Planning a Sustainable Event

When I saw the chance to plan a Green Week event for the Guild of Students, I jumped at the opportunity. I am a passionate houseplant collector, and through this I have grown an interest in the natural world around me. I wanted a way to share this hobby with other students, aiming to provide a fun and interactive event that would, at the least, give them a nice respite from their studies. If I was lucky, I hoped the event might start another individual on their plant-lover journey!

What was my event?

Brainstorming ideas for my event, I knew I wanted to include a hands-on craft activity, because I love the way these bring people together and get them chatting. I got to thinking: if I was a first year student, what would I like to come home with from my event? In my first year, I had fallen in love with moss balls. These are velvety, green spheres of algae that live under water, and are often kept as houseplants. I wanted one, badly, and so started scheming for ways to include them in my event (in the hopes of taking one home!). I decided I would be helping students make their own moss ball terrarium!

A terrarium is a simple, enclosed ecosystem for plants to live in, requiring very little maintenance. This makes them the perfect gateway project for first time plant owners. I ordered moss balls, glass jars, and a selection of multi-coloured gravels and seashells, to allow students to decorate inside their jar. Then, they were encouraged to personalise the outside with glass pens. They were then free to take home their customised moss ball terrarium!

Making my impact in only the right places.

It is lovely to get people interested in houseplants, but I wanted to ensure I was doing it in a way that was not damaging to the environment I was trying to raise awareness for. We always have spare jars in the ResLife storage, left over from other events, and I was certain students would too! Whether that be jam jars, empty pickle jars, or pasta sauces; I was sure students would love the opportunity to reduce their pile of recycling (especially with the continuing bin strikes!), and they would be rewarded with an extra moss ball if they had brought along their own jars. Additionally, moss balls are famously easy to care for, so would require no further spending from students in order to keep them looking green and healthy. I know the last thing students want is another responsibility to spend money on! I anticipated an attendance of fifty people at my event, so I would need a large quantity of moss balls.

I wanted to be certain I was sourcing them in an ethical and sustainable way. Overharvesting and illegal capturing of moss balls has become a significant threat to the natural population size, partly because they are so popular as houseplants. I reached out to my supplier via email, and they reassured me that the ones I was purchasing have been grown in a captive environment. This was good news, as it meant their production had not harmed the natural habitat. I decided to order exclusively vegetarian snacks from a local supermarket, with the intention of cutting down on food miles and meat consumption and therefore reducing greenhouse gas emissions. If I had the spare budget, it would have been nice to see the money going into the pockets of a smaller, local business; but this was a step in the right direction.

The Outcome

After all the planning that went into this event, it was super rewarding to see students turn up and get hands on with the craft activity. Even months later, I would have students find me and tell me about the progress of their moss ball! It was nice to see my event have a long-term impact on students, and I was proud to have kept its impact on the planet minimal. There was very little waste left over after the event: any jars that were unused were quickly swept up by my colleagues, and put to good use at another arts and craft event. Overall, I really enjoyed the challenge of planning a sustainable event, and continue to implement the lessons I learned in any new events I organise.

Written by ResLife Assistant, Henry.