green guide SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE GUIDELINES FOR SPONSORS & PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS

Green DayGreater Miami Shores Chamber of Commerce

10.21.17

at the event Please do not use: o  Plastic bags (i.e. grocery bags) o  Styrofoam o  Please limit the use of plastic water bottles. There

will be water stations throughout the festival.

The following pages provide friendly suggestions of how to be as GREEN as possible at this year’s event,

plus several tips on greener living!

enjoy green day!

marketing Green marketing practices tone of sustainability for the event. There are some easy ways to market green:

o  Use E-communication whenever possible (i.e. this guide will not o  be printed, just emailed) o  If using print material use paper with minimum 30% post-consumer content

and no chlorine bleach o  Use both sides of paper when printing o  Minimize promotional materials

DEEP GREEN THOUGHT The footprint of print material is not only the trees used for the paper, but also fossil fuels used to cut and transport the trees, manufacture the paper and ship it.!!

DEEPER GREEN Then there’s the environmental pollution from paper manufacturing.

DEEPEST GREEN Cutting down forests for paper impacts wildlife- the birds and animals are displaced and their food sources are eliminated as their habitat is destroyed.

doing business

o  Use cloth or other reusable material for table covering. Green Day committee to provide recyclable paper table coverings as a backup.

o  Avoid disposable decorations. Create decorations that are reusable. o  Create materials that are not event-specific so they can be reused. o  Choose biodegradable packaging. o  Packaging of items should not contain PVC, a carcinogen. o  Where recycling systems for packaging are not in place, concentrate on

ensuring packaging is minimized to the best extent possible. o  Plastic bags and styrofoam are not allowed to be used at Green Day 2017.

DEEP GREEN THOUGHT Plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they photodegrade – breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering into the food web.!

DEEPER GREEN Plastic bags cause over 100,000 sea turtle and other marine animal deaths every year when animals mistake them for food.

DEEPEST GREEN A plastic bag can take between 400 to 1,000 years to break down in the environment.

food & drink

DEEP GREEN THOUGHT Americans produce enough styrofoam cups every year to circle the Earth 436 times. These cups deplete the Earth’s ozone layer.!

DEEPER GREEN Even if disposables could be recycled or composted, the majority of their environmental impact occurs “upstream” – in manufacturing and transportation – before they’re used.

DEEPEST GREEN Plastic cutlery is non-biodegradable, can leach toxic chemicals when handled improperly, and if widely used.

o  Whenever possible, use seasonal/locally grown organic/cruelty-free/non-GMO/fair trade foods, beer,

and wine. o  Serve finger foods that do not require a utensil o  Serve condiments in bulk containers o  Avoid plastic coffee stirrers and straws o  Use compostable or recyclable food containers, take-out containers, utensils, and cups. o  If disposable items are essnetial, try to ensure they contain a high content of recycled or plant-based

material, are recyclable, and appropriate recycling systems are in place. o  Avoid the use of single use bottles for juice and water. o  Paper products used for catering should have a high recycled content (ideally 100%) and be totally or

elementary chlorine-free (TCF or ECF). o  Avoid single-serve containers for food and condiments. Use bulk dispensers or jars also for water. o  Ask suppliers to indicate what efforts they have taken to minimize packaging.

other resources

UN green meeting guide: https://www.unglobalcompact.org/docs/issues_doc/Environment/Green_Meeting_Guide_WEB.pdf http://www.agreenerfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/GOOD_FOOD_stallholder_guide.pdf

http://ecoclub.com/library/epapers/15.pdf !

thank you to our sponsors!

Alice Burch, Coia Law Group, Heal the Earth Through the Arts, Joe Blair Garden Supply, John C. Farina, Little Stars Dentistry, Marc E. O’Connor, CPA, Miami Shores Country Club, Patrice Gillespie Smith

see you soon!