Sustainability is the next big thing, and rightly so. There are many ways to make sure your wedding is kind to the earth. One particular South African wedding venue, Cederkloof Botanical Retreat, helps you do this easily.
This farm is located just outside Citrusdal, a quiet and tranquil space set in a beautiful valley. Part of the landscape is still wild and opens to numerous views with beautiful rock formations from where you can watch stunning moon rises and have the stars put on a show just for you.
Their vision for a more sustainable village is varied and they are concentrating on the hard and soft elements of sustainability, covering aspects of social, environmental and financial health for a kinder, gentler, restorative and resilient future.
To learn more about all their current projects, take a look here.
Here’s how they will make your wedding sustainable:
– All flowers and green decorations are recycled on-site.
– Flowers, greens, fillers and other decorations are picked from the gardens and the surrounding areas.
– Couples plant trees or sponsor a ceder tree planting as part of their ceremony.
– The outdoor wedding ceremonies and the natural setting gives the couple and the guests the opportunity to spend the entire weekend immersed in nature.
– Natural, organic and no-waste confetti are made from plants from the gardens.
– The accommodation, venue and ceremony spaces are close together, so there is no driving once on the retreat.
– All glass is recycled on-site.
– All organic waste from the kitchens are recycled on-site.
If you want to have an environmentally friendly wedding, there are a number of things you can do. Other ways of reducing your carbon footprint include making sure there are no single use items, especially regarding place indicators and table numbers. Use materials that can be recycled and donate decor items and food that is left over afterwards. You can also rent all the decor and catering ware, instead of buying them.
It is important to remember that eco-friendliness doesn’t start and stop at the wedding. Participate in ethical ring shopping (do research on companies who can prove that they don’t engage in “blood diamonds”) and incorporate green tourism in your honeymoon.
Try to find a wedding gown to hire, instead of buying one or letting a new one be made. If you do end up having one made, try to make sure the designer is eco-friendly and uses sustainable production methods.
Picture: Pixabay
