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The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on all our lives and disastrous effect on the global economy. It’s likely that nothing will ever be the same again for most of us and who knows what the new ‘normal’ will look like when we finally get out of this. However, we do have an opportunity to be more sustainable during lockdown and beyond.
Unsurprisingly, we’ve already seen that carbon emissions have fallen significantly around the world. It’s not just down to reduced travel and factory operations but a slowdown of economic activity in all industries. Having access to cleaner air and natural resources will help improve the health of our environment and our bodies. This is why sustainability is so closely connected to public health.
When we get out of this, we’ll need to make positive changes to the way we live now and prepare for a future that is more sustainable and resilient. We all have responsibility to make this happen – governments, businesses, and consumers.
Right now, for many, it’s very much about coping in survival mode. But there’s no better time than now to also shift our thinking to forge a more positive way of living that benefits people and the planet.
Here are some practical ways you can live a more sustainable life during lockdown with our top 10 lockdown tips:
1. Reduce Food & Packaging Waste
- Try to resist the temptation to buy more food than you need during lockdown, especially fresh foods which might end up being binned.
- Is now a good time to try a more plant-based diet if it’s something you’ve wanted to do? If you have more time to cook, it’s a great excuse to experiment with different recipes.
- Some foods readily available before the pandemic are now considered a luxury. Take bread flour – it’s like gold dust these days! This means you’ll likely need to relax any rules you may have set yourself around not buying single-use plastic products and packaging. If you used to make your own bread and bought loose fruit and veggies before lockdown, don’t stress if you have to buy the plastic-packaged versions now. Bottom line – do your best but don’t feel guilty. It’s all about survival right now!
2. Shop Independent
- Small businesses need your help more than ever right now to stay afloat so consider shopping at ethical, independent shops that have a purpose that value more than just profits. It’s such a nice thought that when you buy from a small business, somebody does a little happy dance.
3. Shop Online
- With more purchases being made online than ever before, the amount of plastic packaging will likely be on the increase. Request plastic-free packaging and try to buy in bulk to limit the carbon footprint from deliveries.
4. Rethink Fashion
- Being in lockdown doesn’t mean you can’t dress up at home. But with less need to go out, it’s a great opportunity to rethink your fashion habits. Get creative with what you already own rather than buy more of what you don’t need. Fix what needs mending and maybe even try making your own.
- Find out who made your clothes and if you do buy from big brands, support fashion houses that are helping their workers impacted by COVID-19 by providing financial support packages.
5. Keep Fit & Healthy
- If you can, make your essential shop a walk, run or bike trip. It will help your health and mental wellbeing and reduce carbon emissions at the same time.
- Take advantage of your regulatory daily exercise outing, especially if you don’t have a garden. Sunlight and fresh air are great for the body and mind. Don’t fancy a walk or run in the rain? There are lots of virtual exercise classes available online from yoga to high-intensity interval training (HIIT). Is this your chance to try something new?
6. Learn About Sustainability
- Take the time to increase your knowledge about what’s good for the environment and for you. There are plenty of good books and online resources.
7. Teach Kids Through Play
- Earth Day has been a big topic in many schools in April so, if you have children, it’s a great opportunity to talk to them about sustainability. There are plenty of fun ways to get them learning by getting involved in practical activities – eco crafts, gardening and growing food, even educational gaming.
8. Rethink Your Post-Lockdown World
- Do you need to commute to work every day? Do you need to get on a plane to travel? Does your work life balance need to change?
9. Switch to Green Energy
- COVID-19 has shown just how vulnerable non-renewable energy is with oil prices at their lowest in years and continuing to fall (at the time of writing). There’s no better time to switch your energy to a greener renewable source. It will help tackle the climate crisis and stimulate economic growth, which means more jobs and improved health for more people.
10. Care for Your Community
- If there’s one positive resulting from this pandemic, it’s the way communities have come together to help one another. Reach out to your neighbours to offer support (shopping or messaging/calling), particularly those vulnerable or on their own, and you’ll not only make their lives a bit easier but get a warm fuzzy feeling from helping others.
