I have just returned from a 4-day festival in Poland. Quite an intimate event (about 1,500 people). However, it could be a model for others. Before arriving, each participant was given a detailed list of things to take so that it was zero waste. On site - waste segregation everywhere. Zero plastic and disposable items. If you didn't have your cup - you could pay a deposit and rent a beautiful reusable cup for a few days. Don't have a plate or cutlery? There was a cupboard with thousands of plates waiting for you - all you had to do was pick one up, go to the food truck of your choice, and wash up after you finished your meal. Can it be done? Yes, it is possible - I saw it with my own eyes. Kisses from Warsaw. ❤❤❤
That's discusting. It always frustrates the he'll out of me seeing what people litter at these events. I once went to a big day out type festival in Australia around 20 years ago now. I took my own frozen water & carried a plastic bag that I attached to my backpack & disposed of on the way out. 😊 & The place was a mess then too buy not all the tents & chairs.
What really bothers me besides the wastefulness of it all, is the waste of money. I can not fathom being so well off you can just buy these reusable items and then just leave them behind. I am so tempted to go next year just so I can collect all the good items and re-sell them for profit. lol
@@Erinawesome17 Exactly! Don't they feel sorry for all the money they had spent on these items? It is not that they were rusty, broken or destroyed of use. These look brand new. Also creating so much litter leaves me with the impression that these people never matured on any practical, survival, hygiene and consciousness level...
No they dont care, they cant carry it all and some of those things break quickly anyway. I find it sad. I went to my first festival this summer and witnessed very similar behaviour. Was surprised why somebody does that. I cannot imagine not preparing for all that logistics in advance…
I've had the same tent for 15 years. Use it about 3 times a year, and it's still going strong. Only spent $129 on it. Why wouldn't you take your tent with you to use again the next year?
When I was in elementary school, after the teacher asked a kid to pick up their food trash, he asked why did we have to do it given that there was cleaning staff, the teacher answered that picking up trash isn’t their job, their job is to clean off dust, stains, things like that, but physical trash we caused was our responsibility, not theirs. If it’s easy enough for a kid to understand, why is it so hard for adults?
Climate Activists are generally spoilt middle class people from western nations. They will also travel and use much more resources in life than 92% of people on this planet.
The entitlement of saying, oh I paid for the cleaning, so why should I take responsibility for my own trash? Literally disgusting and these people should be banned from the next one.
Then ticket prices go up even more to pay for more litter picking. You should only have to pay for bins being emptied and then the rubbish sorted if people aren't dropping litter.
Ugh that's horrible.. I live in the airport city for Burning Man, and it drives me nuts when they leave, the trash, the bikes, the tents, the water bottles, the ridiculous runs to Walmart.. for a festival that is all about being self sufficient and sustainable, the hypocrisy is unreal
@@rubenskiii Actually no, the Burning Man festival is held in the Black Rock City desert, on the grounds of a dried lake bed. The sand there which is strongly alkaline has a tendency to contaminate and damage everything it touches. This means that it is very hard to recycle anything and usually has to be thrown away :( Like Dora said, the hypocrisy is unreal.
I wouldn't want to go there even if I lived nearby. You have to bring all the water you will be using and all the food you will be eating. So people coming from other countries or other parts of the USA who fly to the nearest airport have to buy everything they will use there and can't bring it back on the plane. They usually have to hire a campervan or RV to sleep in because of the dust storms.
Yes when my mom hired a cleaning lady we actually cleaned up first, mainly removing clutter so she could more easily do a deeper clean. Likewise when I'm in hotels I try to pick up my things & not leave them lying around so it's easier for them to clean.
People must have a lot of money if they can leave so many things. People who leave their things and says that other people get paid to clean are very childish, spoiled and only thinking of themselves. I feel only contempt.
@@mastermind4690 If you hadn't noticed, most of the world is in a recession with the standard of living plummeting. Even if things like that are cheaper, it still takes longer to save to buy them because so much of your money is going towards basics for survival, and the level for when you don't have enough money is creeping up so even middle class households are feeling it. It took me 2 months to save up to buy a tent to take my kids camping at my parents property, and my husband and I make more money than we ever have in our adult life. If you can afford to buy something that is meant to be reusable just to discard it, yes, you have a lot of money comparatively and probably don't even realize.
That is absurd. I can’t believe that many grown adults would leave their space like that, let alone expect the workers to clean up after them. Grow up and be responsible & clean up after yourself. Do better.
Yet, this can be seen in places of work aswell. My employers cleaning contract specifically forbits touching any items on desks/shelves as to avoid loosing something of value. (We got samples that might look like trash or dirt at the first sight.) Knowing this, people still leave trash around: banana peels, wrappings... It is often our manager that I see cleaning after some lower paid employee, which makes financially zero sense. Still people do it when ever no-one is watching.
When my kids were small we camped alot. We would go during the week when the camps were less populated. We would always go around to the empty camp sites and clean up the trash left from the weekenders. First, because it really needed to be done, second, because sometimes camping can get well, boring..but, on more than one occasion the camp manager gave us free days because we had done it. Win win
Many years ago the manager of a renfaire-kind event allowed us to stay a night longer because we offered to clean the camp site. I picked up so so so many cigarettes , it was unbelievable. (Note: It was on a field surrounded by forest. Who the fuck just throws his cigarette into nature?)
We used to camp a lot with my dad. The first thing he'd do (apart from jumping in the water to cool down after long drive) was clean the lake bed, beach and campsite. He did it for us, himself, everyone and the environment. He would go into the water and search for objects with his feet, he'd get cut sometimes but it never discouraged him. Thank you for doing your part.
That "I pay for cleaning, I'm entitled" mindset is something I have noticed a lot in the USA, South Korea and Brazil, where there's still a lot of social hierarchy regarding one's status. The lady of the house *does not clean* as long as there is a housekeeper available! The mother with her misbehaving brat *does not put back the stuff* as long as shop staff is available! It's their own little entitlement in a world where they are usually at the lower end of the privilege ladder, and by god, they are going to milk that opportunity to be someone "better" and have "staff"!
Have you been to the US or lived here? If you've never lived here are you getting this information on social media. I'm asking because I don't know anyone that let's their kids be brats or hire help to raise their children or clean their home. I live in a very conservative area , we punish our children and clean our own homes and our town is very well kept.
I used to cycle through a very wealthy street on a bus route when I was on the way to visit a friend who lived in social housing. People living there are so self entitled they walk or stand chatting in the middle of the road and they refused to get out of the way when I rang my bell.
#1 rule of camping: pack in and pack out and this is for any and everything the camper brings. Festival aftermath mess has been going on since Woodstock, but this level is insane and I agree that there should be a way to track the litterbugs, fine them and/or ban them from future events. Good on you for keeping it clean and real, blessed be!
When I first heard about this I was absolutely shocked. I'm from Poland and I've never met a person that would leave a functional tent etc. after the festival. It's so normal here (or at least in my circle) that you reuse all this things that it's hard to believe that it's even real.
I’ve only ever been to festivals in Czech Republic and never saw this level of mess either 🙈 It’s absolutely unthinkable for me to leave your tent, sleeping bag, chairs etc behind 😱
I think it's interesting, the way "the most important issue in sustainability/climate activism" gets used. The most important sustainability issue is the one that's currently in front of you. If you are buying groceries, the most important sustainability issue is things that affect your decision of what to buy. If you are attending a festival, the most important sustainability issue is how you conduct yourself before, during, and after the festival. Large-scale macro sustainability issues (fast fashion, fossil fuels) are also important sustainability issues, when we are faced with decisions where those issues have an impact (choosing what clothes to buy, or how to plan travel, etc). The largest issue when you are attending a festival is NOT what the fossil fuel companies are doing, because in the context of what you are participating in at that moment, the fossil fuel companies have very little impact on the decisions you make.
As someone who primarily goes to folk music festivals, the way other festivals think it’s ok to just… leave whole tents and rubbish in general feels unhinged to me. The idea that you don’t have to clean up your site when you pack-down never occurred to me as something anyone would do, that’s not been the expectation on any site I’ve camped. Absolutely wild.
I am repairing my tent while watching this. This behaviour is appaling, having camped at regular camping spaces and for years at Larps, the spaces have to be cleaned of the very last cigarette bud before you are allowed to leave. The only remnants are the yellow grass underneath the camps and the muddy walkways. Bottles can be donated to the red cross for the pfand money. Everyone brings their trash to the designated containers for trash and ashes. Its not perfect, there are some poor wooden furnitures on the last day next to the containers waiting to be rescued and packaging and paper trash recycling bins are not there. But 99 % of people clean up properly.and take all their stuff home. The behavior at festival camp is just baffling.
A few big festivals in the uk (I think, not 100% sure on this) now offers drop off points for tents, sleeping bags, camping chairs etc so it could go towards less privilaged families and the homeless and refugees who would genuinely find them very useful. I don't understand how there's no such "organised" drop off points for this when it could be such a positive contribution given the refugee crisis in europe. I've been to a metal festival with friends and we brought back our tent, camping chairs and everything else with us cause we could use it again in the next festival / camping trips??? They're not cheap equipments?!?
