Weddings Can Have a Big Footprint - Calculate Yours!

We didn't expect our wedding to be a large one but once you start naming names the list gets long pretty quickly. His family, my family, his childhood friends and mine, mutual friends, work friends... It only took a 10 minute brainstorming session to realize that we would be inviting over a hundred people to our wedding. I understand that this might not seem like a huge number to some people but it was shocking for us. We considered reducing our numbers but ultimately we have decided that this is one event that we want everyone to attend.

To try to keep our carbon footprint as small as possible we have decided to have the wedding not in the location that is most convenient for us, but that is closest to the majority of our guests. That being said, some of our guests will be coming via plane, train and automobile. To determine the environmental impact of this travel I have been using a site called TerraPass. This site calculates how many pounds of CO2 the travel to and from your wedding will create (you have to input the information) and allows you to purchase a "TerraPass". In turn TerraPass invests in Carbon Reducing projects.


I also really like the work done by zerofootprint which offers a similar program to that of TerraPass.

Tree Wedding Favours

As an alternative to little silver bells we're thinking about giving seedlings to our guests. I like the alternatives that Tree Beginnings Inc offers: a wide selection of seedlings in variety of packaging alternatives. If you are looking for ways to cut down on distances shipped however, I suspect that most local garden centers would be able to provide a seedling wrapped in burlap similar to the one shown here. I will be talking to Klomp's Landscaping near St. Mary's for my London-area based wedding.

A diamond is forever, but bah, is it not just a marketing ploy?

I realize that the engagement is a very important day and that the ring is an important part of that -- it is symbolic. We have, however, not been able to redress concerns about diamonds. Though we know there are such things as conflict free diamonds, and Canadian diamonds, Kimberly Process etc., that does not fully satisfy us. The principle concerns that we have are:

1. Diamonds are still involved in creating conflict, funding groups in the DRC, Central Africa and other places in Africa. Buying diamonds does increase the demand for these gems, no matter where you buy them. We haven't fully figured out what our position should be on this, but now it is almost too difficult to buy a diamond, as it is a luxury, not a necessity, knowing that we might indirectly also contribute to conflict. I have read arguments (largely industry supported) that debunk this, but still, these gems are kept precious through supply controls, keeping prices high that lead people to fight and kill each other for them. If big diamond firms satiated demand on the market prices would drop and the power and profit that leads to this situation would be mitigated.

2. The "Need" for a diamond, and this tradition for them has been recently been engineered by diamond consortia. Buying a diamond seems like it may perpetuate this engineered social norm. Diamonds are beautiful but their price is highly inflated. It seems quixotic for us, two students who do not have much money to spend money on one. Knowing that there are drawers full of diamonds sitting just to keep supply limited and that the demand for them has been built through careful social engineering, I cannot bear to contribute, or to perpetuate these artificial price manipulations.

Another option that we have explored is what about alternatives to diamonds, other precious stones? Having studied geology in my undergrad, I knew that there were a few gems that would be almost as hard as diamond, such as corundum, agate/chalcedonies or quartz (Mohs 6.5-7 or so, if memory serves). They, mightn't cleave as beautifully as diamond, but I do presume that they could be cut to be quite nice, but these gems are not generally by-products of mining (so somewhat more environmentally friendly), are not price-controlled and do not contribute to conflict. So, they satisfy those concerns and ultimately would serve the symbolic intent of a ring. There is, however, desperately few such rings on the market. A few birth-stone types, but strangely few people seem to buy such rings, and few seem to buy or sell them for engagements, nor for a wedding ring. We may just end up with bands, hopefully from recycled metal, but for the moment we are looking at a couple of online vendors who provide such stones on wedding like settings. We will report what we find.

The Invitations

Name tags, Christmas cards, invitations... if you are like me you view and recycle these cards quickly and they end up seeming like a waste. But late last fall my husband-to-be came home from a conference with his name tag in tow. Not your usual plastic-encased little number, this name tag was made of biodegradable paper embedded with seeds. Genius! At the very worst it will decompose, perhaps turning our garbage dumps into a plot full of wildflowers, and at best it will contribute to one's own garden, creating a visible spattering of colourful memories.

It has taken me several months to find a retailer who provides this kind of paper (none of the suppliers at the Toronto Bridal Show had even heard of such a thing!) but I have finally made a breakthrough! Botanical Paperworks from Winnipeg, Manitoba has a wide selection of very pretty and reasonably priced stationary to choose from - from bulk paper to wedding favours and invitations.

If you are Toronto situated - like me! - they have a retailer on Queen St. East, Cry If I Want To.