TWO Scots music festivals have been short-listed for a national award celebrating green initiatives.
The Hebridean Celtic Festival on the Western Isles and the Edinburgh Meadows Festival are in the running for The Greener Festival Award 2017.
They are up against major other events including the Green Gathering, Greenbelt Festival, Just So Festival, Kew the Music, Nonstock: The Hidden Valley, Wood Festival, Cambridge Folk Festival and Glastonbury.
Winners will be announced at the 14th annual awards ceremony being held at The Printworks in London on November 30.
Each festival was scrutinised during various points of their events by A Greener Festival assessors and also had to provide their own self-assessment feedback.
Those had to demonstrate just how they have continued to improve their own sustainability processes year on year.
AGF Co Founder Claire O’Neill said: “We have presented the UK Greener Festival Award since the AGF Award began back in 2007.
“We are very happy to have the opportunity to give this platform and tip of the hat to deserving festivals who are working hard to minimise their environmental impact.”
HebCelt has previously received an Outstanding award from AGF with this its second nomination in just four years.
It is also shortlisted as Festival of the Year and Cultural Event of the Year categories in the annual Scottish Event Awards, and in the Best Cultural Event or Festival category in the Highlands and Islands Tourism Awards (HITA), a title it won in 2014.
The festival’s green credentials include introducing Ecocups, a rigid plastic branded cup designed to be re-used annually by the festival, helping to cut back on plastic waste, and being the first Scottish festival to partner with E-Car Club to provide a fleet of electric vehicles discounted for music fans.
It is also part of The Green Arts Initiative run by Creative Carbon Scotland.
HebCelt director Caroline Maclennan said it showed how much everyone connected with the festival cared.
“We are passionate about protecting the environment and have been determined in getting the message to everyone involved in the event.”
“This is another great honour for us and shows our hard work in staging a popular and successful event, while reducing our footprint in our magnificent location, is paying off”, she said.
Edinburgh’s Meadows Festival previously paid tribute to volunteers helping them reduce litter at the Edinburgh city centre site.
They said: “Thank you for helping us create a Green Meadows Festival for 2017 – our volunteers, stall holders, artists, The Monster Litter Crew and most importantly you, our fantastic festival goers, have worked really hard to support this fantastic new project.
“This is only the beginning of a wonderful journey.”
A Greener Festival was set up to help provide environmental impact plans for festivals in areas such as better recycling, waste disposal and lessening impacts of transport.
Want to learn more? Read: A Greener Festival – Who We Are
Image credits: HebCelt
