Event waste management
Event waste management
Author
Introduction
UK festivals generate 23,500 tonnes of waste per year and this number is increasing as more events are added to the calendar. The majority of this waste ends up in skips and is incinerated. Due to a lack of scalable solutions and regulation for sustainability in outdoor events, many production companies continue this model of waste management.
2022 Award
Christopher Mastricci (CF 2016) is the director of FWRD, a UK charity dedicated to helping the most vulnerable in society through the collection and redistribution of abandoned items at festivals, such as tents and sleeping bags. Through this work, Christopher has reclaimed approximately 100 tonnes of waste from more than 80 festivals, providing equipment to thousands of people in need. During this time, he has built relationships in the industry and developed initiatives such as FWRD Free Shop, which offers festival-goers the opportunity to borrow abandoned, un-recyclable items (such as camping chairs) for a small deposit. However, this work takes time and resource to develop and implement on a large-scale, which Christopher currently does not have.
Christopher has been awarded one of our Activate grants to expand this work and deliver innovative and sustainable solutions for waste management problems at events. The funding will allow Christopher to develop large scale reclamation operations and turn this into a self-sustaining paid service; educate and influence the event industry to prioritise this issue and deliver onsite solutions; explore ways to engage and incentivise festival-goers to participate in more sustainable waste management options; gather data on waste management across the UK festival industry, in order to demonstrate the scale of the problem and encourage urgent action; provide guidance and resources for festivals on sustainable waste management; and develop new solutions such as staffed donation points or creating festival merchandise out of waste.
Christopher hopes this will lead to a growth in sustainable waste management and wide-scale behavioural change across festival producers and attendees. He also hopes it will enable over 75 tonnes of usable equipment to be diverted from incineration and towards those most in need, equating to approximately £500,000 worth of crucial kit for organisations that will find them useful such as homelessness charities.
Christopher’s Fellowship explored ways to reduce festival waste.
2022 Award
Christopher Mastricci (CF 2016) is the director of FWRD, a UK charity dedicated to helping the most vulnerable in society through the collection and redistribution of abandoned items at festivals, such as tents and sleeping bags. Through this work, Christopher has reclaimed approximately 100 tonnes of waste from more than 80 festivals, providing equipment to thousands of people in need. During this time, he has built relationships in the industry and developed initiatives such as FWRD Free Shop, which offers festival-goers the opportunity to borrow abandoned, un-recyclable items (such as camping chairs) for a small deposit. However, this work takes time and resource to develop and implement on a large-scale, which Christopher currently does not have.
Christopher has been awarded one of our Activate grants to expand this work and deliver innovative and sustainable solutions for waste management problems at events. The funding will allow Christopher to develop large scale reclamation operations and turn this into a self-sustaining paid service; educate and influence the event industry to prioritise this issue and deliver onsite solutions; explore ways to engage and incentivise festival-goers to participate in more sustainable waste management options; gather data on waste management across the UK festival industry, in order to demonstrate the scale of the problem and encourage urgent action; provide guidance and resources for festivals on sustainable waste management; and develop new solutions such as staffed donation points or creating festival merchandise out of waste.
Christopher hopes this will lead to a growth in sustainable waste management and wide-scale behavioural change across festival producers and attendees. He also hopes it will enable over 75 tonnes of usable equipment to be diverted from incineration and towards those most in need, equating to approximately £500,000 worth of crucial kit for organisations that will find them useful such as homelessness charities.
Christopher’s Fellowship explored ways to reduce festival waste.