Virgin Mobile FreeFest - A Sustainable Festival
- Sep 23, 2010
Previously on Virgin.com, we told you how the Virgin Media V Festival in the UK teamed up with the Green Tent Company to help make the festival experience more sustainable.
V Festival weekend was a great success, as usual, and there is another Virgin Festival to look forward to taking place this weekend in the United States.
On 25 September the Virgin Mobile FreeFest will take over the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland, a venue made famous by legendary performances from artists such as Jimi Hendrix, The Who and Led Zeppelin.
With the festival now fast approaching, we thought it would be a good opportunity to tell you about some of the sustainability initiatives taking place on-site at a Virgin Mobile FreeFest.
Festival goers are encouraged to bring two plastic water bottles with them to the festival which can then be refilled free-of-charge on site at designated water stations.
This will reduce waste, save people money and keep everyone hydrated and happy.
Once revellers are finished with their plastic bottles, they can bring them to a dedicated area where they will be recycled.
All on-site power, including generators, phone re-charging stations, and light towers, will run on Biodiesel fuel or solar panels.
For the rare occasions where it is not possible to use renewable energy, any carbon produced will be offset using the Bonneville Environmental Foundation and donating clean energy to local communities.
All leftover food waste at Virgin Mobile FreeFest will be composted and used in local parks and gardens.
Nearly all paper items, from posters to small signs, are printed on 100% recycled paper using soy-based inks. And yes, even the festival toilet-paper is virgin tree-free!
What is FreeFest?
A new breed of music festival where music fans can earn their tickets by volunteering just 8 hours of their time at homeless youth centers, through Virgin Mobile USA's RE*Generation campaign, Virgin Mobile's initiative to help homeless youth.
In this way, over 30,000 hours of volunteer time were generated last year.
As well as the free tickets, people are encouraged to donate generously while at the festival with $80,000 being raised last year.
The aim is for everyone to have an unforgettable experience at Virgin Mobile FreeFest, whilst raising lots of money, and volunteer hours, to benefit vulnerable people in the process.
To find out more about Virgin Mobile FreeFest please visit: www.virginmobilefestival.com.
Check out the Virgin.com preview of the top 10 bands to see at the festival.
