Food, Farming & Festivals

In today’s world there are several schools of thought and perhaps ideologies which would imply from the face of it, that the entertainment based industries inclusive of culture, the arts and the event based economic activities cannot be linked successfully to anything sustainable in the least bit.

It is with such thinking that we are destined to fail if consideration is not given to finding an innovative and structured way to bridge the gap between all that is sustainable and regenerative, with those activities which are traditionally seen as consumer based, extractive and not green in the least bit.

Objectively speaking, since the world is going in the direction of what was one decade ago a buzz word for world leaders, technocrats and other forum based discussions, sustainability through the orange economy cannot be ruled out as an access point to breaking into new markets and getting immense amounts of buy in from large scale entertainment industry giants and businesses. 

Farming and Food Security for Festivals
The first part of the approach would be to justify the need for a supply chain of food items for such large events. In Tobago’s case we have seen an uptick or increase in the amount of food or culinary based demands overall and also in the face of an expanding entertainment industry, within the framework of tourism products and attractions, the order of the day seems to be heavily influenced by food, fanfare and festivals. A classic example of this would be the ongoing harvest festivals which are being now scaled up to include even more culinary offerings, as well as year-round applications of food based revelry to the annual calendar of events on island.

Arguably, for an eco-minded individual or someone who is more ‘conscious’ in their thinking, they would argue that this is nothing short of a noisemaking expedition and a pretentious ideology as it relates to tourism, but we can actually tap into something never before considered. If the need for food and demand is significantly higher, than say the average uses for consumption, we can make a very strong case for why farmers are to be equipped and ready to produce things en masse for such productions.

Since we cannot seem to encourage farming to supply the traditional needs and to ensure that food security for everyday consumption is concerned, perhaps companies and entertainment giants can consider now investing in sustainable activities such as farming and regenerative agriculture with a view of supplying their respective demands and festivities with the requisite amount of produce to make each and every event successful. The market is there, the consumer base is there, all that is required is for some investment to be made.

The fact is that there are more and more festivals around the world that attract hundreds of thousands of people. And a lot of people means a lot of waste production. People are travelling to the venues, using electricity, water, and other supplies on the site. So, the question is this; How can we make festivals more sustainable without us having to forgo them?

In today’s modern world and across societies globally, a significant shift with a view to reducing emissions has emanated from each and every quarter, inclusive of those that hold large events, concerts, festivals and even theatre. The need to reduce our carbon footprint, and cut back on energy usage generally has crept into conversations between a wide cross section of individuals, from creatives to party promoters, the idea of cutting costs for economic purposes, have driven this need to look at ‘greening’ of entertainment-based outputs globally.

There is not much available global data about sustainability at festivals just yet, however there is enough evidence to show a systemic imbalance that occurs through such consumer based activities. A festival can be identified at this juncture as an opportunity or great field for experimentation for sustainable solutions. Music festivals in particular basically face the same sustainability challenges as the rest of society, only on a smaller scale: energy supply, the usage of resources, questions of mobility and a circular economy. 

A festival is a society in itself just as a town under pressure. At the same time, so much more happens at a festival, which ultimately you do not have control of, similarly on a societal level, there are several activities which are hard to police and get under control. 

Greening the orange economy applications
The Dutch DGTL Festival for electronic music for instance, has the goal of becoming the first circular economy festival in the world. The power they use for roughly 60,000 festival goers comes from wind and solar energy.

Meat has been replaced by plant-based alternatives and the water being used in the toilets and showers gets processed so it can be reused. The trash is separated strictly and a deposit system for beer cups or other beverages avoids unnecessary further waste. DGTL is a global festival that has stations in Chile, India and Brazil.

Another useful application is to use the toilet facilities as composting units which can generate an alternative to chemical trash, otherwise disposed of after a ‘big fete’ or festival. In Italy the Terraform Festival with more than 5,000 visitors close to Milan have built their stages from wood of trees that have been destroyed during a storm in the region, which has a knock on effect of supporting local communities in due course of such productions.

In our local context most festivals are organized by the private sector. As for Tobago, there are even state run and promoted events, therefore much depends on the organizers' motivation on how environmentally friendly the party will be. This would require politicians to set clear rules and regulations, and policy makers to come up with innovative ideas to incentivize such ideas, and Tobago in itself being a small island developing state, and consisting of many rural communities with environmentally sensitive areas, a grand opportunity and chance to lead the way as it relates to sustainability.

The Caribbean being a very culturally expressive region, with its people boasting of more parties, festivals and concerts per capita than any other region globally, really creates a niche for greening of events in unison. If each and every island, each and every government can promote, assist, and provide assistance for promoters wishing to ‘go green’ we would become an authority on how the orange economy plays a significant role in sustainability.

So in due course of our quest to become more sustainable, it is more effective to target real life challenges that drive economic activities in the Caribbean, and in Trinidad and Tobago, as opposed to cheap greenwashing methodologies all for a photo opportunity. If we are to make a dent into our society’s ideologies as it relates to sustainability and the way forward as it relates to ‘going green’, why not target the areas that are most relatable, loved, revered, and invested in by members of our society (upper echelons included). The potential is immense, for this region to become a standard bearer through our culture and all the accompanying fanfare that is part and parcel of it’s construct.