5 Ways to Have an Eco-Friendly Elopement
As the wedding industry begins to shift and change in many positive ways, there are still a lot of hurdles for us to jump in regards to sustainability.
While we’ve made some strides with elopements and micro weddings becoming a more common choice, the average traditional wedding still produces 400 lbs of garbage. That equals out to over 1 billion pounds of trash from the estimated 2.5 million weddings per year in the United States alone. While there’s not really any data (yet) to tell us the average amount of garbage produced from an elopement, my guess is it’s drastically closer to zero.
When it comes to weddings taking place in nature, how do you keep sustainability at the forefront? There’s no better time than the present to start working towards a renewed mindset together.
If you want to plan an eco-friendly, waste-free, Leave No Trace-friendly elopement, here are 5 simple tips!
1. Familiarize yourselves and your guests with Leave No Trace
With my eloping couples, I start the LNT conversation very early on to ensure we’re all on the same page. Leave No Trace is a mindset of 7 principles that we ought to follow every time we recreate outdoors, and it’s actually really easy!
Leave No Trace is not about following a set of rules perfectly, rather about intentional decision-making to have the least amount of impact as possible as we recreate outdoors. I’ve been trained in LNT and absolutely love having conversations with my couples about how we can work together to create an experience that leaves the landscape as untouched as possible.
If you keep Leave No Trace in mind as you plan your elopement, you will have minimal impact to the environment. Here’s a few specific ways to follow the 7 LNT principles during your elopement:
Plan Ahead & Prepare — research where you’re going and be aware of all the specifics for recreating in your specific elopement location.
Travel & Camp on Durable Services — always stay on trail, and research the region’s surface durability (i.e., tundra, cryptobiotic soil, etc.)
Dispose of Waste Properly — always pack out your trash and try to bring in as few single-use items as possible.
Leave What You Find — this is where your photos come in! I can document all your memories from your elopement day through timeless photographs, without having to disturb or take from the natural environment around us.
Minimize Campfire Impacts — do not bring in non-local firewood (“buy it where you burn it”), learn when and where it’s acceptable to build a fire, use existing fire rings/pits when possible, keep up to date with local and state fire bans, and always drown any campfires when you’re finished.
Respect Wildlife — remember that while you have the opportunity to have your elopement in some seriously beautiful lands, nature belongs to wildlife first. We’re just guests in their home.
Be Considerate of Others — while it is your wedding day, having an elopement in nature means you might encounter other hikers or visitors to your location. Remember they have just as much of a right to enjoy the beauty of the great outdoors as you do, and be patient with the people around you. In most cases, when you’re respectful, they’ll just be stoked to see a couple adventuring outdoors for their elopement day!
2. Work with vendors who prioritize sustainability
Elopements generally have a fairly short list of vendors, and fortunately, you won’t have to worry about things like keeping 200 plastic dinner plates out of a landfill. However, there are still ways that your elopement vendors can decrease their footprint.
If you’re considering hiring a private chef or local caterer, go with someone who supports local farmers and uses sustainable ingredients.
For a florist, remember that non-native flowers are invasive and can negatively affect the environment you’re eloping in. Your florist should be able to research and determine what florals are acceptable in your specific elopement location. Or, you can have them craft faux or silk florals.
For a hair and makeup artist, be sure to ask what brands they use for their products and if those brands test on animals.
If you’re inviting guests by sending out paper invitations, look for a designer who uses recycled or sustainable materials. If you’re DIY’ing your own through an online design builder, you can usually choose to have them made from recycled material. Or, you can send a digital invitation to eliminate any waste altogether!
For your elopement dress or suit, purchase pre-loved attire. You’re probably going to get them dirty by being in the outdoors anyway, so you can minimize waste by giving your elopement attire a second chance. The fashion industry is one of the most wasteful and pollutant industries in the world, so when you have the opportunity to purchase used, I say go for it! Companies like La Laurel Bridal Consignment have beautiful options and inclusive sizing, and write very eloquently about how purchasing pre-loved wedding attire is the only way to truly know you’re minimizing environmental impact.
You can also purchase any gear you plan on utilizing for your elopement (hiking boots, jackets, coats, gloves, etc) in pre-loved, great condition from stores like REI! Buying used gear actually reduces carbon emissions by about 50%+, which is another great way to make sure your elopement is environmentally friendly. Local shops are an even better option to support businesses that are already minimally impactful, and chances are you’ll be able to find a shop with re-sale gear.
When searching for your vendors, don’t be afraid to ask how they’re contributing to helping the environment. If you’re purchasing from local or large companies for supplies or attire, look into what they’re doing to promote sustainability. Certified B-Corps will always be my first recommendation, such as Patagonia.
I have a master list of incredible vendors for my eloping couples, and I’ve made note of the ones who prioritize sustainability for the couples who want a 100% eco-friendly elopement. It’s very important to me to recommend people who hold environmentally-friendly business practices in high regard, so you can trust I’ll give you the best recs!