Roskilde does this as well (the festival mentioned), but the majority of People cannot be phaffed to bring their stuff to those points as it still requires pitching down the tent ect. Roskilde has really tried to encourage People to do this, unfortunatley the donation numbers are very low
I think if there could be a system where when you book you camping ticket, you get a specific pitch. With that pitch your name is attached, if you are digusting (this is absolutely disgusting), when cleaning if the pitch is left like this your name is barred from tickets for the next few years. This could be done in an app. Now obviously this is my own spitball idea but this could be done relatively easily with an app/pitch assignment tool. This shit bugs me so much and I hope these people reflect! Love the content as always Gittemary! 9:59
Thanks for the video, I literally talked about this yesterday with my Mom. There was a Taylor Swift concert in my city (Munich) some days ago and the next day in the park next to the venue there was far more trash than at a Metallica and an ACDC concert combined. Blankets and aluminium foils could easily be reused instead of being thrown away.
I actually had someone ask me in store today about why I brought my reusable bags. She seemed interested and I hope she at least left with something to think about.
You are 100% correct. This is an example of hyper-consumerism. The only way to change the paradigm, is when enough people change the habit. Last time I went to a festival I brought a backpack, hooded rain slicker, and a bottle opener.
I feel like this is an education problem. My parents are not environmentalists but we were raised to pick up our trash after a picnic and let the area clean. This is common decency. People saying they are paying and so they don't have to clean...what the hell? Once again, how were they raised to be so entitled and dismissive of people working in the service industry or volunteers? This kind of behavior makes me furious!!
My mom's block (in Kazakhstan) has recycling bins, but everyone keeps putting general trash there. I am trying to convince her that if she starts putting plastic and paper (at least) in the corresponding bins, people will notice and will follow, but she refutes by showing that the same trucks pick up the general trash and those bins, mixing everything together and just taking it all out to polygons. So, I am sceptical, but maybe the country is just in the beginning of the journey, hopefully one in the right direction. When trash collectors see that people do separate trash, maybe they will, too )
this has been an ongoing frustration in the Balkans as well, ever since the recycling bins were introduced. someone once posted a video of everything going into the same truck, and people always refer to that as "why should I bother then". but, the thing is, recycling centres and sorting centres cost money to build and operate, and there's no point to them if the public is not used to sorting their trash beforehand. so, unfortunately, we first need to be "trained" to sort our things in order for the next step to be implemented. but, if we don't change our behaviour, the systems aren't going to change either. thank you for helping enact change around you!
I live in a beach resort town and have NEVER had to buy sun chairs, beach towels, pool toys, beach crap for kids basically. Tourists just pile the crap (all basically new) on the beach by the public access and leave them there. Some people will put em in the trash but it’s insane to walk down the beach on a Sunday afternoon/Monsay afternoon after everyone leaves. It’s so sad really the waste and trash and money… smh…
I grew up in the 1980's, with cartoons like Captain Planet (which preached against polluting) and Seabert (against animal cruelty and hunting). I was also always told by my parents to save candy wrappers and other stuff in my pockets until I saw a waste bin where I could properly deposit it. They got angry at me if I just threw it away on the street, so I learned not to do that. My parents were also not well off, so I was raised with two incentives to recycle and save. I think a really good example is a throw-away bbq my parents got for a camping holiday. It was a small one, as big as the plates we used for dinner. But by refilling the coals we were able to use this one-time use throw-away bbq for at least three years, before gifting it to other people. Seeing all this waste after a festival itches me in three ways: it's so wasteful both for the environment, it is wasteful for your wallet, and it is just a dick move towards the people that have to clean.
I was already shocked when I saw your video on Instagram. I am shocked all over again. It makes me sad that people are still so careless. Still Thank you for your video. Love all of your content. ❤️
The bottom line is, we are all individuals, and as such, each individual who left their stuff behind, is responsbile for that. We have this in the UK too, after Glastonbury and every other festival. People are going to wonder, though, why so many people who go to festivals, who also openly declare that they are concerned about the environment, can also leave behind all this rubbish. I agree with what you've said, people don't (generally!) do that in hotels, do they, so why do they suddenly feel they are licensed to do this at a festival? However you look at it, it's still hypocritical, and I think people should practise what they preach.
People have accountability at a hotel because their card can be charged for any damage. Not so much at festivals it seems. Without accountability, some people take that as a license to do horrible things... :(
You would be horrified to see the camps set up in North America from climate protesters at various protest sites after they leave, we have literally had to get hazmat cleanup at some of the sites.
Festival tickets are a lot more expensive than they used to be and camping equipment is so much cheaper. I didn't pay a lot for my Reading festival ticket in 2002, I borrowed a tent because I couldn't afford to buy my own. I had to bring it home because my sister would expect to get it back and I couldn't afford to replace it. The situation now is 'I paid so much money to be here I can behave however I want' mixed with 'it was so cheap I would rather replace it than have to take it home'. Unfortunately the kind of people who can't afford to buy a new tent every year are also priced out of attending festivals.
This is crazy!!! I just returned from a 3 day metal/rock fest in Bulgaria and I am happy to say everybody picked up after themselves. In the festival area and especially in the camp area. We had reusable cups and all of the disposable cutlery and dishes were wooden or paper. It was not perfect but they improve it every year. Also if you want you could rent a festival tent that is set up in place for you when you get there - convenient for all people who don't want or can't bring their own. The price was very symbolic and the tents are pretty decent. Since our society is looking up to western Europe I really hope we don't pick up this bad habit of leaving your trash and treating tents, mattress and chairs as single use items just because we can afford it financially.
Pack it in, pack it out should be a universal standard! I was recently at a multi day event in Canada and when it was over the space looked the same as before anyone arrived.
A decade or more ago, the message was "consumerism is the problem", but for years now it's been "capitalism is the problem", and I wonder if that has fostered a mentality of "it's not my responsibility". You are the only one you can control. You should always consider how the world would be if everyone acted the way you do, and change your actions accordingly. If everyone did that, the world would be a good place.
better systems only work if individual people participate in them! I have an e-waste recycling center under a kilometer, two tram stops, under 10 minutes away from my house, and yet I keep seeing microwaves, coffee machines, lamps etc in the general waste in my apartment building's trash bins. yes we need better systems, but they don't exist in a vacuum, and do nothing if individuals don't change their ways to fit into new, better systems
I went to Glastonbury this year, which puts a lot of effort into the ethos of "Love the farm, leave no trace" and quite a few people STILL left their tents and airbeds and chairs. It made me so mad as I left. Yes it was better than the average festival probably but gah
1st off thats a lot of reusable "things" deemed as garbage! Its sad to see them go to waste. People need to be more mindful of the things they own, and the money they use to buy the things. I could never buy a tent, table, chairs, coolers and just leave it behind, I want them to last as long as possible. That is delulu in itself. But also the festival its self should just make it mandatory that people clean up and take home everything the festival goers brought with them, that would be a start of the festival taking action. Better yet, the festival could set up solutions for people who do not wish to take home their belongings. Maybe set it up so that if you no longer want a tent you can donate it to a homeless person, or even a young person who needs a tent for camping. I would have been so grateful as a young person to get a free tent to go camping in, that wasn't always something I could afford. So many ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle these things. To know that the festival doesn't enforce rules around belongings makes me think they are okay with cleaning the "trash" up, and if the festival wanted to do more they would.
Big festival has this problem everywhere i think. Ive seen it here in sweden many Times after festival.. its makes me think that People dont care about The stuff they buy for a festival and trowing trash everywhere in The camp site or think about the climate change.. it makes me sad.
i found a big Kmart (big australian cheap department store) tent in hard rubish (council run free dumping on your street days)... and the only thing that was wrong with it was the elastic in one of the three tent poles was broken.. VERY easily replaced ( and I did) .. and I'm still using that tent 5 years later!! a couple of the tent pole links need replacing now - and I have found replacements... and one of the zips needs work (not essential zip tho) :)
I've seen this behaviour too, even in a festival in state-protected nature. Thankfully it was by a minority,and others have rescued most of the usable items left behind, and took the rest to the trash collection. But it was something I never forgot - how little these people leaving stuff behind think about others and how self-centered they are. How we handle our surroundings says something about our character, in my opinion. It must be difficult to be around them the rest of the time too.
From the comments here, I think there's a huge demographic distance between people who do wilderness camping and people who do festival camping. I was definitely taught leave no trace, so it's hard to understand the mindset where someone would take the time and trouble bring a dining table to a festival...and then just leave it there
As a gen Xer, I have always lived my life by doing what i want to see changed. I choose to live by example. it does not work trying to force others to do what i want. so if you younger kids want to change. make the changes you want to see. call out the bad behavior, but trying to bully people make it so they ignore your ideas. if a company is not supporting your values do not give them your money. my question how often do you upgrade your phone? If you do not like fossil fuel develop products that don't use them. it will be hard. but billions will cease to exist without that fuel until the new infrastructure is build and in place.
@@t.dig.2040 Vegan diets can be local too and don't fund the extremely polluting and cruel animal ag. (And yes, it's just as cruel and polluting when it's 'local')
@thebowandbullet pollution? cow patties on the high desert range are oases of life, whereas a farm is where the petroleum chemicals enter the soil. Animals need plants, plants need soil, soil needs animals. By demonizing animal agriculture, you are throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
oh my... that's wild, I can't believe this is the reality we live in. How can anyone think this is okay? In the country I live in now, the value of nature is deeply tied to the people's history and culture. I've been to festivals here and the campsites are left as clean if not cleaner as before, people pick everything dirty up they can find. It's very rare to find trash out in nature and if we do, we pick it up and dispose of it on our walks. This is so saddening and concerning to see!
