Green Practices and Social Responsibility
When we started The Yellow Mirror photo booth, understanding and minimizing our environmental impact was one of our top priorities. In our personal lives, we place importance on reducing our carbon footprint and wanted to make sure we translated these values into our business, too.
To celebrate Earth Day and Green Week Philly, we want to show the world that there are many ways to be sustainable and green, even when running a business that depends on electricity, prints and props.
So, here are the five ways The Yellow Mirror photo booth reduces its carbon footprint and supports local and international communities dedicated to preserving our planet:
*image courtesy of City Switch
1. Carbon offsets
Google defines carbon offset as ”an action intended to compensate for the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as a result of industrial or other human activity.” In short, we pay for our emissions.
While our business can’t operate without electricity or our van (at least, for now), we are offsetting our impact on the environment by supporting organizations like Cool Earth whose mission is to protect the rainforest (did you know that rainforests generate 1/5 of the world’s oxygen?!).
At the end of each calendar year, we calculate our impact by adding up the miles and electricity used, and make a donation.
Our clients (yes, you!) help too! $15 from each Yellow Mirror booking goes towards carbon offsets and organizations like Cool Earth. This amount may not seem like a lot, but its impact is priceless and vital to our future.
2. A more sustainable printer
Needless to say, The Yellow Mirror photo booth wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for printed photos. People of all ages (and their moms!) love them because they make fantastic party favors and memorable keepsakes.
To ensure the carbon footprint from prints is as minimal as possible, we chose the DNP DS-RX1 printer which consumes an astonishing 25% less power - in peak, idle and running modes. It’s a printer we and you can feel good about using.
And with how popular photo booths are these days, it’s safe to say, we all have a print or two on our fridge. But what to do with prints you no longer want or need? Unfortunately, photo booth prints are not yet recyclable. But that doesn’t mean you can’t come up with your own ways to upcycle them! Stay tuned for our upcoming blog on how to upcycle your old photo booth prints and photos in general. We’ll compile a list of best ideas so that your photos can serve a new purpose instead of heading to the landfill.
3. Biodegradable props
All of our fun stick props are 100% biodegradable. Made out of paper, cardboard, felt and wood, these hilarious accessories never end up in a landfill. Composting is a huge part of our personal lives, and we are happy to be able to incorporate it into our business too. It’s that circle of life we get really excited about.
4. All other props...
Like all glasses, hats, toys and other accessories sold today, ours are frequently made out of plastic. And, while we can’t compost or even recycle them most of the time, we do something much better. We offer them for sale to our clients!
How does this help protect the environment? At The Yellow Mirror, we believe in extending the life cycle of our props by selling them instead of discarding. Buying second-hand helps reduce the number of new items being made, thus reducing the environmental impact of your purchasing decisions.
So if you liked that pair of white sunglasses we had on our prop table, guess what? You can buy them from us for just $5 and rock them until it’s your turn to sell them or take them to Goodwill. That’s right. Most props on our prop table are available for sale for just $5 each (with only a few exceptions). It’s like they say: “One man’s prop is another man’s treasure”
5. Community involvement and partnerships
Got a park cleanup on the horizon? We will be there. Have trees that need planting? We’ll bring our own shovels. Need someone to haul or sort through junk? We are surprisingly good at it. At The Yellow Mirror we know that relying on others to save the planet is futile so we roll up our sleeves and get to work whenever we can.
Not to mention, we are always on a hunt for meaningful partnerships with mission-oriented, local organizations. Through these partnerships, we are proud to share the incomparable Mirror booth fun with people and communities across our beautiful city.
To date, we’ve offered our services at significant discounts to some truly wonderful organizations including the Garces Foundation, Green Philly Blog, 12+, Philadelphia Horticultural Society, Nemours Foundation, Chestnut Hill Community Association and more. It is an honor and privilege to be able to support each and every one of their causes.
If you are interested in a partnership with The Yellow Mirror, please get in touch with us. We want to bring the Mirror booth fun to your next event!
Through our commitment to greener practices and sustainability, we hope to connect with like-minded people who are looking to reduce their event’s footprint. Interested in booking The Yellow Mirror for your next zero-waste event? Get in touch today!
