottle.

Stay away from glass, as you don’t want to risk it breaking on the grounds, but a good thermos to keep water in all day is super important. I usually have one big one back at the campsite so that late at night I have water ready, and a smaller one to carry around all day. You can also bring a hydration pack if you don't want to carry a water bottle the festival.

LiB has been giving free water at their event since 2006! It’s a huge trend now at other festivals now too. This water refill initiative creates zero waste, zero shipping, zero fuel and eliminates plastic packaging and toxic chemicals from leaching into the water.  

3. Unpack before you bring in.

I’m referencing all the packaging that comes with products that might be coming into the festival with you. Think about everything you’re bringing, and remove all the packaging you can before coming to the festival. There is not a lot of space for waste at LiB, and if you have any trash at the end of the festival in huge trash bags, you may have to pay a fee for it to be disposed of.

If you remove all your packaging before heading in (and properly recycle/dispose of it) you’ll be making huge steps! This also saves you the trouble of not having scissors or a box cutter handy at the festival to actually unpack these items. Keep in mind to recycle all cardboards from tent boxes and beer boxes, and remove all your new clothing tags as well!

When you do have waste, the LiB Green Team is ready to assist you in how to properly dispose of it. Check which bin to place your waste into before tossing it.

4. Reduce your micro-waste.

This is something also known as MOOP, matter out of place. It’s really important since we are visiting a place that is filled with nature that we leave no trace behind. The smallest of things can be eaten by animals, bugs and plants and cause damage to their life cycles. With the trends of sequins, glitter and body jewels, it’s super important that we all look into ways that we can be more environmentally friendly with these trends. savormeditation has a whole collection of biodegradable glitter which is a great choice to make with your glitter. 

All around the festival, the Green Team will be picking up bits and pieces as they go, but you can also do your part and if you see a bit of waste, from a big piece to a small gem, pick it up and throw it away.

5. Carpool.

This is literally one of the easiest things you can do to reduce your impact on the festival. Carpool with your friends and save on the emissions. This will also help you reduce the amount of stuff you bring to the festival so that you’re reasonable when you pack. I know I always have a tendency to overpack!

If these ideas sparked your interest, there’s also some lectures at LiB you can attend to learn more about how you can build a more sustainable life at home. I have enjoyed these in the past because there is always something new to learn! Here is the list of relevant lectures this year, and click here to read more about each topic. There’s of course more than this, and many other topics will touch on the subjects of sustainability and living green as well.

• Regeneration: Hope Beyond Sustainability - Finian Makepeace & Ryland Engelhart
• Everything You Need to Know About Climate Change - Andrew Callaway Ellis, MS
• Indigenous Climate Change Solutions from the Frontlines - Eriel Deranger
• Saving our Oceans Through Seafood - Peter Adame
• What the H%#@ is Permaculture - Bryan Arturo

This past weekend 177,000 people donned their “wellies” for the Coachella across the pond. The 45th annual Glastonbury Festival boasted 26 stages and headliners from The Who to Kanye West. The 900 acre festival grounds was home to attendees for over 4 day, and once all they all left, a whole new group of people, who are often under appreciated, entered. The clean up crew gets to witness the aftermath each festival and here is what it looks like:

For Glastonbury, a  crew of 800 volunteers -that’s right, people who are not getting paid- will pick up after the messy attendees who did little to keep their space clean. It’s estimated that 1,650 tons of waste and over 5,000 abandoned tents will be collected once the clean up is finished. The amount of garbage left looks a bit extreme to me and I think these attendees need to take more responsibility for their waste. 

Reading about Glastonbury reminded me of a local California event where attendees also destroyed their venue. San Diego based CRSSD Festival made headlines in April primarily because of the damage attendees caused to the waterfront park. This festival spanned two days and there was over $64,000 worth of damage to the park. To put this in perspective, the event organizers rented the park for only $33,000. It’s a shame that a park that brings so much to an urban community is now at a loss. The deposit from the event covers only $7,000 of the damage, but the event organizers were to be invoiced for the remaining amount.

As I mentioned in my EDC Recap, EDC even became a floor of trash by the end of the 3 nights. While sometimes it is the lack of trash bins that is to blame, there is really no excuse. Each person should be responsible for their waste and if that means they have to take it back in the car to find a bin or hold it in their backpack until later then so be it. Peace, Love, Unity, RESPECT — respect for the venue, respect for clean up crews and respect for the environment.

I hope we all better learn to manage our waste for our future festivals and raves. Feel free to pick up a bottle that isn’t yours, or call out the kid who just threw his trash to the side. Together we can make an impact!