100% realate the discussion "what I do dont matter bc bla bla bla. Bigger picture.." ... So tired of that thats what we are STILL talking and obviously allowing themselves to think and behave accordingly.
Kudos to the companies that come in and recycle some the items left behind. Still, it's very sad. "Leave things better than you found them" my father use to say. Personal responsibility is what is lacking. And concern for other living things.
Unfortunately that's not a new phenomenon. I grew up in the region where the "Sonne Mond Sterne" festival in Germany takes place. This has been going on at least since I attended the festival as a teenager, 20+ years ago. However, it seems to have gotten worse in the last decade. And I never understood how people can just do that. Maybe that's my working class background speaking, or my eco consciousness, or both. But it boggles my mind every time. Because you can be sure that those that leave everything behind are the ones complaining, when at home, how expensive things have become.
This is very much an aside, but... I've always been incredibly conscientious about not leaving litter. When I started to spend more time in London there weren't any bins in the railway stations, because this wasn't long after 9/11 and the London terror attacks (I think in most major stations there still aren't any). So I used to collect up any food wrapping etc. and put it in my bag to carry with me until I found a public bin - but my ex-boyfriend did suggest that by leaving the rubbish in the station, we would ensure the station management employed the cleaners. I still think it's best to treat a place (and the cleaners) with respect and not litter... But he has a point: we know that capitalism is going to capitalism, and if the management can sack half their workforce because the station users are taking their waste with them... We all know they will cut that cost and sack those people. On the specific point about festivals: I've been to several times in the UK, to a festival that appeals more to a younger crowd, and another that appeals more broadly (lots of families as well as elder people go, as the offering is broader than music alone)... And my experience was the younger-appeal one was the worse in terms of how people treated it. Stuff was left (some tents were even set on fire) and there was so much rubbish. Maybe at the more family-friendly one, people were more conscious of little kids being around so 1) you feel pressure to set those kids a good example and 2) concern about little barefoot kids running in the grass with discarded drinks cans and bottles.
About capitalism : in the communistic ussr metroes never had trash bins . NEVER. They calculated it would be too much work to Maintain such a big system . They employed cleaners to sweep and wash floors but not to empty bins and clean areas around . So, it has nothing to do with capitalism . Now there are still no trash bins inside Moscow underground . Partly because of terroristic threats . And you know what -I never even noticed that . Until saw some video on RUclips .
WTH? In my childhood when we were going camping in nearby woods first and last thing we did was cleaning the place. Gosh, I was taught not to through a candy wrap on the street! And they just left everything😮
The real issue is all those people commenting siding with that disgusting behaviour! Just because you have a 'right' to do something, doesnt make it good.
No doubt in mind that’s gen z and I say this as a zoomer myself. The boomers are right here, we’re the most hypocritical and selfish generation yet to exist and we were practically raised with a victim mentality by default. Let’s stop shifting the blame and tell the truth for what it is, every generation achieved something great for the betterment of the world in some degree except for us
That is so absurd to me... all the festivals I have been to or worked at have had a "pack in pack out" ethos... Can't believe in a country like Denmark where I thought people were a lot more aware stuff like this happens...
It's called entitlement, a generation raised to never think of others, to think their feelings are the only ones that matter , and to think the world revolves around them, and when you point these things out they come back with name calling .... most are extremely hypocritical
I've been to a metal fest and worked at a few at a temp agency, most of it was very much cleaned up before we moved in to start cleaning. Only items left behind were crushed beer cans which could easily be thrown into a truck, crushed and recycled. Not including lost items. However the hippie fests, EDM, Country were the worst. Surprisingly a few pop concerts were clean as metal here and there. The US has a big culture against littering (with the exception of some groups and cities) and even bigger in my home state of Florida. Which our ecosystem takes the forefront of things. Lots of tourists would trash the beaches or city. I watched teens who you'd think pull this mentality grab their trash and throw it away. There is always outliers though, people not taught right. If I ever tried to throw trash on the ground or didn't throw it away I expected to be nagged at by my parents. Better yet you might see someone actually snap at you if you were to leave trash out. "Clean up after yourself I'm not your mother"
Unbelievable. Anyone leaving their tent or airmatress etc behind after an event has no right to ever complain about being poor. If you can afford to waste a tent, you’re a spoiled entitled brat.
Honestly, I'm not surprised. I saw this stuff at a local mini-burn festival. Most people do not care about the principles of the community ~ they just want to party, do drugs, whatever. We had a ban on using the river due to changes in our local salmon spawning (bc of climate change) and people just ignored it. There wasn't any enforcement either. People leave all sorts of things despite one of the primary principles being "leave no trace". We need better vetting for these festivals and consequences for waste/being an AH. Also, we should have groups responsible for bringing items and single ticketers only allowed to bring in a small pack of items, or neccesary items. Everything else provided for. It would make it easier for those just starting out & provide more funding for groups who make structures/events.
Good video, I agree with most of your observations. I do feel the need to encourage you to look into the environmental implications of those "spray creams". It's a shame "fast camping" cannot have built in infustructure to help the homeless etc. I brought 2 cheap tents for my children to backyard camp during school holidays. I didn't expect them to last, I'm happy to say they have. I love the push to create more sustainable options. I do hope it doesn't come at the cost of affordable options for those suffering from poverty related hardships.
I don't think I've ever been to a metal festival that looked this bad after... and just from the few snippets you showed, I saw a lot of wish and alibaba garbage... Figures. Can't have pride of ownership when you buy things that are trash from the start.
LOVE this video :) I also love that you talk about different things then other people on youtube do. Plus your vibe of "fu#k that"" is so my thing :P In terms of festivals I do know "some" will walk around and take any equipment or items that are in "good" condition and donate it to organizations / poor. In fact I know some even tell the event goes to leave the stuff there.... HOWEVER I am of the mind if you brought it in you have to take it out !!!! Plus I'm curious how they got a full sized sofa in without staff saying anything???? Being an environmentalist / "tree hugger according to my brother" all my life I have herd it a thousand times from people I talk to.... it is NEVER their fault !!!! its always the corporations !!!!
Most of those attending the festival are not climate activists despite the organisers inviting speakers on environmental issues. They are there for the music and couldn't care less about environmental issues. That's why they leave the festival in a mess. Festival organisers do their best to minimise environmental impact. At the Glastonbury Festival plastic bottles and cups were banned a few years ago. Instead people buy a pint-sized steel cup that they buy beer in at the Workers' Beer Tent. At the end of the festival they hand it in and get their deposit back or keep it.
Ngl, that’s prime wook shopping. Love collecting the things I can fit into my car after a festival. Saw a nice grill that I wish I had room for but hopefully someone else got to give it longer life. Crazy to see what things get left behind.
As a follower, I know you’ve talked about ALL of this over and over. I can’t imagine how frustrating it is to have someone catch your video who has never seen your content before and then tries to school you or tell you you’re doing this wrong 🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️ you seem pretty good at letting a lot of it roll off your back, but just wanted to remind you anyway that there are a lot of us here who hear you and LEARN from you all the time! I always appreciate your perspective 😊
People destroy their hotel rooms. I was a house keeper, I've seen the evidence. Also there are people few and far between that actually leave their hotel rooms nice. 😢
Jeez. Imagine how rich these people are! I can't relate to having SO MUCH disposable income that I can buy tents, matresses, chairs, tables and then just... leave it. And then buy more? Like wtf?! If my tent gets messy, I clean it.
Production side destruction of the environment is most important, but also how are we going to hold industry accountable if we don't also have basic personal standards? It's not either/or, it's BOTH
I grew up with the "Pack it in! Pack it out!" mentality. I'm a Boomer who volunteers at faires... I am both a Maker & a Consumer so I am culpable for anything and everything I handle.
I'm 59, been to many States and a few Nations, most "activists" I've encounterd are hypocrites. Even worse, many are violent attention seeking malciontents who thrive on harming anything: people, places, animals. Anthing to create unrest and cause stress. Being hailed as a champion for Cosplaying as a concerned person simply provides greater motivation. Few today demonstrate they know how to graciously take a win and move on. Rather, they become the problem they assert to take issue with while ignoring similar, if not worse issues; perplexing.
Oh this reminds me... (the part about leaving perfectly fine inflatable mattresses, coolers, etc.) When we were traveling to Hawaii, I came across a FB group where people would be passing on this kind of stuff that they bought on vacation (coolers, beach toys for kids, etc. but also food and drinks they got but didn't finish the packs - because Costco and bulk buying... - apparently it was common practice for American tourists to land in Hawaii and directly go to Costco first) 👀 At least they were trying to find someone to pass them on to before leaving but if you don't? Then it's just trash? You bought something to only use for a week or two and then to abandon? 🤯 It was so bizarre and what a waste when you consider the scale at which this must be happening...
It sorta feels now that the same way how companies shifted all the balme on consumers, nowadays consumers just push the guilt back to companies and free themselves from all responsibily. There is not much you can do when you buy new shirt and the materail starts tearing apart after one or two years or when you are forced to get a new phone every 1-2 years. Buyin a cheap tent with the intention to use it on a festival and leave it there is all on you, can't shift the blame on anyone else for that.
In Southwest Germany, we have every year a gathering/camp of Wild West Reenactors. We live there for about 2 weeks. We leave our campground spotless. Because, if anybody leaves his trash behind, he would not been invited the next year. And yes, we have to pay for the waste removal too!