Do you have any other sustainable lockdown tips?
The Jolly Turtle supplies eco-friendly bespoke and pre-packed kits for events, travel, hospitality, and lifestyle, offering a simple and convenient way to shop for all your plastic-free essentials.
Along with all players in the events industry, the global festival scene has been extremely hard hit by the impact of COVID-19. Most festivals due to take place this summer have already cancelled and it’s likely many more will follow suit. This is a disaster for the festival industry, and leaves its future uncertain.
What it has done, though, is force the events industry to think creatively as festivals devise new ways to survive this uncertain period and the aftermath, as well as make sure their fans don’t miss out on the party at home.
Some of the festivals that were forced to cancel held a virtual festival over the Easter bank holiday. These include Camp Bestival’s Stay at Home Sleepover, Morning Gloryville, Defected Records’ livestream, and Digital DGTL. Most of these festivals donated proceeds to charities.
The concept of the virtual festival isn’t new but it’s bound to become more popular this year. Although it’s not the same as going to a festival, just think of the cheap drinks, the clean toilets, hot showers, and the warm cosy bed – unless you’re camping in your garden of course!
Here’s a list of some festivals coming to a device near you soon. And don’t forget to check out our Events calendar, which we’ll update as other virtual festivals are announced.
One World Together at Home
When: Saturday 18th April at 1am UK time
Where: Various platforms
Big Acts: Elton John, Lizzo, Paul McCartney, Billie Eilish, Stevie Wonder
Lady Gaga has already partnered with the World Health Organization and Global Citizen to raise millions of dollars ($35m at the time of writing) to fund medical equipment and testing capabilities across the globe.
She’s also launching a virtual festival, One World Together At Home, on 18th April to feature dozens of leading music performers as well as stories and messages highlighting the critical work frontline healthcare workers do.
No donations necessary as the fundraising will already have been completed by the time the festival goes live.
Block By Blockwest
When: Saturday 25th April at 8pm UK time
Where: Block By Blockwest or Discord for account holders
Big Acts: Pussy Riot, Nothing Nowhere, Hunny, Fever 333
You don’t have to be a Minecraft expert or fan to get access to Minecraft’s virtual music festival, but you can expect some cool digital gamification. Use avatars to move around the different festival stages, check out the artist merch tents and art gallery, or participate in a few of its games.
All proceeds from this festival will go to the Corona Virus Emergency Response fund.
S.A.F.E. Music Festival
When: Thursday 7th to Saturday 9th May from 9pm to 7am and Sunday 10th May 8pm to 1pm UK time
Where: https://www.safemusicfestival.com/
Big Acts: Young Bombs, Danny Quest, Cade, Mammoths, Vegabonds
Travel with your friends to this virtual festival within the comfort of your own home. S.A.F.E is free to attend as long as you subscribe. You can try out some pre-show wellness experiences such as yoga and workouts. During the main festival event, expect interactive chat rooms during live streaming, and competitions to win prizes.
Download Festival
When: Friday 12th to Sunday 14th June 2020
Where: You Tube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Big Acts: TBC
If you’re wondering how to mosh at a socially responsible distance, you’ve landed in the right place with Download’s digital festival. Expect exclusive footage, interactive content, special interviews, and a mix of great rock music. And you can air guitar like no-one’s watching!
Grab yourself a special edition charity T-Shirt from Download’s webshop to help raise money for the NHS.
Burning Man
When: Sunday 30th August to Monday 7th September 2020
Where:TBC – Updates here
Big Acts: TBC
One of America’s major festivals, Burning Man, is planning to hold a virtual festival instead of in its usual Black Rock City in the Nevadan desert. Introducing ‘The Burning Man Multiverse’, where 100,000 participants will be invited to explore new ways to connect and live more sustainably. It will be ticketed but over 90% of revenue will contribute to the non-profit festival’s many year-round cultural programs.
If you enjoyed reading this blog post, you might be interested in our article about festival apps.
