Image source, GETTYWe all love a good birthday bash; a festive Christmas get together or a spooky Halloween party – but how can we still have fun and protect the environment at the same time?
Well, the good news is you can do both! A good way to protect the environment whilst having a party is to try and keep it as sustainable as possible. Sustainability is using natural resources to help keep a balance on our impact on the environment.
Read on for some of the Regenerator’s ideas for a fun filled day where you can have fun and protect the environment!
Image source, GETTYInventive invitations
The first step to a successful party is the invitation, your guests need to know when where and why! Instead of sending through lots invites through the post, you can now be much more creative and sustainable when inviting your friends over.
The most sustainable way to send invites now is digitally. We don’t mean typing out your invites and sending them over Instagram, use your creative skills and record a funky video to share with your social followers!
Sending invitations digitally reduces the amount of paper you will use. Using less paper will help reduce the amount of rubbish that will go into landfills. It will also help you reduce your carbon footprint – you won’t be adding to the energy that is used to make the paper at the factories.
You can get extra creative with this one: we challenge you to make your own movie trailer for your party. All the tools you need are available on social media apps such as Instagram and Tik Tok. Simply record your narration, which should include the date, time, and theme of your party. Next, take lots of dramatic shots of different locations at your party; can you show off your dance floor kitchen?
Make your own decorations!
Decorations are important to make any party a success – that’s something that’s going to stick around. However, the decorations we use for parties can sometimes be damaging for the environment when we are done with them. To make your sustainable party extra fun, why not make your own decorations that are safe for the environment?
Try making your own bunting from old clothes. This gets even easier for families, as you can reuse clothes that are big and small and make your bunting extra colourful. You don’t need to stop at clothing either, reuse bedding, tea towels and cloths!
You will need your own scissors, needles and threads and a long piece of thread – if you haven’t stitched before then make sure you get help from an adult. Cut out the shape you want – diamond or rectangle shapes work best – then fold it over the string. Stich the two halves together and there you go!
Why not try and add a theme to your bunting? Cut out painted cardboard and stick it onto the material to jazz it up. If it’s Halloween, you can stick on some slick spiders; if it’s Christmas, stick to red green and gold colours… but make sure you keep them for next year!
Image source, GettyBring your own food!
A good food buffet is a necessity for most parties, and we love to fill up on the sausage rolls, but this can lead to lots of food waste when the party is over. Why can food waste be a problem for the environment? Well, it takes a lot of time and energy to make and transport the food, so every time we waste it, it means we are also wasting the resources that puts it on our plates! This doesn’t mean you can’t still stuff your faces, though!
Why don’t you leave the task of putting on a spread to your lovely guests? Ask your friends and family to bring their own snacks and encourage them to bring only what they think they would eat.
This could make your party food much more sustainable. There will be less waste as you shouldn’t have as many left-over ingredients which will end up in the bin. A good tip would be to ask your guests to bring locally sourced food that is fresh!
Most importantly, make sure you have a plan for any food waste there may be after the party. Check if any of the food waste can be put into compost bins, and if any unopened food can be donated or eaten later.
Image source, GettyReusable party gifts
If you are planning a children’s party, one of the most exciting parts of the day is the gifts your guests receive to go home with. In the past it would be the norm to use a plastic bag which could include cake, sweets, and plastic toys to take home. For your sustainable party, we have something much more fun in mind!
Ask your guests to bring something they want to upcycle to the party, and they will swap it for someone else’s. This can be anything from unwanted clothes, games, and toys. Your guests will receive something new and get to donate and upcycle something old.
This is good for the environment because it will help stop unwanted waste from other households, as well as your own.
