270kgs of glass, 49kgs of plastic, 134kgs of paper and 191kgs of miscellaneous waste were collected after the Valletta Pageant of the Seas, as part of the Valletta 2018 Foundation’s sustainability efforts.

With the additional support of Green Skip Services, more than 600kg of materials were collected from this event only. This is just one of the good practices in place during Valletta 2018 events.

The Foundation works closely with Global Green Events, its Sustainability Consultant, event producers and other important stakeholders, to develop a number of sustainable initiatives for key events.  

Bins provided by Wasteserv were in place during a number of Valletta 2018 major events including the official opening, the Valletta Green Festival and Cantina. At the Valletta Green Festival and the EU-Japan Youth Choir concert, the use of disposable plastic water bottles was discouraged by providing water dispensers on-site as well as reusable bottles for staff and participants. Aquani sponsored 256 litres of water in dispensers over both events. This equates to approximately 500 small single-use plastic water bottles, thus the generation of additional plastic waste was avoided.

Educational initiatives are also incorporated during events. During the Valletta Green Festival, the team at Solar Cinema conducted interactive workshops with 120 school children and hosted a Solar Cinema projection where audiences had the opportunity to learn about environmental issues and get creative with solutions. Local NGOs Sharklab Malta, Żibel, the Gaia Foundation and Birdlife were also on site focusing on local environmental issues and encouraging the public to think of ideas on how to better care for the environment.  As part of Valletta 2018’s promotion of sustainable transport options, a Nextbike promo code was launched for users engage with the bicycles during the 4 day event .

With the valuable sponsorship of various entities including Aquani, Wasteserv and GSD Marketing Ltd, the Valletta 2018 Foundation has been able to implement strong initiatives such as responsible water consumption, effective resource collection and recycling.

The Mediterranean Sea is recognized as one of the most polluted bodies of water with regard to micro-plastics. With Malta being at the heart of the Mediterranean, these initiatives play a key role in reducing the volume of single-use plastic generated on site during events.

The process of developing a list of environmentally responsible suppliers and products that can be used is still underway. Those interested in participating in this initiative may send an e-mail on [email protected].

 

Valletta 2018 Premium Partners: General Soft Drinks Co. Ltd., Coca Cola, Bavaria and Bank of Valletta