Ibiza Fashion Festival: Making Ibiza Plastic Free by 2023

What is Ibiza Fashion Festival?

Image from UHNWI Luxury Events

Ibiza Fashion Festival is an annual event showcasing sustainable fashion. The event aims to spread awareness of the impact that fast fashion has on the environment, whilst showing that you don’t have to compromise the environment to be fashionable. The famous fashion show is the main event, which features vibrant, sustainable clothing.

Ibiza has a prevalent plastic problem, with a large amount of plastic waste ending up on the beaches or in the ocean. This is why reducing plastic waste in the ocean is a key focus of Ibiza Fashion Festival. All of the swimwear displayed at the event is made from recycled fishing nets, which helps to reduce ocean waste.

The festival is taking place on 1st September 2020. The event is entirely plastic free, and is the only plastic free festival in Ibiza. They also offset the carbon for every ticket purchased, to further reduce their impact on the environment. They aim to lead the way not only for Ibiza, but also for a more sustainable fashion industry.

But the event doesn’t only showcase beautiful sustainable clothing on the runway. They also have a line-up of DJs, dancers and fashion retailers, as well as a wellness area with yoga, crystal healing, tarot and more! So if you’re interested in fashion, music or the environment, this progressive event may be of interest to you.

The event is in support of Plastic Free Ibiza, a movement that aims to make Ibiza and Formentera plastic free by 2023.

Ibiza’s Plastic Problem 

Ibiza Generates half a tonne of waste per person per year, which is 14% more than the rest of Europe. The growing tourist party scene in Ibiza is largely to blame for this. The west coast of Ibiza also has 30 times more micro-plastics than the rest of the Mediterranean ocean.

Plastic Free Ibiza help to educate and encourage businesses to go plastic free. So far, 83 hotels, restaurants and cafes have committed to working on the initiative. Businesses will be awarded stars depending on how well they commit to going plastic free.

Image from Plastic Free Ibiza

The iconic nightclub ‘Pacha’ was the first to sign up to the star system, gaining a star and aiming to slowly phase out all single-use plastic. They have successfully eliminated straws, cutlery and plastic food containers. However, they are finding it difficult to find a solution for plastic bottles from a ‘safety perspective’.

Plastic Free Ibiza have also created 6 step solution to get Ibiza on track to being plastic free:

1. Rethink – Companies need to reevaluate the single-use plastic that they are using and cut-out anything that can be replaced with better alternatives

2. Reduce – Put an end to the culture of using and throwing away

3. Avoid – Try not to replace single-use plastic with another biodegradable or compostable material; which may contain plastic in its composition or needs special conditions for its biodegradation. Whilst these sound good, they don’t do much for solving plastic pollution

4. Reuse – Opt for reusable, refillable and rechargeable alternatives

5. Recycle – This is a last resort. But if there is no alternative, use a recyclable product

6. Re-educate – Companies are to increase awareness of their employees and clientele about the plastic problem and possible solutions

Alternatives to Plastic Bottles

Plastic bottles and plastic cups are just the icing on the huge cake that is plastic pollution. However, they are a big part of the problem in Ibiza, and a great starting point for reducing plastic waste. Here is a list of some ways in which Ibiza could phase out single-use plastic bottles and cups.

Free Tap Water!

A lot of tourists don’t drink tap water abroad because they believe it is unsafe. However, Spain actually has one of the most advanced public water filtration solutions in the world. It is completely safe for tourists to drink. Since 2018, clubs in Ibiza must offer free tap water by law. Free tap water can be given using either reusable cups, or reusable bottles that customers bring with them. Ordering tap water at the bar rather than leaving out jugs of water reduces risk of spiking, which is a concern for many clubs. 

Reusable bottles 

Image from Ohyo

Another solution is to offer discounts to customers who bring their own reusable bottle. This could be discounts on entry to events or discounts on food/drinks. This is encouraging for customers because it benefits them personally, as well as benefitting the planet.  There are multiple options available for compact water bottles which are either small or foldable, which can easily be transported in a small bag.

 

Deposit Systems

An increasingly popular alternative to plastic bottles that has been implemented at many events, bars and festivals is deposit systems. This is the idea that customers pay a small deposit on a reusable cup when they order a drink, and get their money back when they return the cup. This can be used for water, soft drinks and alcoholic drinks.

Provide water points 

Festivals have been providing water point systems for years. Ibiza could install similar systems across their beaches, which would allow tourists and citizens to fill up their bottles off their own accord. Using this system would also avoid queues at bars for people ordering water.

It is not only important to provide alternatives to plastic water bottles for the environment, it is also vital for the wellbeing of tourists in Ibiza. A 330ml bottle of water costs an average of €12 in Ibiza. This means you would need nearly €100 to stay properly hydrated over the course of an 8 hour night. Water is especially vital in places like Ibiza, because alcohol and drugs have more of an effect on the body if an individual is not properly hydrated.

Ibiza, like everywhere else, has a long way to go to being plastic free. However, it is clear that they are heading in the right direction, with Plastic Free Ibiza and Ibiza Fashion Festival leading the way.

Sources

https://ibizafashionfestival.com

Drinking water should be free at all clubs and festivals, here’s why

https://plasticfree.es/en/solutions/

https://tappwater.co/en/tap-water-in-spain/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-50005043

33 Companies Commit To a Plastic Free Ibiza

https://djmag.com/content/drinking-water-should-be-free-all-clubs-and-festivals-here’s-why

3 alternatives to single-use plastics at events

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