I enjoy avoiding crowds of people like this ? They trash all venues and protests . These gatherings are not considered camping ? Camping is done to be alone with nature and your loved ones. Leaving your equipment or trash behind is just plain sick !
this is so weird for me to see! i visit techno festivals in germany and it's very normal people take their trash with them. Some festivals have a Müllpfandsystem, you get like10 € back when you hand in a bag of waste when leaving. It`s hard to find enough stuff on the ground for Müllpfand!
Students International in Champaign Illinois they leave entire Apartments of furniture food clothing home goods behind. We furnished a 2 bedroom apartment from top to bottom in 3 weeks including brand new 5000 in plastic mattress. Brand new sofa 800. A entire studio for my art. Book shelves. Caroets paintings I mean it would have cost minimum 20,000 to replace new. It's Mind-blowing how much isvjust tossed in the trash. While people in my building had virtually nothing of value. But wouldn't take free stuff. It was very odd to me from Portland Oregon. I have NEVER ordered on Amazon. Only buy shoes and undies new. I have lived as a true conservative and never lacked for any material goods. Fit Nok Vid ! I lived in Arhus still best friends with Lone and Jeppe. I metvMiles Davis at Roskilde in the 80s. Mek Pik and the Allrights. My first love was the drummer ♥️ we are still good friends 38 years later. But they taught mebThe Danish of a Arhus Bricklayer according to the one I met back in the US LOL. Maggie Who has Learned you Danish ! That is Not the Queens Danish. And I had been so excited to show off for my study program head. JeggecElsker Danmark. I traveled with the band. Had so much fun. Accidentally kidnapped your Prince now King. We thought hevwas a rich kid hiding from Security. So we snuck him backstage. Jeppe said, "Maggie thats the Fucking prince of Denmark. Give him Back Now ! So we did. Who knew Jeppe was a royal watcher 😅
Happens all the time in the Minnesota woods too usually well off people, poor people have to reuse everything. Has gotten worse we need to identify and shame these people relentlessly in like and on line
I was at festivals in the 90ies, we already lived in a consumerist capitalistic society - but none of us left so much behind. Maybe empty bottles or sleeping backs that somebody was sick on, but tables, couches, tents? - hell no. I don't get that at all??? 😵
Went to a festival once and our camp group kept our area trashed on purpose. No one in our group got any of their items stolen that they left out when sleeping, it was camouflaged in the trash. We of course picked up the trash at the end.
here's the thing that annoys the crap out of me. people want big companies to take responsibility for climate change. and yes, they are the ones making the biggest impact with making these cheap disposable products and all. but why do people think they sell those things? you could point to a lot of reasons, but the ultimate reason? IT SELLS!!!!! you can absolutely buy American made clothing that is made with either natural or recyclable materials in a place where you know people got paid a fair wage, but why do that when a shirt costs 40 dollars and I can get like, 10 of them from Temu for the same price? You can buy a beautiful piece of furniture from a local craftsman that is made of natural materials and is sourced responsibly, and also grow your local economy. So why not do that? Because that will cost more than the crap you buy at Walmart. no sh*t people. quality items have a higher price tag. If you literally can't afford it, that's one thing. But those Temu shirts won't last nearly as long as the more expensive one. and craftsman made products are typically better made because it's a few people who have a passion for making good furniture instead of just churning out junk as fast as they can. people need to stop this insane desire to buy the cheapest thing they find and think that is good enough. I'm not saying not to look for sales or anything, but we are penny pinching ourselves into this disposable lifestyle and blaming companies because we don't want to take responsibility for it. as if Walmart is just reaching into your pocket and stealing your wallet, refusing to return it until you agree to buy something. Look, I don't research every little thing I buy before I buy it either, I'm nowhere near perfect. but we can absolutely do better. and when we make better choices with our money, and those companies make less because we aren't buying crap, guess what they do? they up their game and sell better products. you can make all the complaints about capitalism you want, but the reason its better is because you can literally vote with your dollar. they pay attention to what sells because they want you to buy their stuff. use capitalism to your advantage. it takes time, but it will work. how do you think these fast fashion brands got popular in the first place? They didn't just appear out of thin air with billions of dollars in their pockets. consumers gave them that money. spend wiser.
The images you showed of the area around your camp site were so disheartening. It was a real gut punch. Can the rest of us even care enough or do enough to undo the damages that were done there?
i just realised as I'm watching this that I'm repairing the pocket on a pair of my scrub pants which are almost 10 years old (i think, i don't remember when i bought them)... even tho my workplace has an annual scrub allowance for employees. i know that since I've worked for this clinic (since late 2019) I've not utilised my scrub allowance. I've bought one pair of new scrubs (tags still on them) from good will, and that's it😆
In the current economic climate I don't know who can really afford to keep buying things that they KNOW they will dispose of instantly just b/c they were cheap and replaceable. Nothing is cheap enough these days for me to waste my $$ buying it only to throw it away, my money is not disposable!! There is also a level of respect here, for certain, that is set terribly LOW, on a number of topics! As soon as I clicked on this vid, I knew the amnt of unpicking she would have to do to talk about all the problems with this would be epic!
Cleaning up your own mess means taking personal responsibility, being aware of the needs as feelings of the humans around you, and genuinely caring about your environment. Rallying against climate change involves little more than writing checks and going to fashionable parties and festivals. If your wealthy friends who care so much about climate won't bother to clean up after themselves, it does say something about whether they feel personally responsible for their environment.
People (the individuals) have the power in how they spend their money. If they insist on sustainable products, the companies will produce them. The nonsustainable products would sit on the shelves til the companies listen to the buying public.
I recommend you to look up Boom festival, they have a zero waste policy, people (35k-44k ppl) showering there use non chemical shampoos and the entire area is left absolutely squeaky clean. It's in Portugal, and is Europe's version of burning man, you can basically stay in a cardboard tent or donate your camping gear at the end of it by the exit. The money from the festival goes directly into preserving the area, and waste from all the sustainable toilets are planted into the soil etc, it's a prime example of a festival being held in a sustainable way, you wont even find a single cigarette butt while walking around in the sand, it feels more like a week long vacation than festival survival. Festivals like Roskilde in Denmark doesn't really have a cleanliness profile, instead it's known as a long drinking party where you sorta wind up trudging through plastic cups, trash and piss and mud by the midpoint of it- and it's a shame. But the organizers honestly don't put a big emphasis on the cleanliness part of it, if they were brave enough they would launch a campaign before the festival with new guidelines and give people pocket ashtrays and work on their litter management to slowly change the festivals culture for the better, but y'know, that could cost a bit of the extra profit.. People act according to the environment you design for them, so a lot of the blame falls on the organizers. (then again I feel like a lot of people litter a ton in our parks here in Copenhagen when they're filled to the brim due to an event or something, it saddens me a bit I wish we could be better about it)
I work in a hotel here in the city (Copenhagen) and some people are so disrespectful when it comes to staying in the hotel. Someone left chunks of watermelon in the guest kitchen but some was squashed on the floor. If that had been me I would have cleaned it up. When I was a kid, we’d go on holiday in my parents caravan and one of me/my brother’s jobs during pack up was to walk our pitch and make sure there’s no rubbish, no pegs and nothing left behind. When I went away with my church youth group, I’d be the one walking our bit and making sure it was clean even if all my friends were just chilling out waiting for the bus. I don’t think it’s solely a Roskilde issue, I’m sure Glastonbury for instance has the same issue. I could be wrong but the people cleaning the site after are volunteers are they not? So they don’t actually see any of that ticket money as a “wage”, they get paid in a ticket to the festival (or at least one day while they work another day). I think it’s often that someone else will deal with the issue type attitude.
I have just returned from a 4-day festival in Poland. Quite an intimate event (about 1,500 people). However, it could be a model for others. Before arriving, each participant was given a detailed list of things to take so that it was zero waste. On site - waste segregation everywhere. Zero plastic and disposable items. If you didn't have your cup - you could pay a deposit and rent a beautiful reusable cup for a few days. Don't have a plate or cutlery? There was a cupboard with thousands of plates waiting for you - all you had to do was pick one up, go to the food truck of your choice, and wash up after you finished your meal. Can it be done? Yes, it is possible - I saw it with my own eyes. Kisses from Warsaw. ❤❤❤
😮
Fantastic ❤❤❤❤
That's discusting. It always frustrates the he'll out of me seeing what people litter at these events. I once went to a big day out type festival in Australia around 20 years ago now. I took my own frozen water & carried a plastic bag that I attached to my backpack & disposed of on the way out. 😊 & The place was a mess then too buy not all the tents & chairs.
you came from a festival in Poland to... Warsaw?😂
That’s so wonderful!
I can't believe people think it's okay to buy a tent and chairs and mattresses and just leave them behind as trash!!!! 🤯 Wtf? This makes me sick.
What really bothers me besides the wastefulness of it all, is the waste of money. I can not fathom being so well off you can just buy these reusable items and then just leave them behind. I am so tempted to go next year just so I can collect all the good items and re-sell them for profit. lol
@@Erinawesome17 Exactly! Don't they feel sorry for all the money they had spent on these items? It is not that they were rusty, broken or destroyed of use. These look brand new. Also creating so much litter leaves me with the impression that these people never matured on any practical, survival, hygiene and consciousness level...
No they dont care, they cant carry it all and some of those things break quickly anyway. I find it sad. I went to my first festival this summer and witnessed very similar behaviour. Was surprised why somebody does that. I cannot imagine not preparing for all that logistics in advance…
I've had the same tent for 15 years. Use it about 3 times a year, and it's still going strong. Only spent $129 on it. Why wouldn't you take your tent with you to use again the next year?
