Support A Good Cause

You can avoid getting unwanted gift, complete with lots of fancy paper and cards, by registering for green items or calling attention to those social situations you want to support. For instance, ask guests to donate money to a worthy cause, or register for a few big ticket items, such as a solar furnace, a bicycle built for two or a honeymoon to an eco-friendly destination and ask multiple guests to chip in toward your goals. Several websites exist to help you direct your guests to the issues and things you care about. Learn more about Just Give and I Do Foundation. to see if they are a good fit for you and your ideals. Also consider skipping wedding favors for your guests and instead donating the money you would have spent to help those less fortunate than you.

Keep It Clean

Avoid using disposable products and ask the staff who helps clean up after your event to take the time to separate recyclable items and avoid putting anything in landfills as much as possible.

Minimize Your Paper Trail

You may feel strongly that you want to send a paper invitation, but that doesn’t mean you need to have multiple cards, envelopes and tissue paper. Look for recycled and post-consumer options and go for a streamlined effect. For instance, direct people to a wedding website for directions and accommodation details, and include just a simple reply postcard, which doesn’t need an envelope, or ask guests to email you their RSVP. This keeps things simple but can still maintain an elegant tone. Also ask your printer about using soy or vegetable-based inks and foregoing any chemical processes.

Make Strategic Trade Offs

Perhaps you have lots of out of town guests who will be using gas, airplanes and trains to attend your special event. That may just be an unavoidable case. But you don’t have to sacrifice your goal of staying green to entertain people who travel a distance to celebrate with you. Consider the new trend of buying carbon offsets as an important way to give back to the environment. While this sounds like a complicated concept, it simply means that you donate money to positive efforts at work to preserve the environment that are equal to the amount of negative effect of your actions. A nonprofit group called the Carbon Fund even has a calculator you can use to determine what it will cost to offset the amount of carbon dioxide your event creates. While this is a controversial topic since you aren’t preventing the impact but instead are doing good to offset it, many couples still find it a satisfying way to give back as they celebrate.