For most people, the thought of global warming and the increasing destruction of our planet, is enough for them to turn a blind eye, sink their heads into the sand and ignore the looming environmental disaster. It’s scary – temperatures and weather conditions are raging out of control and the thought of changing the minds and ways of 6 billion people across the world is, well, slightly daunting.
The team who organised Rocking the Daisies (RTD) are not these sorts of people. With their commitment to climate change and environmental practices, they have managed to successfully pull off an eco-friendly music festival since it began five years ago. They have ensured that their catch phrase, ‘play hard, tread lightly’, is the constant theme on all the festival-goers minds, ensuring that they too understand the impact they have on the environment and thereby spreading the message. Playing hard while treading lightly is what we did, all weekend long, without realising exactly just how eco we were being. It’s about time that we realise that living ‘green’ doesn’t mean that we can’t do the things we’re used to doing. It’s all about slightly tweaking the way we do things in order to save our planet.
The organisers of RTD showed us how it’s done.
1. They started the year off by winning the first South African Climate Change Leadership Award for their commitment to hosting the most eco friendly music festival possible.
2. All their marketing material was made out of fully recyclable paper and the number of flyers, magazines and posters were all reduced dramatically in order to reduce paper usage.
3. Waste, water, power: last year, 91.9% of all waste was recycled. All the organic waste is used by a local farmer on his land and any grey-water is collected and disposed of in a responsible manner. No bottled water was available to festival-goers, instead they had to buy a water bottle and use the various ‘amanzi’ water points scattered around the festival site to fill up their refillable bottles. Renewable energy credits were purchased prior to the festival, which contributes to renewable energy production.
4. An online car-pooling portal was launched so that festival-goers with empty cars could connect with others looking for a ride. The organisers arranged a student package that offered discounted tickets, tents and a shuttle service to save on cars driving through to the festival.
5. Festival-goers ate with a clean conscience – all participating restaurants used biodegradable food packaging and 100% biodegradable cleaning products.
6. All merchandise was made from environmentally friendly material. RTD in conjunction with Levi’s had a ‘Get rid of your jeans for good’ campaign. Last year festival-goers donated 12 000 pairs of jeans to disadvantaged communities, they were encouraged to do the same this year.
7. We even got ‘green’ clean – all soaps and shampoos were 100% biodegradable and all portable ablution fluids were natural, organic biological solutions.
8. The Cloof wine estate is a biodiversity champion as a venue itself, contributing to the re-growth of indigenous fauna and flora in the area.
9. Every year an external environmental audit is implemented and an EIA is performed pre and post event. The results are posted on their website after the event – www.rockingthedaisies.com
10. The Greenhouse – this was a tent that housed RTD’s greening partners. Festival-goers could visit the tent, learn about the various organisations and watch documentaries at RTD’s very own ‘Conscious Cinema’. WWF, Hemporium, Food and Trees for Africa and Pure Planet managed to cover all environmental and social issues. The One Day Only 10.10.10 events also fell over the RTD weekend and everyone was made aware of the event that happens across the globe. Documentary filmmakers, students, and inspired citizens are encouraged to record their human experience over a 24-hour period and contribute their voice to the largest participatory media event in history. Their aim is to showcase the diversity, conflict, tragedy, and triumph that occur in one day.
You may also like
Related Posts
Jock Safari Lodge has formed an official long term partnership with the Wilderness Foundation Africa...
read more
All activities including hiking, mountain biking and picnics are temporarily suspended on Table Mountain due...
read more
Unlike carnivores that get their sodium from the meat they consume, herbivores have to seek...
read more
