This year at SFF Presents we are committed to reducing our environmental impact with a special focus on waste management. Thanks to generous grants from The Environmental Center in Bend and Can’d Aids Crush-It Campaign, we now have the opportunity to make a significant difference!
The Environmental Center’s Community Innovation Fund grant of almost $5,000 has enabled us to purchase more tailored bins and other infrastructure resources, and helped provide funding for a new “Zero Waste Lead’” at the Big Ponderoo and Sisters Folk festivals. In addition to the lead, SFFP volunteers are assigned to supervise the zero waste stations during events to ensure waste is being properly sorted by festival attendees.
At the recent Big Ponderoo Music + Art Festival at Village Green Park, festival goers diverted 53% of refuse away from landfill. This is a huge deal! For reference, the average for festivals across the country is just 8%. The diverted items included recyclables, redeemable cans and bottles, and food compost, which was dropped off locally at Mahonia Farms.
SFF Presents have also received a grant of over $7,000 from Cand’ Aid’s Crush It Campaign. This grant focuses on training, auditing, resource evaluation, best practices and forward planning.
In 2024, we completely eliminated single-use plastic cups at our events and requested attendees bring Silipints and Steelys from previous SFFP events for beverage service. Over 2,300 patrons attended this summer’s SFFP events, saving thousands of disposable cups from ending up as landfill. At Big Ponderoo, 220 festival goers brought existing Silipints and received a merchandise voucher in lieu of a new Silipint.
In the artists’ greenroom, we established a system for washing utensils and tableware, which saved a significant amount of single-use items going into the landfill. In the future, we are looking to widen this practice further.
So, how can you help? At the next event, make sure to sort trash, food compost, recycling, and redeemable cans and bottles correctly into designated bins. And if you've attended an SFFP event in the past, bring your Silipint or Steely cup for beverage service! These simple actions significantly reduces landfill waste and supports our sustainability goals.
By participating in SFF Presents zero waste efforts, festival goers contribute directly to the environmental sustainability of Big Ponderoo, the Sisters Folk Festival and the wider Sisters community.
