Púca, a Halloween festival widely celebrated in Ireland, held from the 31st of October to the 3rd of November in Trim and Athboy, County Meath, with over 10,000 festivalgoers. The theme, ‘Green Celebrations: Making Festivals & Events Sustainable’, enabled the European Climate Pact to participate and engage with attendees.
This engagement was led by Climate Pact Ambassador, Councillor David Gilroy, who served as the Sustainable Stakeholder Engagement Manager at the Festival. Climate Pact Country Coordinator, Dr. Dewi Dimyati-Vliexs, spoke on Sustainability Messaging, highlighting the role of Climate Pact Ambassadors in driving sustainability.
Responding to a question during the panel discussion on the role of festivals like Púca in driving the transition to more sustainable practices, and why this messaging is crucial for broader climate action, she said, ‘As an EU Climate Pact Coordinator, I see the role of Climate Pact Ambassadors in festivals like Púca as essential in driving sustainability by showing how communities can celebrate in environmentally friendly ways. These events reach diverse audiences, making climate action relatable and accessible, inspiring others to adopt sustainable practices. The Púca Festival bridges the gap between community-level actions and policy makers to achieve the national and EU’s climate goals, proving that together we can make impactful, lasting change’.
She further stated that the Púca Festival can lead by example by using biodegradable packaging, reusable items, and sustainable transport options, visibly reducing carbon footprint. ‘These actions communicate a strong message of climate responsibility for the attendees, how practical and impactful sustainable choices can be implemented while they enjoy the festival. This not only minimises waste but also inspires attendees to carry similar habits into their daily lives’.
Dr. Vliexs ended her discussion by stressing the importance of effective incentives at large events like the provision of discounts for reusable cups, rewards for proper waste sorting, sticker award for kids when they sort waste or not littering, and digital pledges for festivalgoers, to help reduce waste and make sustainability engaging and personal, encouraging festivalgoers to adopt these habits beyond the event and reinforce climate awareness.
A circular economy approach in event planning like the Púca Festival aligns with the EU’s climate goals by reducing waste and maximising resource efficiency. Festivals can adopt clear, relatable messaging like ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ or Climate Pact pledge for climate action and sustainability including using educational signage to show how circular practices help tackle climate challenges. This helps the public understand that circularity is key to sustainable, impactful climate action.
About Púca Festival
The Púca Festival was developed by Fáilte Ireland in partnership with Local Authority stakeholders to tell the story of Halloween’s origins in Irish and Celtic traditions.