The Jolly Turtle supplies eco-friendly bespoke and pre-packed kits for events, travel, hospitality, and lifestyle, offering a simple and convenient way to shop for all your plastic-free essentials.
We’re very excited to announce today that the original bespoke festival kit supplier, Pic ‘n’ Mix Festival Kit, has rebranded as The Jolly Turtle.
The problem
With Halloween just around the corner, around 33 million adults and kids across the UK will be planning their costumes for the various parties and trick and treat events being organized throughout October. And most of those will be worn just once before being packed away at the bottom of a drawer. Only to be eventually thrown away and doomed to an eternal death in landfill. Scary, but true!
A typical Halloween costume contains 90% of plastic. They might not be cheap to buy, but the average costume is made from cheap material, such as polyester, which is highly flammable. I’ll never forget that weekend when Claudia Winkleman couldn’t present on Strictly Come Dancing. Her young daughter had been severely burnt after her Halloween costume had gone up in flames while she was wearing it!
What’s the impact?
Fancy dress costumes are a big business for costume retailers, with over £500m being spent on costumes in the UK in 2018 alone. The impact on the environment when all that disposable plastic ends up in landfill is a scary reality. Not to mention all the resources and waste spent manufacturing them. It is reported that over 7 million costumes were disposed of in the bin and sent to landfill in 2016, and it’s likely the figure is much higher now. That’s over 2,600 tonnes of plastic (equivalent to 205 double-decker buses) that will never ever go away!
But perhaps you’re not ready to hang up your Chucky mask yet, and you get thrilled with the planning of a new Halloween costume every year. In that case,, there are some eco-friendly ways you or your children can have a spook-tastic time and save money at the same time. Here are our top 7 tips and tricks!
How you can help
1) Reuse costumes
Firstly, there are many ways to reuse Halloween costumes. Start with accessorizing and layering different parts of a costume to create a different look. Then, combine with Halloween make-up. Or hand your unwanted costumes down to a smaller relative or friend. As long as it’s fancy dress, anything goes! Failing that, you could reuse them for non-Halloween projects or school plays. And don’t forget to dig into your wardrobe for bits that you could use.
Eco trick: To create a zombie outfit for your child, dig out that pirate or princess costume from the fancy dress box and dress it up with scary Halloween make-up.
2) Use charity shops
For grown out costumes that can’t be reused or handed down to a relative or friend, instead of throwing them in the bin, give to a charity shop. The same goes for buying. You’ll probably end up with a bargain and the glowing feeling knowing that you’ve saved one more costume from landfill.
Eco trick: If you can’t get an entire outfit from a charity shop, pair different items together to create a unique look. Check out British Heart Foundation’s DIY Halloween Costumes for some creative inspo.
3) Costume borrow or swap
Who doesn’t love a clothes swap?! It’s the perfect excuse to borrow or own that costume you’ve had your eye on since you saw it on someone at last year’s Halloween party. You’ll probably be surprised at how many people will think it’s a great idea, but hadn’t thought of it themselves. Raise the idea with friends, your local Facebook group, your school parent’s group, anyone who could be interested. Oh, and it’s completely free!
Eco trick: Host a costume swap play date for kids to organize their outfits in time for Halloween. They’ll love getting dressed up in each other’s clothes. You could even have a face painter on hand to make it extra fun.
4) Make your own
If you’re particularly creative, you could make your own outfit. Surely a great excuse to get the sewing machine out and use up all that fabric you’ve had lying around for ages. Or, even better, reuse fabric from old clothes that have seen better days. If you’re not good with the needle, there are so many other ways to create something wacky and wonderful. You’d be surprised what you can do with some cardboard and other craft products. Kids will love making their own masks, and their friends will be so impressed they were made from scratch. Bonus points if you use eco-friendly materials.
Eco trick: Use white masking tape on a plain black top and leggings to create a skeleton costume, as shown in this short video tutorial.
5) Rent a costume
Seeing as a high proportion of Halloween costumes are only worn once before being disposed of, it doesn’t make sense to spend a lot and buy new each year. So renting a costume seems like a good option. Not only are they reused, but you’re more likely to get better quality using fabrics that are more eco-friendly!
