Brides and grooms are jumping on board the eco-friendly wedding bus -- a hybrid one, that is -- according to a number of stories in high-profile newspapers and magazines, including the Washington Post and Brides magazine.
"Brides, grooms and the $73 billion wedding industry that caters to them are paying more attention to the environmental implications of their choices," according to the Post, which reported on the phenomenon June 21. "It is a trend that was barely on the cultural radar screen a couple of years ago."
How far onto that radar screen have green weddings moved? Consider this: Sixty percent of respondents to a Brides magazine survey said the environment was important in planning their wedding; 33 percent said they were planning to have a green wedding.
"Couples are thinking of their future families and how they can do something kind for the planet with this occasion," Millie Martini Bratten, editor in chief of Brides, said to the Post. "The new thinking is looking at the wedding as a way to do something really beautiful but not waste."
Environmental magazines, including Grist, a planet-friendly magazine based in Seattle, Wash., also are sharing tips with couples about green weddings. Grist, for instance, advised eco-conscious brides- and grooms-to-be to throw a green wedding using items such as organic flowers or permanent botanicals for their big day.
In addition to those publications, another venture is breathing new life to the green trend: Portovert magazine. The magazine, which debuted in early 2007, features "beautiful, inspired, smart wedding ideas that support an environmentally and socially conscious lifestyle," and it points consumers to locations where they can buy organic flowers.
Meghan Meyers, founder and CEO of Portovert, explained the intentions behind the magazine in an interview with Grist earlier this year. It's "more than a magazine -- it's a comprehensive event resource." Some of those resources include a wedding carbon calculator, a guide to sustainable U.S. vendors and free classifieds for recycling bridal dresses, props and other items.
Read about florists who are implementing green practices into their businesses in the July issue of Floral Management magazine.
--Cassandra P. Foster
cfoster@safnow.org