3. Ditch the confetti canons and smoke bombs
You may remember the El Dorado California wildfire in 2020. After the investigation took place, it was determined that it was caused by a smoke bomb during a gender reveal. This isn’t the first time this same scenario has happened, and unfortunately there are a lot of misconceptions about whether these pyrotechnic devices are truly safe to use.
One of the most important things to remember with Leave No Trace is that it’s not about perfection or shaming others. We’ve all made mistakes and been less than thoughtful with our actions outdoors. However, when the information is available to us and we have the opportunity to make decisions that can avoid devastating effects like wildfires, we should definitely take that seriously.
Instead, consider adopting a “less is more” mindset, and focus on the beauty that will surround you on your elopement day! We have access to some incredibly gorgeous scenery here in the US, and I think capturing the two of you right in the middle of those views is more than enough to create a beautiful moment.
If you do want to have some fun with props and decor, you can still do so with little to no impact! You can do blue hour photos with LED lanterns or LED candles, star photos with headlamps, or a “champagne pop” with a bottle of sparkling water. No cork to clean up and no sweet smell to entice wildlife.
4. Consider keeping your guest count small (or zero)
One of the things to discuss with your partner is how many people you want present for your elopement. Every location has different rules and regulations for group size, and while some places may tell you you’re allowed to bring a larger number of guests, it’s not always feasible or environmentally conscious to bring that number.
While some national park ceremony locations will allow you to have, say, 50 people present in that location, you really just have to think candidly about how many people that is. While 50 people is a small number for a traditional wedding venue, that is a huge group of people outside. The more people you have with you, the more the land will be impacted. (I typically photograph elopements with 20 guests or less.)
The most effective way to keep impact low is to keep your elopement reserved for just the two of you! This doesn’t mean you can’t have a minimally impactful elopement with some guests present, but if it means a lot to you to be gentle to the land, you’ll want to have a conversation together about how many people you’re willing to bring along, as well as who will understand your perspective on wanting a sustainable wedding day (and will respect it).
You can even have the best of both worlds by having your elopement day just the two of you, then celebrating at an Airbnb or other indoor venue with your guests later in the day! Elopements create space to do what you want without having to sacrifice your values.
State law varies on whether you’re legally required to have witnesses for your ceremony, but if you want it to be just the two of you, there are several ways to do things legally without compromising on the size of ceremony you want:
Get legally married at the courthouse before your elopement and do a vow reading for your elopement (with or without an officiant)
Get legally married on your elopement day with an officiant and have friends or family sign your marriage license later (just make sure you mail it within the state’s deadline)
Have people sign your marriage license that you see at your elopement location (it may seem weird but I promise, people are generally very excited to run into a couple on their elopement day and will be all for it)
Do a vow reading for your elopement day and get legally married at the courthouse at a later date
5. Travel sustainably for your elopement
If you’re traveling to your elopement location, there are absolutely ways that you can reduce waste and contribute a little less to negative environmental impact. One of the most effective ways is to consider where you’re staying. Here are a few places in the US that are putting forth efforts in practicing sustainability and how they do so:
Amangiri (Utah) & Amangani (Wyoming) — LED lighting, low-flow water systems, tree planting, composting, growing organic produce for their kitchens, commitment to eliminate single-use plastic
Dunton Hot Springs (Colorado) — renewable energy electricity, composting, creating their own candles in-house, organic diet supplementation with whey and organic waste given to a local farm, creating several dairy products in-house to decrease plastic waste
The Roost Treehouse (North Carolina) — LED lights, built with local sustainable materials such as cork, wool mattress, organic cotton sheets, sustainable cabinet stain (made from vinegar, coffee, and steel wool)
Hotel Terra Jackson Hole (Wyoming) — built with recycled and sustainable resources, beds and towels made with organic materials, low-flow water systems, waterless landscaping
Inn by the Sea (Maine) — non-toxic products, recycled building materials, composting, reusable glass water bottles, complementary EV charging stations for guests, wildlife protection efforts, solar panels to heat outdoor pool
The Nature Inn at Bald Eagle (Pennsylvania) — recycled and sustainable building materials, geothermal heat & AC, low-flow water fixtures, rainwater harvesting system for toilets, renewable energy
Viceroy Snowmass (Colorado) — environmentally responsible building practices, low-flow water fixtures, nontoxic housekeeping, recycling
Another way to reduce waste and impact is to camp! The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics has excellent information on how to camp in a way that won’t damage natural landscapes, and there are also structural campsites like this one in Texas that help minimize impact to the land as well. The photo above is one I took by that Texas campsite, and it was quite the view from our tent (we stayed next-door in the other campsite the host owns). Camping is also a great option for van-lifers who want to incorporate your adventurous lifestyle into your elopement day.
Having an eco-friendly elopement is simple, important, and makes the wedding industry a better place
Every single elopement that takes place in nature with a mindset focused on protecting the environment is a step in the right direction. You can still enjoy the great outdoors, get married in it, and celebrate your commitment to one another while having a minimal impact elopement, and that’s such an awesome gift!
The very fact that you’ve read this far shows you genuinely care about doing the right thing, and that on its own gives me hope for the future of public lands. If you implement these tips along with your eco-friendly mindset, you’ll be all set for your minimally-impactful elopement.