It’s just mind-boggling to me.
When I was in elementary school, after the teacher asked a kid to pick up their food trash, he asked why did we have to do it given that there was cleaning staff, the teacher answered that picking up trash isn’t their job, their job is to clean off dust, stains, things like that, but physical trash we caused was our responsibility, not theirs.
If it’s easy enough for a kid to understand, why is it so hard for adults?
Ego
Climate Activists are generally spoilt middle class people from western nations. They will also travel and use much more resources in life than 92% of people on this planet.
They do understand. Yet they are lazy. So they pretend and put out a facade to not have to say that they are lazy.
The entitlement of saying, oh I paid for the cleaning, so why should I take responsibility for my own trash? Literally disgusting and these people should be banned from the next one.
Then ticket prices go up even more to pay for more litter picking. You should only have to pay for bins being emptied and then the rubbish sorted if people aren't dropping litter.
Ugh that's horrible.. I live in the airport city for Burning Man, and it drives me nuts when they leave, the trash, the bikes, the tents, the water bottles, the ridiculous runs to Walmart.. for a festival that is all about being self sufficient and sustainable, the hypocrisy is unreal
There's a few programs to deal with it but still is gross
I guess everyone in that city has free bikes, tents and other equipment.
@@rubenskiii Actually no, the Burning Man festival is held in the Black Rock City desert, on the grounds of a dried lake bed. The sand there which is strongly alkaline has a tendency to contaminate and damage everything it touches. This means that it is very hard to recycle anything and usually has to be thrown away :( Like Dora said, the hypocrisy is unreal.
I wouldn't want to go there even if I lived nearby. You have to bring all the water you will be using and all the food you will be eating. So people coming from other countries or other parts of the USA who fly to the nearest airport have to buy everything they will use there and can't bring it back on the plane. They usually have to hire a campervan or RV to sleep in because of the dust storms.
Paying for cleaning is not the same as paying for permission to be an arsehole.
This
Yes when my mom hired a cleaning lady we actually cleaned up first, mainly removing clutter so she could more easily do a deeper clean. Likewise when I'm in hotels I try to pick up my things & not leave them lying around so it's easier for them to clean.
@donaldjohnson-ow3kq That's some self-awareness right there. 😄
“Carbon offsetting”
I agree that there is no one important issue. That is used to deflect attention away from an issue. The right wing usually use it.
People must have a lot of money if they can leave so many things. People who leave their things and says that other people get paid to clean are very childish, spoiled and only thinking of themselves. I feel only contempt.
Nowadays, you don't need to be very rich to buy things that used to cost quite a lot of money.
@@mastermind4690speak for yourself! I couldn’t afford all of those items together, never mind the festival ticket, transport, food, drinks etc. 😂
@@mastermind4690 If you hadn't noticed, most of the world is in a recession with the standard of living plummeting. Even if things like that are cheaper, it still takes longer to save to buy them because so much of your money is going towards basics for survival, and the level for when you don't have enough money is creeping up so even middle class households are feeling it. It took me 2 months to save up to buy a tent to take my kids camping at my parents property, and my husband and I make more money than we ever have in our adult life.
If you can afford to buy something that is meant to be reusable just to discard it, yes, you have a lot of money comparatively and probably don't even realize.
That is absurd. I can’t believe that many grown adults would leave their space like that, let alone expect the workers to clean up after them. Grow up and be responsible & clean up after yourself. Do better.
Yet, this can be seen in places of work aswell. My employers cleaning contract specifically forbits touching any items on desks/shelves as to avoid loosing something of value. (We got samples that might look like trash or dirt at the first sight.) Knowing this, people still leave trash around: banana peels, wrappings... It is often our manager that I see cleaning after some lower paid employee, which makes financially zero sense. Still people do it when ever no-one is watching.
Some are like that in hotels too. Which means that domestic staff don't have time to clean all the rooms properly.
When my kids were small we camped alot. We would go during the week when the camps were less populated. We would always go around to the empty camp sites and clean up the trash left from the weekenders. First, because it really needed to be done, second, because sometimes camping can get well, boring..but, on more than one occasion the camp manager gave us free days because we had done it. Win win
Many years ago the manager of a renfaire-kind event allowed us to stay a night longer because we offered to clean the camp site. I picked up so so so many cigarettes , it was unbelievable. (Note: It was on a field surrounded by forest. Who the fuck just throws his cigarette into nature?)
We used to camp a lot with my dad. The first thing he'd do (apart from jumping in the water to cool down after long drive) was clean the lake bed, beach and campsite. He did it for us, himself, everyone and the environment. He would go into the water and search for objects with his feet, he'd get cut sometimes but it never discouraged him.
Thank you for doing your part.
That "I pay for cleaning, I'm entitled" mindset is something I have noticed a lot in the USA, South Korea and Brazil, where there's still a lot of social hierarchy regarding one's status. The lady of the house *does not clean* as long as there is a housekeeper available! The mother with her misbehaving brat *does not put back the stuff* as long as shop staff is available! It's their own little entitlement in a world where they are usually at the lower end of the privilege ladder, and by god, they are going to milk that opportunity to be someone "better" and have "staff"!
Have you been to the US or lived here? If you've never lived here are you getting this information on social media. I'm asking because I don't know anyone that let's their kids be brats or hire help to raise their children or clean their home. I live in a very conservative area , we punish our children and clean our own homes and our town is very well kept.
It goes on all over the world with some rich people.
I used to cycle through a very wealthy street on a bus route when I was on the way to visit a friend who lived in social housing. People living there are so self entitled they walk or stand chatting in the middle of the road and they refused to get out of the way when I rang my bell.
#1 rule of camping: pack in and pack out and this is for any and everything the camper brings. Festival aftermath mess has been going on since Woodstock, but this level is insane and I agree that there should be a way to track the litterbugs, fine them and/or ban them from future events. Good on you for keeping it clean and real, blessed be!
When I first heard about this I was absolutely shocked. I'm from Poland and I've never met a person that would leave a functional tent etc. after the festival. It's so normal here (or at least in my circle) that you reuse all this things that it's hard to believe that it's even real.
I’ve only ever been to festivals in Czech Republic and never saw this level of mess either 🙈
It’s absolutely unthinkable for me to leave your tent, sleeping bag, chairs etc behind 😱
I think it's interesting, the way "the most important issue in sustainability/climate activism" gets used. The most important sustainability issue is the one that's currently in front of you. If you are buying groceries, the most important sustainability issue is things that affect your decision of what to buy. If you are attending a festival, the most important sustainability issue is how you conduct yourself before, during, and after the festival.
Large-scale macro sustainability issues (fast fashion, fossil fuels) are also important sustainability issues, when we are faced with decisions where those issues have an impact (choosing what clothes to buy, or how to plan travel, etc). The largest issue when you are attending a festival is NOT what the fossil fuel companies are doing, because in the context of what you are participating in at that moment, the fossil fuel companies have very little impact on the decisions you make.
As someone who primarily goes to folk music festivals, the way other festivals think it’s ok to just… leave whole tents and rubbish in general feels unhinged to me. The idea that you don’t have to clean up your site when you pack-down never occurred to me as something anyone would do, that’s not been the expectation on any site I’ve camped. Absolutely wild.
I am repairing my tent while watching this. This behaviour is appaling, having camped at regular camping spaces and for years at Larps, the spaces have to be cleaned of the very last cigarette bud before you are allowed to leave. The only remnants are the yellow grass underneath the camps and the muddy walkways.
Bottles can be donated to the red cross for the pfand money.
Everyone brings their trash to the designated containers for trash and ashes. Its not perfect, there are some poor wooden furnitures on the last day next to the containers waiting to be rescued and packaging and paper trash recycling bins are not there.
But 99 % of people clean up properly.and take all their stuff home.
The behavior at festival camp is just baffling.
A few big festivals in the uk (I think, not 100% sure on this) now offers drop off points for tents, sleeping bags, camping chairs etc so it could go towards less privilaged families and the homeless and refugees who would genuinely find them very useful. I don't understand how there's no such "organised" drop off points for this when it could be such a positive contribution given the refugee crisis in europe. I've been to a metal festival with friends and we brought back our tent, camping chairs and everything else with us cause we could use it again in the next festival / camping trips??? They're not cheap equipments?!?
I know Glastonbury did this in 2023 and would assume it happens every year
Roskilde does this as well (the festival mentioned), but the majority of People cannot be phaffed to bring their stuff to those points as it still requires pitching down the tent ect. Roskilde has really tried to encourage People to do this, unfortunatley the donation numbers are very low
@@trinesrensen6821Yeah the problem is people not wanting to put in any effort.
I think if there could be a system where when you book you camping ticket, you get a specific pitch. With that pitch your name is attached, if you are digusting (this is absolutely disgusting), when cleaning if the pitch is left like this your name is barred from tickets for the next few years. This could be done in an app. Now obviously this is my own spitball idea but this could be done relatively easily with an app/pitch assignment tool. This shit bugs me so much and I hope these people reflect! Love the content as always Gittemary! 9:59
How do you control that others don't leave their trash on your pitch and you're held responsible?
@@Offensive_Username Honestly, I don't know. That's a good point. Do you have any suggestions on how that might be discouraged or prevented?
@@twilighterification I would say deposits on everything. Make people pay and if they return with a full trashbag, they get the money back.
