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How the Green Gala stayed cool with sustainable, chic décor.
We at Tulsa’s Young Professionals held our first Green Gala on Saturday night and, if attendance and initial reviews are any indication, the Gala is well on its way to becoming the organization’s signature annual event.
The 300-400 people gathered at Harwelden Mansion enjoyed a variety of local and sustainable food catered by Eloté, including fresh pico bites and organic Bixby beef wraps. The event featured local music by Roger Jaeger, Annie Ellicott, Eric Himan and DJ Connection, thereby reducing pollution from travel.
Hosting the party at Harwelden helped us “green” the event. The mansion was so beautiful that it hardly required any disposable decorations. What we did add, we bought second-hand or borrowed, such as the potted plants that Tropical Plant Design loaned us for the evening. Efforts like this made the event not just environmentally friendly but also “sustainable.” People often summarize sustainability as something that promotes the three Ps: people, planet and profit. In planning the party, we always tried to find the best option that was not only easy on the planet but that was also budget-friendly and that supported local community members and businesses.
One of the best examples of this three-pronged approach at the Green Gala was the unveiling of a mobile solar power-generating trailer from SolarGen Systems, a new business started by several TYPros members. Their system powered all of the music and decorative lights for the Gala, but it can do much more. Not only are they helping the environment and making money, but their product can also benefit society by providing power in natural disasters, such as the ice storms we’ve seen in the last couple of winters.
The Green Gala planning committee has been active for many months and involved members from every work crew in Tulsa’s Young Professionals. This level of commitment within such a diverse organization of thousands of young Tulsans is really a testament to the growing importance of sustainability. Each member of the planning committee, and, I hope, each attendee of the party, learned something about being more sustainable. It is collaborative efforts such as these that will take sustainability out of the confines of environmentalist groups and into wider society.
If you would like to incorporate sustainable features into your next event, you don’t necessarily have to run it all on solar power. You could start by serving food on reusable plates and using real flatware; using local food and beer; and choosing a location that doesn’t need many temporary party decorations. We will each be doing our part when these are features of each gathering, not just an annual Green Gala — no matter how great of a party it is.
Claire Roby is a carbon accounting coordinator at Clean Air-Cool Planet, a nonprofit organization dedicated to identifying pragmatic solutions to global climate change. She is also an active member of the Sustainability Crew of Tulsa’s Young Professionals.
