BY EVENTSEEKER STAFF
In August, I experienced my first music festival in the United States: SF Outside Lands. I was impressed by so many things: the music, the crowd and the diversity of shows.
Music is definitely part of me, and since I’m currently in San Francisco, I need to focus on the next important event on the horizon: Treasure Island Music Festival. This year, the festival headliners are Empire of the Sun on Saturday and Death Cab for Cutie on Sunday. Both bands are an excellent reason to go, but when you realize Cut Copy, Beach House, St. Vincent and Death From Above 1979 are also on the bill–going to this festival becomes a necessity. Check out the lineup for day one and day two. (eventseekr’s also giving one lucky eventseekr fan the opportunity to win free tickets to the festival. Read up on the competition terms and conditions before you enter!)
Goldfrapp performing at the 2008 Treasure Island Music Fest. Photo by Joey Pangilinan.You’ve also probably noticed the Greening tab on TIMF’s official website. It’s becoming more and more common for large events to show they are committed to a cause–greening, in this case. From October 15 to October 16, “reduction” will be the theme of the green effort. Basically, they will focus on two different reduction initiatives during this two-day festival.
The first initiative is to reduce gas emissions in an effort to decrease the festival’s carbon footprint. The best and most convenient way to get to the festival is actually to go to AT&T Park and take the free zero-emission shuttle that will run all day long starting at 11:00 am. It is pretty easy to get to AT&T Park–you can walk there, take the Muni or Bart. If you decide to bike there (go green!), you’ll be happy to find a Valley Bike Parking area, located at AT&T Parking Lot A, which has been provided by The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. You won’t have to worry about whether or not it’s safe for you to leave your bike there–just go to Valley and treat it as a free bike coat check. Then take the shuttle, go to the festival, enjoy the music and come back at the end of the day to get your bike and ride home.
The second initiative reduces waste in two different ways. The Refillable Water Program is one of these. The idea is to minimize plastic bottle consumption. You actually have two ways to act: either purchase the official Treasure Island Music Festival stainless steel water bottle, which you can refill for free all weekend, or bring your own bottle to get dollar refills.
Furthermore, the festival is partnered with Green Vibes, a company which does waste management and encourages recycling. Green Vibes will be providing different bins for different types of trash. Separating trash might be confusing for some, so volunteers will be present to guide the audience. The festival will have everyone in a greener frame of mind in no time.
The event organizers have also tried to implement a few other green initiatives in this year’s festival, such as using bio-diesel generators that emit less hydrocarbons. When you buy your ticket, you have the opportunity to donate a dollar to Sustainable Travel International. Check out their online carbon footprint calculator here; it is interesting to know how much waste you produce just by doing things like traveling by plane, sleeping in a hotel or going to a festival. Finally, all printed materials are on recycled paper, and napkins, paper towels, and toilet paper are all made of recycled materials as well.
TIMF gets the audience to think about green behavior. If you were at Outside Lands back in August, you’ll realize that Treasure Island is not alone in the cause, which is definitely good news. Is this a trend, or are people taking sustainability seriously? It’s fair to wonder if we’re seeing a green competition between events to attract more people, or if this is a real desire to motivate people to act with sustainability in mind. Either way, it’s nice to see greening take center stage.
RELATED LINKS
Treasure Island Music Festival Official Website
Empire of the Sun Official Website
Death Cab for Cutie Official Website
Death From Above 1979 Official Website
Going to the Treasure Island Music Festival? A big fan of greening? Give us a shout, and let us know what you think! Let us know what you think! Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook to give us a shout. You can also stay on top of exciting events from around the world by downloading the eventseeker app for iPhone, Android or Windows.