Eco trick: Express Yourself offers a high quality costume rental service that is environmentally friendly.
6) Paint yourself scary
There are some incredible looks you can achieve with body paint, and you don’t have to be the world’s best artist to give it a go. A search on #halloweenbodypaint on Instagram or Pinterest brings up some amazing images and video tutorials for ideas you can use. And no, you don’t have to be naked underneath, unless you want to of course!
Spooky idea: It’s best to use eco-friendly face and body paint, such as Namaki, which is all-natural, organic and packaged in fully recyclable non-plastic packaging.
7) Glitter yourself
Glitter isn’t just for festivals. As long as it’s eco-friendly, glitter is for everyone everywhere and can be applied literally anywhere (well, almost)! You can create some amazingly sparkly Halloween looks and really stand out in the crowd with even a dab of the magical stuff, on its own or layered over face paint.
Eco trick: Use our Red Voodoo bio-glitter or Poison Ivy glitter with Organic Aloe Vera gel. You’ll easily be able to create a sustainable sparkly look that is both kind to your skin and the environment. Quick and easy to apply and remove.
What are your favourite eco Halloween tricks and tips?
The Jolly Turtle supplies eco-friendly bespoke and pre-packed kits for festivals, events, travel, and lifestyle, offering a simple and convenient way to shop for all your plastic-free essentials.
Plastic-free periods and reusable menstrual cups have had a lot of media attention recently, and rightly so. Millions of females around the world are unable to afford sanitary products (including 10% of teenage girls in the UK). Therefore, period poverty is a significant global issue. And there’s also the environmental impact.
So far, we’ve had pretty unpredictable summer weather. One day it’s stormy and the next it can be blazing hot sunshine.
If you went to a festival several years ago (I’m talking 10+ years), you had to stick with your festival tribe if you wanted to prevent being split up and lost.
There’s nothing quite like entering a beautifully-decorated tent containing a proper bed dressed with sumptious bedding, all set up so you can literally drop your bags and get out in the field. This is the ultimate luxury in festival glamping!
Meet Laura Audley, one of our lovely glamping customers and Founder of Portobello Tents. I invited Laura to tell us about her wonderful tents and how Portobello Tents evolved to become a luxury sustainable boutique accommodation provider. Enjoy!
1. Tell us about Portobello Tents. Who are you and how did you start?
Portobello Tents is a luxury British glamping company that provides stylish canvas accommodation at festivals and events across the UK and beyond. Our logo, the triangle with a line at the top, is a glyph meaning ‘explore’. We love the idea of exploring with our guests; finding inspiration along the way and creating beautiful events.
After some research, I spent November 2015 launching Portobello Tents from my parent’s dining room, with the website going ‘live’ at the beginning of December. I somehow managed to speak to someone at Festival No. 6 who said they loved the website and how many structures did we have? I asked how many they wanted and promptly replied ‘we have that’ (I had nothing!)… I then had to buy tents, interiors and find a warehouse. Being able to say ‘we’ll be at Festival No.6’ massively helped in talking to other festivals that first year.
2. That’s so brave but the risk clearly paid off! What sets Portobello Tents apart from other glamping providers?
Hardwood beds – We only have proper hardwood beds – no airbeds or metal z-beds. They all come with 6” memory foam mattresses, which are in washable, breathable covers.
Professionally Interior Designed – I trained at the KLC School of Design in Chelsea before 7 years working in the industry. Although I’d love to spend hundreds of pounds furnishing each tent (!) it has been a creative challenge producing interiors which are within a budget, attractive and most importantly – can be packed and moved each week. We’re basically a travelling hotel under canvas.
Our VIP Lotus Belles are really spacious and come complete with chandeliers, dressing gowns, slippers, plastic-free toiletry hampers and magazines. They really are a magical retreat!
3. Sounds like the ultimate luxury! I know that sustainability is important to Portobello Tents. How are you combatting the issue of single-use plastics?
We have made some small changes as well as trying to educate our guests along the way.