@@Foundlilly11some of these ppl don’t seem to care abt money tho…
Thanks for the video, I literally talked about this yesterday with my Mom. There was a Taylor Swift concert in my city (Munich) some days ago and the next day in the park next to the venue there was far more trash than at a Metallica and an ACDC concert combined. Blankets and aluminium foils could easily be reused instead of being thrown away.
I actually had someone ask me in store today about why I brought my reusable bags. She seemed interested and I hope she at least left with something to think about.
You are 100% correct. This is an example of hyper-consumerism. The only way to change the paradigm, is when enough people change the habit. Last time I went to a festival I brought a backpack, hooded rain slicker, and a bottle opener.
I feel like this is an education problem. My parents are not environmentalists but we were raised to pick up our trash after a picnic and let the area clean. This is common decency.
People saying they are paying and so they don't have to clean...what the hell? Once again, how were they raised to be so entitled and dismissive of people working in the service industry or volunteers?
This kind of behavior makes me furious!!
Buying a tent and leaving it behind is wild behavior. I can’t even fathom that.
My mom's block (in Kazakhstan) has recycling bins, but everyone keeps putting general trash there. I am trying to convince her that if she starts putting plastic and paper (at least) in the corresponding bins, people will notice and will follow, but she refutes by showing that the same trucks pick up the general trash and those bins, mixing everything together and just taking it all out to polygons. So, I am sceptical, but maybe the country is just in the beginning of the journey, hopefully one in the right direction. When trash collectors see that people do separate trash, maybe they will, too )
this has been an ongoing frustration in the Balkans as well, ever since the recycling bins were introduced. someone once posted a video of everything going into the same truck, and people always refer to that as "why should I bother then". but, the thing is, recycling centres and sorting centres cost money to build and operate, and there's no point to them if the public is not used to sorting their trash beforehand. so, unfortunately, we first need to be "trained" to sort our things in order for the next step to be implemented. but, if we don't change our behaviour, the systems aren't going to change either. thank you for helping enact change around you!
I live in a beach resort town and have NEVER had to buy sun chairs, beach towels, pool toys, beach crap for kids basically. Tourists just pile the crap (all basically new) on the beach by the public access and leave them there. Some people will put em in the trash but it’s insane to walk down the beach on a Sunday afternoon/Monsay afternoon after everyone leaves. It’s so sad really the waste and trash and money… smh…
As someone who does a lot of back country camping, i'm mortified by the state of those camp sites. What happened to ''leave no trace''
I don’t understand why so many people leave tents? Is it because they don’t have cars to lug stuff home?
Not really. They did manage to find ways to get the tents there, so they can lug stuff around - when they can be bothered.
I grew up in the 1980's, with cartoons like Captain Planet (which preached against polluting) and Seabert (against animal cruelty and hunting). I was also always told by my parents to save candy wrappers and other stuff in my pockets until I saw a waste bin where I could properly deposit it. They got angry at me if I just threw it away on the street, so I learned not to do that. My parents were also not well off, so I was raised with two incentives to recycle and save. I think a really good example is a throw-away bbq my parents got for a camping holiday. It was a small one, as big as the plates we used for dinner. But by refilling the coals we were able to use this one-time use throw-away bbq for at least three years, before gifting it to other people.
Seeing all this waste after a festival itches me in three ways: it's so wasteful both for the environment, it is wasteful for your wallet, and it is just a dick move towards the people that have to clean.
The Womble in me is utterly shocked by the amount of stuff left behind. It takes the meaning of built in redundancy to a whole other level.😩
I was already shocked when I saw your video on Instagram. I am shocked all over again. It makes me sad that people are still so careless. Still Thank you for your video. Love all of your content. ❤️
Pack it in, pack it out
The bottom line is, we are all individuals, and as such, each individual who left their stuff behind, is responsbile for that. We have this in the UK too, after Glastonbury and every other festival. People are going to wonder, though, why so many people who go to festivals, who also openly declare that they are concerned about the environment, can also leave behind all this rubbish. I agree with what you've said, people don't (generally!) do that in hotels, do they, so why do they suddenly feel they are licensed to do this at a festival? However you look at it, it's still hypocritical, and I think people should practise what they preach.
People have accountability at a hotel because their card can be charged for any damage. Not so much at festivals it seems. Without accountability, some people take that as a license to do horrible things... :(
The mess left after a Greta Thunburg rally. Why dosen't she comment about it?
You would be horrified to see the camps set up in North America from climate protesters at various protest sites after they leave, we have literally had to get hazmat cleanup at some of the sites.
Festival tickets are a lot more expensive than they used to be and camping equipment is so much cheaper. I didn't pay a lot for my Reading festival ticket in 2002, I borrowed a tent because I couldn't afford to buy my own. I had to bring it home because my sister would expect to get it back and I couldn't afford to replace it. The situation now is 'I paid so much money to be here I can behave however I want' mixed with 'it was so cheap I would rather replace it than have to take it home'. Unfortunately the kind of people who can't afford to buy a new tent every year are also priced out of attending festivals.
This is crazy!!! I just returned from a 3 day metal/rock fest in Bulgaria and I am happy to say everybody picked up after themselves. In the festival area and especially in the camp area. We had reusable cups and all of the disposable cutlery and dishes were wooden or paper. It was not perfect but they improve it every year. Also if you want you could rent a festival tent that is set up in place for you when you get there - convenient for all people who don't want or can't bring their own. The price was very symbolic and the tents are pretty decent. Since our society is looking up to western Europe I really hope we don't pick up this bad habit of leaving your trash and treating tents, mattress and chairs as single use items just because we can afford it financially.
Pack it in, pack it out should be a universal standard!
I was recently at a multi day event in Canada and when it was over the space looked the same as before anyone arrived.
I've seen videos where people stay later than everyone else and collect the leftover sealed food and propane canisters and other supplies
A decade or more ago, the message was "consumerism is the problem", but for years now it's been "capitalism is the problem", and I wonder if that has fostered a mentality of "it's not my responsibility". You are the only one you can control. You should always consider how the world would be if everyone acted the way you do, and change your actions accordingly. If everyone did that, the world would be a good place.
better systems only work if individual people participate in them! I have an e-waste recycling center under a kilometer, two tram stops, under 10 minutes away from my house, and yet I keep seeing microwaves, coffee machines, lamps etc in the general waste in my apartment building's trash bins. yes we need better systems, but they don't exist in a vacuum, and do nothing if individuals don't change their ways to fit into new, better systems
I put mine in the brown, gray, green garbage can and two free curb side dumping 3’ x 12’ once a year.
I went to Glastonbury this year, which puts a lot of effort into the ethos of "Love the farm, leave no trace" and quite a few people STILL left their tents and airbeds and chairs. It made me so mad as I left. Yes it was better than the average festival probably but gah
1st off thats a lot of reusable "things" deemed as garbage! Its sad to see them go to waste. People need to be more mindful of the things they own, and the money they use to buy the things. I could never buy a tent, table, chairs, coolers and just leave it behind, I want them to last as long as possible. That is delulu in itself. But also the festival its self should just make it mandatory that people clean up and take home everything the festival goers brought with them, that would be a start of the festival taking action. Better yet, the festival could set up solutions for people who do not wish to take home their belongings. Maybe set it up so that if you no longer want a tent you can donate it to a homeless person, or even a young person who needs a tent for camping. I would have been so grateful as a young person to get a free tent to go camping in, that wasn't always something I could afford. So many ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle these things. To know that the festival doesn't enforce rules around belongings makes me think they are okay with cleaning the "trash" up, and if the festival wanted to do more they would.
Big festival has this problem everywhere i think. Ive seen it here in sweden many Times after festival.. its makes me think that People dont care about The stuff they buy for a festival and trowing trash everywhere in The camp site or think about the climate change.. it makes me sad.
i found a big Kmart (big australian cheap department store) tent in hard rubish (council run free dumping on your street days)... and the only thing that was wrong with it was the elastic in one of the three tent poles was broken.. VERY easily replaced ( and I did) .. and I'm still using that tent 5 years later!! a couple of the tent pole links need replacing now - and I have found replacements... and one of the zips needs work (not essential zip tho) :)
I've seen this behaviour too, even in a festival in state-protected nature. Thankfully it was by a minority,and others have rescued most of the usable items left behind, and took the rest to the trash collection. But it was something I never forgot - how little these people leaving stuff behind think about others and how self-centered they are. How we handle our surroundings says something about our character, in my opinion. It must be difficult to be around them the rest of the time too.
From the comments here, I think there's a huge demographic distance between people who do wilderness camping and people who do festival camping. I was definitely taught leave no trace, so it's hard to understand the mindset where someone would take the time and trouble bring a dining table to a festival...and then just leave it there
I think a lot of people do not want to acknowledge their agency. its easy for them to be ignorant of their responsibilities
As a gen Xer, I have always lived my life by doing what i want to see changed. I choose to live by example. it does not work trying to force others to do what i want. so if you younger kids want to change. make the changes you want to see. call out the bad behavior, but trying to bully people make it so they ignore your ideas. if a company is not supporting your values do not give them your money. my question how often do you upgrade your phone?
If you do not like fossil fuel develop products that don't use them. it will be hard. but billions will cease to exist without that fuel until the new infrastructure is build and in place.
What boggles my mind is how few environmentalists are vegan. A lot of people want other people to change, but they're unwilling to change themselves.
