Jason Roderick Santiago - Sarah Katrina Limgenco
The Theme: Go Green
What is an Eco-wedding?
An Eco-wedding, also known as a Green wedding, is a wedding that implements the environmental needs of the world into elements of the wedding. Eco-weddings as well as many other parties and social events are becoming increasingly popular, which is a very good thing for our planet.
We decided to have a Green wedding because we felt that it was just one way that we could help the environment and help to increase awareness about climate change and how it is affecting us all. In a world where there are so many things going on, we felt that it was a good opportunity to get the word out and encourage people to take part.
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Making our wedding GREEN
Here are several ways we’ve been keeping our wedding green:
Using recycled paper for all printed materials. This saves trees which help reduce CO2 in the air.
Decreasing the use of paper by using the wedding website for RSVPs and information about the wedding
Driving hybrid cars for the wedding party. Hybrid cars emit less pollution and contribute much less to the greenhouse effect than normal cars.
Having ethical-bands. Some jewellery is made from metals obtained from areas where land has been damaged, eco-systems destroyed and/or is produced in conditions that are degrading to the development of animals, including humans. We’ve chosen to go the ecological and socially responsible route with our wedding band choice.
Ordering flowers from a florist whose supplier is a local grower
Using beeswax candles is better than using typical candles for many reasons. Many commercial candles are made from harmful chemicals and when burned, can release carcinogens. Beeswax is a natural, renewable resource that is non-toxic. It increases negative ions in the air, which improve things like air quality and even your mood!
All our candles will have lead-free wicks, which are much safer than those containing lead. Lead wicks, when burned, release dangerous amounts of lead into the air, posing health risks. Fortunately, in Canada, lead wicks are banned.
Encouraging guests to plant trees with our wedding favours
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What You Can Do
AT HOME
Change your light bulbs: using compact fluorescent light bulbs not only brighten the room and save you money, but they save energy, ultimately reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions.
Turn off lights and electronics when not in use: doing this will save electricity. Also, any electronics that use clocks or timers (also known as “phantom loads”) still use electricity – if you don’t need those features all the time, unplug them.
Change your thermostat by 1 degree: it’ll save energy and can save you 3% on your heating bill! Reduce it by 1 degree in the winter and increase it by 1 degree in the summer. You can save even more energy and money if you change it by more than 1 degree!
Try online banking: if you’re comfortable with online banking, try it! It eliminates all those paper bills you get in the mail, thereby causing greenhouse gas emissions to drop.
Upgrade your computers often rather than buying new ones: producing the microchip alone for a computer requires 5 times more energy than making a car or fridge
Wash with cold water: doing your laundry with cold water requires less energy and will save you hundreds of dollars a year
Lay it out to dry: If there are clothes of yours that don’t need to be put in the dryer, hang them or lay them flat to dry. You’ll save energy by not using your dryer as much, and many pieces of clothing will last you longer – and stay their original size!
Conserve water: Turn off the water when you’re brushing your teeth, soaping dishes, lathering your hands, etc. If the water doesn’t have to be on, turn it off.
Refrain from pesticides and herbicides on your lawn: these chemicals eventually run into our sewage system and pollute the water.
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ON THE ROAD
Car pool or use public transit: with more people in a vehicle, you eliminate pollution that would have been emitted into the air from the cars of the other passengers
Turn your car off: rather than leaving your car idle for 10 seconds or more, turn it off; you’ll use less gas than if you leave it on
Keep your car tires properly inflated: a car with soft tires uses more gas than one with properly inflated ones.
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IN YOUR TUMMY
Eat more vegetables: the animal industry uses large amounts of resources and produces a lot of waste. For example, the greenhouse gas, methane, is found in cow dung, which ends up in our water when run off from farms and their factories reach the waterways. Also, large amounts of fossil fuels are needed to produce animal food as opposed to producing plant food.
Go organic: organic fruits and vegetables have been grown without the use of harmful chemicals
Take out?: Forego the plastic bag or extra containers when you go out to eat. It’ll eliminate excess garbage.
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AT WORK
Shut it down: shutting down your computer at work at the end of the day saves a lot of energy. Changing your power settings so that your computer sleeps when it’s inactive also saves energy.
Duplex and double side your paper: save paper and then after, you can recycle it
Use it for scrap: getting more junk faxes? Printed a document by accident? You can still use the other side of the sheet for scrap paper.
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EVERY DAY
Reduce, reuse, recycle
Recycle your paper: the energy saved from one ton of recycled paper can power a 3-bedroom house for a year!
Use reusable cloth bags: paper and/or plastic isn’t always a good choice. Production of plastic bags uses up quite a lot of oil
Refrain from using styrofoam: since Styrofoam isn’t biodegradable, it’ll be around for thousands of years
Get active: if you can walk or ride a bike, do it – it’ll save your car gas, and it’s good for the environment
Plant a tree: just one tree absorbs more than a ton of carbon dioxide
Buy something eco-friendly: if you have to restock, consider going for the greener product
Don’t trash it: if you cut down on your garbage and look to recycling and composting more, carbon dioxide emissions will go down
Some tips from 1,001 Ways To Save The Earth by Joanna Yarrow and The Live Earth Global Warming Survival Handbook: 77 Essential Skills to Stop Climate Change-Or Live Through It by David DeRothschild
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