Going Green for your Wedding Venue

Finding the venue of your dreams (that is also green) is not always as easy as it seems apparently. We have had several brides write to us asking about how to find the perfect eco-friendly wedding venue. In particular, recently my friend Jennifer over at Earth Friendly Wedding Blog let me know about a particular request from CA. This surprised us as I have seen so many green event venues in California online, but apparently green is hard to find anywhere! Here a some of our tips for going green for your wedding venue:

• Choose a venue where you can hold both your ceremony and reception. This cuts down on transportation pollution and makes it easier on your guests and vendors.

• If the building is a historical space, you are giving money to a non-profit typically. Your money helps with the upkeep and maintenance of the building. Many event spaces have to have events at their space in order to supplement government grants and fundraising. While they may not see (or announce) this as green, it is a fairly important element of being green. Being socially responsible with your money is one of the biggest factors that brides overlook.

• Are they a LEED certified building? This is a relatively new undertaking for event spaces, but they are out there!

• If the event space does not recycle, they are probably are not green. However, this does not mean you can’t bring in a caterer that will do this for you. Some caterers will have a recycling bin, compost bin and then a trash bin. This is required by any caterer that has the mark of Green Restaurant Certification.
• If the venue houses an organization that does community outreach and educational programs, then you are also helping those programs by putting your dollars in their space.

• If you are going the hotel route – Marriott, Sofitel and Kipton are a few of the larger chains that have green initiatives. Ask the hotel if they have recycling bins in the hotel rooms. Sofitel is the first chain to be powered by Wind Power – either through energy credits/offsets or direct wind energy resources.

• If the venue does all the food in-house, make sure they are using locally sourced food and beverages.

Keep in mind that some businesses do incorporate eco-friendly practices even though they don’t advertise them. When touring a venue, don’t hesitate to ask if they are doing anything environmentally friendly. They should want your business, so we would expect most places to at least offer help in fulfilling your desire for an eco-friendly wedding, but if they look at you like you’re crazy, then move on.

(photo credits: Jade + Matthew, Jennifer Hughes, Kristi Odom)