Why? My local beef gives back to the environment instead of th pure take like a vegan diet.
@@t.dig.2040 Vegan diets can be local too and don't fund the extremely polluting and cruel animal ag. (And yes, it's just as cruel and polluting when it's 'local')
@thebowandbullet pollution? cow patties on the high desert range are oases of life, whereas a farm is where the petroleum chemicals enter the soil.
Animals need plants, plants need soil, soil needs animals. By demonizing animal agriculture, you are throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
oh my... that's wild, I can't believe this is the reality we live in. How can anyone think this is okay?
In the country I live in now, the value of nature is deeply tied to the people's history and culture. I've been to festivals here and the campsites are left as clean if not cleaner as before, people pick everything dirty up they can find. It's very rare to find trash out in nature and if we do, we pick it up and dispose of it on our walks.
This is so saddening and concerning to see!
100% realate the discussion "what I do dont matter bc bla bla bla. Bigger picture.." ... So tired of that thats what we are STILL talking and obviously allowing themselves to think and behave accordingly.
Kudos to the companies that come in and recycle some the items left behind. Still, it's very sad. "Leave things better than you found them" my father use to say. Personal responsibility is what is lacking. And concern for other living things.
Unfortunately that's not a new phenomenon. I grew up in the region where the "Sonne Mond Sterne" festival in Germany takes place. This has been going on at least since I attended the festival as a teenager, 20+ years ago. However, it seems to have gotten worse in the last decade. And I never understood how people can just do that. Maybe that's my working class background speaking, or my eco consciousness, or both. But it boggles my mind every time. Because you can be sure that those that leave everything behind are the ones complaining, when at home, how expensive things have become.
This is very much an aside, but...
I've always been incredibly conscientious about not leaving litter. When I started to spend more time in London there weren't any bins in the railway stations, because this wasn't long after 9/11 and the London terror attacks (I think in most major stations there still aren't any). So I used to collect up any food wrapping etc. and put it in my bag to carry with me until I found a public bin - but my ex-boyfriend did suggest that by leaving the rubbish in the station, we would ensure the station management employed the cleaners.
I still think it's best to treat a place (and the cleaners) with respect and not litter... But he has a point: we know that capitalism is going to capitalism, and if the management can sack half their workforce because the station users are taking their waste with them... We all know they will cut that cost and sack those people.
On the specific point about festivals: I've been to several times in the UK, to a festival that appeals more to a younger crowd, and another that appeals more broadly (lots of families as well as elder people go, as the offering is broader than music alone)... And my experience was the younger-appeal one was the worse in terms of how people treated it. Stuff was left (some tents were even set on fire) and there was so much rubbish. Maybe at the more family-friendly one, people were more conscious of little kids being around so 1) you feel pressure to set those kids a good example and 2) concern about little barefoot kids running in the grass with discarded drinks cans and bottles.
About capitalism : in the communistic ussr metroes never had trash bins . NEVER. They calculated it would be too much work to Maintain such a big system . They employed cleaners to sweep and wash floors but not to empty bins and clean areas around .
So, it has nothing to do with capitalism .
Now there are still no trash bins inside Moscow underground . Partly because of terroristic threats . And you know what -I never even noticed that . Until saw some video on RUclips .
I have heard that in the uk Dethalon gives people a voucher if they return their tent to be reused which is a great start imo
WTH? In my childhood when we were going camping in nearby woods first and last thing we did was cleaning the place. Gosh, I was taught not to through a candy wrap on the street! And they just left everything😮
Directly under the video was a commercial from Temu... 😢
I totally agree! Great video 😊
Brilliant video and amazing comments everyone...
The real issue is all those people commenting siding with that disgusting behaviour! Just because you have a 'right' to do something, doesnt make it good.
No doubt in mind that’s gen z and I say this as a zoomer myself. The boomers are right here, we’re the most hypocritical and selfish generation yet to exist and we were practically raised with a victim mentality by default. Let’s stop shifting the blame and tell the truth for what it is, every generation achieved something great for the betterment of the world in some degree except for us
That is so absurd to me... all the festivals I have been to or worked at have had a "pack in pack out" ethos... Can't believe in a country like Denmark where I thought people were a lot more aware stuff like this happens...
People leaving a perfectly good tent is bonkers! Leaving a new tent and chairs wouldn't even cross my mind as an option!
It's called entitlement, a generation raised to never think of others, to think their feelings are the only ones that matter , and to think the world revolves around them, and when you point these things out they come back with name calling .... most are extremely hypocritical
I've been to a metal fest and worked at a few at a temp agency, most of it was very much cleaned up before we moved in to start cleaning. Only items left behind were crushed beer cans which could easily be thrown into a truck, crushed and recycled. Not including lost items.
However the hippie fests, EDM, Country were the worst.
Surprisingly a few pop concerts were clean as metal here and there.
The US has a big culture against littering (with the exception of some groups and cities) and even bigger in my home state of Florida. Which our ecosystem takes the forefront of things. Lots of tourists would trash the beaches or city. I watched teens who you'd think pull this mentality grab their trash and throw it away. There is always outliers though, people not taught right.
If I ever tried to throw trash on the ground or didn't throw it away I expected to be nagged at by my parents. Better yet you might see someone actually snap at you if you were to leave trash out.
"Clean up after yourself I'm not your mother"
Unbelievable. Anyone leaving their tent or airmatress etc behind after an event has no right to ever complain about being poor. If you can afford to waste a tent, you’re a spoiled entitled brat.
Honestly, I'm not surprised. I saw this stuff at a local mini-burn festival. Most people do not care about the principles of the community ~ they just want to party, do drugs, whatever.
We had a ban on using the river due to changes in our local salmon spawning (bc of climate change) and people just ignored it. There wasn't any enforcement either.
People leave all sorts of things despite one of the primary principles being "leave no trace". We need better vetting for these festivals and consequences for waste/being an AH. Also, we should have groups responsible for bringing items and single ticketers only allowed to bring in a small pack of items, or neccesary items. Everything else provided for. It would make it easier for those just starting out & provide more funding for groups who make structures/events.
Good video, I agree with most of your observations.
I do feel the need to encourage you to look into the environmental implications of those "spray creams".
It's a shame "fast camping" cannot have built in infustructure to help the homeless etc.
I brought 2 cheap tents for my children to backyard camp during school holidays.
I didn't expect them to last, I'm happy to say they have.
I love the push to create more sustainable options.
I do hope it doesn't come at the cost of affordable options for those suffering from poverty related hardships.
I don't think I've ever been to a metal festival that looked this bad after... and just from the few snippets you showed, I saw a lot of wish and alibaba garbage... Figures. Can't have pride of ownership when you buy things that are trash from the start.
LOVE this video :) I also love that you talk about different things then other people on youtube do. Plus your vibe of "fu#k that"" is so my thing :P In terms of festivals I do know "some" will walk around and take any equipment or items that are in "good" condition and donate it to organizations / poor. In fact I know some even tell the event goes to leave the stuff there.... HOWEVER I am of the mind if you brought it in you have to take it out !!!! Plus I'm curious how they got a full sized sofa in without staff saying anything???? Being an environmentalist / "tree hugger according to my brother" all my life I have herd it a thousand times from people I talk to.... it is NEVER their fault !!!! its always the corporations !!!!
Most of those attending the festival are not climate activists despite the organisers inviting speakers on environmental issues. They are there for the music and couldn't care less about environmental issues. That's why they leave the festival in a mess.
Festival organisers do their best to minimise environmental impact. At the Glastonbury Festival plastic bottles and cups were banned a few years ago. Instead people buy a pint-sized steel cup that they buy beer in at the Workers' Beer Tent. At the end of the festival they hand it in and get their deposit back or keep it.
Ngl, that’s prime wook shopping. Love collecting the things I can fit into my car after a festival. Saw a nice grill that I wish I had room for but hopefully someone else got to give it longer life. Crazy to see what things get left behind.
As a follower, I know you’ve talked about ALL of this over and over. I can’t imagine how frustrating it is to have someone catch your video who has never seen your content before and then tries to school you or tell you you’re doing this wrong 🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️ you seem pretty good at letting a lot of it roll off your back, but just wanted to remind you anyway that there are a lot of us here who hear you and LEARN from you all the time! I always appreciate your perspective 😊
People destroy their hotel rooms. I was a house keeper, I've seen the evidence. Also there are people few and far between that actually leave their hotel rooms nice. 😢
Jeez. Imagine how rich these people are!
I can't relate to having SO MUCH disposable income that I can buy tents, matresses, chairs, tables and then just... leave it. And then buy more? Like wtf?!
If my tent gets messy, I clean it.
One reason I do road trips: I can bring my same old gear and use it time after time.
Production side destruction of the environment is most important, but also how are we going to hold industry accountable if we don't also have basic personal standards? It's not either/or, it's BOTH
I grew up with the "Pack it in! Pack it out!" mentality. I'm a Boomer who volunteers at faires... I am both a Maker & a Consumer so I am culpable for anything and everything I handle.
I'm 59, been to many States and a few Nations, most "activists" I've encounterd are hypocrites. Even worse, many are violent attention seeking malciontents who thrive on harming anything: people, places, animals. Anthing to create unrest and cause stress. Being hailed as a champion for Cosplaying as a concerned person simply provides greater motivation. Few today demonstrate they know how to graciously take a win and move on. Rather, they become the problem they assert to take issue with while ignoring similar, if not worse issues; perplexing.