- We have teamed up with RAW Foundation to produce a dual-branded zero plastic water bottle and our crew have made a pledge not to buy or use any single-use plastic water bottles – they all have a RAW bottle.
- We have introduced (with the help of The Jolly Turtle), plastic-free toiletry hampers – they are brilliant and it is so nice to see a guest striding out of the shower in boutique camping with one under their arm!
- People want to make changes themselves but aren’t sometimes sure how, or where to start. So, one of our wonderful crew is a graphic designer and made some beautiful and super cool info graphic cards, which we leave in the tents – it lists a few ways to start doing your bit. We’ve had some excellent feedback from them.
- In the warehouse we went from vacuum pack bags for the duvets (which never vacuumed and always broke) to bespoke waterproof, breathable ones which will last forever – red for king bedding and blue for single 🙂
Plastic-free toiletry hampers; Tent symmetry in action (Photo credit: portobellotents.com)
4. We love seeing our plastic-free products in your tents! What are your top eco-friendly tips for glampers?
- Eco–friendly glitter – I think most people are aware now that (non-eco) glitter is just tiny bits of plastic. Not cool.
- Reusable water bottle – buy one for about £15 and refill it hundreds of times throughout your weekend from the water points around the site (or behind the bar). It will save you so much money as well as being that small change for the environment.
- Invest in a waterproof that works and looks good (disposable ponchos are not the one!). There are some really great ones out there. Buy one with pockets – I love a pocket… not too many though.
- Car share to festivals – we see so many friends who book tents and request to be pitched near each other (which is great!), but they will arrive in so many different cars at nearly the same time. Share where you can – it’s way more fun and makes Sunday night / Monday morning less horrendous!
5. Really great tips. Which festivals can we see your wonderful tents at this year?
- Run Fest Run, Wiltshire
- Glastonbury (Pennard Hill Farm & Hotel Ziggu)
- Noisily, Leicestershire
- Westival, Wales
- Camp Bestival, Dorset
- Wilderness, Oxfordshire
- Houghton, Norfolk
- PX+ Festival, Hertfordshire
- Lost Village, Lincolnshire
- Great Dorset Steam Fair
- Camp Wildfire, Kent
- Burghley Horse Trials, Lincolnshire
6. You’ll certainly be busy then! Do you have any funny or embarrassing festival stories you’d like to share?
At the end of our first season we went to Germany with our beautiful Lotus Belle tents. We had nearly finished setting up 35 tents in very hard ground when I was asked to come to explain the smell in a tent. I followed a stern German man into a tent and watched him inhale deeply. He then looked at me and nodded for me to do the same – I started heavy breathing with him none the wiser. After a few deep breaths (and a head rush) he said “you see!”. I didn’t. He then said “you need to get rid of this smell. It smells too much like tent!”. He wasn’t joking so I assured him we would ‘fix’ the problem. Cue Nikki, my right-hand woman, and her trusty Febreze!
Well done, Nikki! I’ll have to see if I can smell ‘eau de tent’ next time I’m in one of your tents! Thank you so much for speaking to me today and hopefully we’ll see you in the field at Wilderness!
If you want to find out more about Laura and her team’s tents and follow their journey across the festival fields this year, visit their website www.portobellotents.com.
The Portobello Tent crew with their reusable Stainless Steel Bottles (Photo credit: portobellotents.com)
What are your top eco-friendly tips for glamping?
The Jolly Turtle supplies eco-friendly bespoke and pre-packed kits for events, travel, hospitality, and lifestyle, offering a simple and convenient way to shop for all your plastic-free essentials.
There’s nothing quite like entering a beautifully-decorated tent containing a proper bed dressed with sumptious bedding, all set up so you can literally drop your bags and get out in the field.
Every year, we get lots of parents asking us what they need to take to a festival with kids. Yes, the list is long but it’s important to be well prepared as having all the essentials can make all the difference to your experience.
Damon Culbert works for The Juice Guru, a mobile juice bar supplier in the UK. The Juice Guru supports greener practices by using only compostable and recyclable products.