What Was Green at the 2008 Democratic Convention

Yoga, condoms, gay tea parties and a pro-choice bowling night: it sounds like a Bill O’Reilly joke about the Democratic Convention, but all of these things actually happened this year, in and around a political event that was strange and new and yet at the same time… recycled.

While all of the sideshow spectacles like Trojan representatives inviting delegates to see how fast they could put a condom on a banana and the Stonewall Democrats’ tea party for gay delegates were not actual parts of the convention proceedings, they did add to the chaos and confusion that took place in Denver this week.

It may have been hard to see amongst the crazed, hysterical Hillary supporters holding ‘Rise, Hillary, Rise’ posters and protests by a ragtag group of pro-lifers, Libertarians and neo-nazis, but we’ve discerned a basic rundown of what the DNC did to be green this time around.

The Democratic Convention of 2008 set out to be the greenest ever, with organic food, biodegradable cutlery, recycling and compost bins, loaner bicycles and energy star Coke machines.  Convention-goers received lanyards that stated ‘I used to be a soda bottle’.  Convention swag was all recycled, from the fabric tote bags to the key chains and pens.  BPA-free reusable water bottles were offered, with filling stations located all around the convention grounds. Bulk-rate carbon credits were offered to offset the travel emissions of the 6,000+ delegates and alternates.

Official cars ran on flex fuels, and all DNC offices went paperless. Motion-sensors in the offices turned lights off automatically when people leave the room. Food handlers wore biodegradable gloves. Vendors were instructed in waste diversion, and 900 volunteers helped sort the garbage. The stage that speakers addressed the crowd from was made mostly of recycled materials.

The Huffington Post reports that not all of the DNC’s green efforts worked out.  The loaner bike thing sounded like a great plan, but it turns out Denver doesn’t have enough bike racks for the 1,000 bikes – and on top of that, bicycles aren’t allowed near the Pepsi Center or Invesco Field.   Over 70 hotel chains provided special room swipe cards made of ‘sustainably harvested wood’ which reportedly didn’t always work and have locked guests out of their rooms.

There were bound to be pitfalls at such a big event, though it seems ludicrous that someone didn’t think of the bike thing ahead of time.  Considering that they essentially planned a party for 70,000 guests – and not all of them are going to care about recycling and energy efficiency – it seems like they did a great job.  It’s been like one big commercial for sustainability and environmental responsibility, and that’s definitely a good thing.  Let’s see the RNC top that.

Link [The Washington Post] + [The Huffington Post]

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