Oh this reminds me... (the part about leaving perfectly fine inflatable mattresses, coolers, etc.) When we were traveling to Hawaii, I came across a FB group where people would be passing on this kind of stuff that they bought on vacation (coolers, beach toys for kids, etc. but also food and drinks they got but didn't finish the packs - because Costco and bulk buying... - apparently it was common practice for American tourists to land in Hawaii and directly go to Costco first) 👀
At least they were trying to find someone to pass them on to before leaving but if you don't? Then it's just trash? You bought something to only use for a week or two and then to abandon? 🤯 It was so bizarre and what a waste when you consider the scale at which this must be happening...
It sorta feels now that the same way how companies shifted all the balme on consumers, nowadays consumers just push the guilt back to companies and free themselves from all responsibily.
There is not much you can do when you buy new shirt and the materail starts tearing apart after one or two years or when you are forced to get a new phone every 1-2 years.
Buyin a cheap tent with the intention to use it on a festival and leave it there is all on you, can't shift the blame on anyone else for that.
In Southwest Germany, we have every year a gathering/camp of Wild West Reenactors.
We live there for about 2 weeks.
We leave our campground spotless.
Because, if anybody leaves his trash behind, he would not been invited the next year.
And yes, we have to pay for the waste removal too!
I enjoy avoiding crowds of people like this ? They trash all venues and protests . These gatherings are not considered camping ? Camping is done to be alone with nature and your loved ones. Leaving your equipment or trash behind is just plain sick !
this is so weird for me to see! i visit techno festivals in germany and it's very normal people take their trash with them. Some festivals have a Müllpfandsystem, you get like10 € back when you hand in a bag of waste when leaving. It`s hard to find enough stuff on the ground for Müllpfand!
The aftermath of vegan festivals (from what I've seen) never ends up looking like this.
Students International in Champaign Illinois they leave entire Apartments of furniture food clothing home goods behind.
We furnished a 2 bedroom apartment from top to bottom in 3 weeks including brand new 5000 in plastic mattress.
Brand new sofa 800. A entire studio for my art. Book shelves. Caroets paintings I mean it would have cost minimum 20,000 to replace new.
It's Mind-blowing how much isvjust tossed in the trash. While people in my building had virtually nothing of value. But wouldn't take free stuff. It was very odd to me from Portland Oregon.
I have NEVER ordered on Amazon. Only buy shoes and undies new. I have lived as a true conservative and never lacked for any material goods.
Fit Nok Vid ! I lived in Arhus still best friends with Lone and Jeppe. I metvMiles Davis at Roskilde in the 80s. Mek Pik and the Allrights. My first love was the drummer ♥️ we are still good friends 38 years later.
But they taught mebThe Danish of a Arhus Bricklayer according to the one I met back in the US LOL. Maggie Who has Learned you Danish ! That is Not the Queens Danish. And I had been so excited to show off for my study program head.
JeggecElsker Danmark. I traveled with the band. Had so much fun. Accidentally kidnapped your Prince now King. We thought hevwas a rich kid hiding from Security. So we snuck him backstage.
Jeppe said, "Maggie thats the Fucking prince of Denmark. Give him Back Now ! So we did. Who knew Jeppe was a royal watcher 😅
🙏🙏🙏 Thank you for this interesting talk! I can’t believe that so Many people buy stuff Just to leave them at a festival camp 😵
Happens all the time in the Minnesota woods too usually well off people, poor people have to reuse everything. Has gotten worse we need to identify and shame these people relentlessly in like and on line
I was at festivals in the 90ies, we already lived in a consumerist capitalistic society - but none of us left so much behind. Maybe empty bottles or sleeping backs that somebody was sick on, but tables, couches, tents? - hell no. I don't get that at all??? 😵
Went to a festival once and our camp group kept our area trashed on purpose. No one in our group got any of their items stolen that they left out when sleeping, it was camouflaged in the trash. We of course picked up the trash at the end.
here's the thing that annoys the crap out of me. people want big companies to take responsibility for climate change. and yes, they are the ones making the biggest impact with making these cheap disposable products and all. but why do people think they sell those things? you could point to a lot of reasons, but the ultimate reason? IT SELLS!!!!! you can absolutely buy American made clothing that is made with either natural or recyclable materials in a place where you know people got paid a fair wage, but why do that when a shirt costs 40 dollars and I can get like, 10 of them from Temu for the same price? You can buy a beautiful piece of furniture from a local craftsman that is made of natural materials and is sourced responsibly, and also grow your local economy. So why not do that? Because that will cost more than the crap you buy at Walmart. no sh*t people. quality items have a higher price tag. If you literally can't afford it, that's one thing. But those Temu shirts won't last nearly as long as the more expensive one. and craftsman made products are typically better made because it's a few people who have a passion for making good furniture instead of just churning out junk as fast as they can. people need to stop this insane desire to buy the cheapest thing they find and think that is good enough. I'm not saying not to look for sales or anything, but we are penny pinching ourselves into this disposable lifestyle and blaming companies because we don't want to take responsibility for it. as if Walmart is just reaching into your pocket and stealing your wallet, refusing to return it until you agree to buy something. Look, I don't research every little thing I buy before I buy it either, I'm nowhere near perfect. but we can absolutely do better. and when we make better choices with our money, and those companies make less because we aren't buying crap, guess what they do? they up their game and sell better products. you can make all the complaints about capitalism you want, but the reason its better is because you can literally vote with your dollar. they pay attention to what sells because they want you to buy their stuff. use capitalism to your advantage. it takes time, but it will work. how do you think these fast fashion brands got popular in the first place? They didn't just appear out of thin air with billions of dollars in their pockets. consumers gave them that money. spend wiser.
The images you showed of the area around your camp site were so disheartening.
It was a real gut punch.
Can the rest of us even care enough or do enough to undo the damages that were done there?
Everything matters. Even if you never see the good impact, even the small things matter.
i just realised as I'm watching this that I'm repairing the pocket on a pair of my scrub pants which are almost 10 years old (i think, i don't remember when i bought them)... even tho my workplace has an annual scrub allowance for employees. i know that since I've worked for this clinic (since late 2019) I've not utilised my scrub allowance. I've bought one pair of new scrubs (tags still on them) from good will, and that's it😆
half the worlds plastic has been made in the last 20 years... it is getting worse
In the current economic climate I don't know who can really afford to keep buying things that they KNOW they will dispose of instantly just b/c they were cheap and replaceable. Nothing is cheap enough these days for me to waste my $$ buying it only to throw it away, my money is not disposable!! There is also a level of respect here, for certain, that is set terribly LOW, on a number of topics! As soon as I clicked on this vid, I knew the amnt of unpicking she would have to do to talk about all the problems with this would be epic!
Cleaning up your own mess means taking personal responsibility, being aware of the needs as feelings of the humans around you, and genuinely caring about your environment.
Rallying against climate change involves little more than writing checks and going to fashionable parties and festivals.
If your wealthy friends who care so much about climate won't bother to clean up after themselves, it does say something about whether they feel personally responsible for their environment.
People (the individuals) have the power in how they spend their money. If they insist on sustainable products, the companies will produce them. The nonsustainable products would sit on the shelves til the companies listen to the buying public.
Maybe it's cuz I was raised in scouts my whole life but I've learned how to not make a mess.
I recommend you to look up Boom festival, they have a zero waste policy, people (35k-44k ppl) showering there use non chemical shampoos and the entire area is left absolutely squeaky clean. It's in Portugal, and is Europe's version of burning man, you can basically stay in a cardboard tent or donate your camping gear at the end of it by the exit. The money from the festival goes directly into preserving the area, and waste from all the sustainable toilets are planted into the soil etc, it's a prime example of a festival being held in a sustainable way, you wont even find a single cigarette butt while walking around in the sand, it feels more like a week long vacation than festival survival.
Festivals like Roskilde in Denmark doesn't really have a cleanliness profile, instead it's known as a long drinking party where you sorta wind up trudging through plastic cups, trash and piss and mud by the midpoint of it- and it's a shame. But the organizers honestly don't put a big emphasis on the cleanliness part of it, if they were brave enough they would launch a campaign before the festival with new guidelines and give people pocket ashtrays and work on their litter management to slowly change the festivals culture for the better, but y'know, that could cost a bit of the extra profit.. People act according to the environment you design for them, so a lot of the blame falls on the organizers. (then again I feel like a lot of people litter a ton in our parks here in Copenhagen when they're filled to the brim due to an event or something, it saddens me a bit I wish we could be better about it)
I work in a hotel here in the city (Copenhagen) and some people are so disrespectful when it comes to staying in the hotel. Someone left chunks of watermelon in the guest kitchen but some was squashed on the floor. If that had been me I would have cleaned it up. When I was a kid, we’d go on holiday in my parents caravan and one of me/my brother’s jobs during pack up was to walk our pitch and make sure there’s no rubbish, no pegs and nothing left behind. When I went away with my church youth group, I’d be the one walking our bit and making sure it was clean even if all my friends were just chilling out waiting for the bus.
I don’t think it’s solely a Roskilde issue, I’m sure Glastonbury for instance has the same issue. I could be wrong but the people cleaning the site after are volunteers are they not? So they don’t actually see any of that ticket money as a “wage”, they get paid in a ticket to the festival (or at least one day while they work another day). I think it’s often that someone else will deal with the issue type attitude.
You dont see this at a Burn.. But many music festivals, especially Electric Forest where there is piles of trash.