Sustainability

Tackling the causes and consequences of climate change is a key priority for Coventry City Council and we need to look at how we can improve our green credentials in everything we do. Major city events like the Godiva Festival are a great opportunity to look at how we can do things in a more climate-friendly way.

This year, we’re excited to align our efforts with the Council’s ambitious Climate Change Strategy, ensuring that our festival not only provides an unforgettable experience but also sets a new standard for environmental responsibility.  

Join us in our mission to make Godiva Festival greener and more sustainable, paving the way for a brighter, cleaner future for all. 

Our aims

The Council’s new Climate Change Strategy sets out an ambitious vision with five key aims as to how it will be achieved: 

• Low emission development – cleaner air, cheaper bills and more jobs and skills for Coventry 

• Circular economy – recycling and reusing our resources, meaning less things in landfill 

• Nature-based development – protecting our city’s wildlife, plants and trees 

• Climate change adaptation and resilience – coping with the consequences of climate change such as flooding, drought and not being able to grow crops and produce 

• Fair green future - addressing the effects of climate change on vulnerable/low-income families and ensuring a just transition.

The Council has a role as a leader and enabler in the city to help deliver the change needed to tackle the causes and consequences of climate change. Sustainability needs to be embedded in more Council work with communities, businesses and organisations to encourage everyone to play their part.    

We support the Council and their need to re-think their approach to organising events to minimise the impact on the environment.  

Godiva Festival is the largest event the Council organises annually, with audiences of over 70,000 over the weekend in 2023. We want to ensure that the festival continues to be a fantastic experience but is delivered in a much greener and more sustainable way and creates a blueprint for the Council’s approach to running other events across the city in the future.  

How you can help 

There are loads of things that all festival go-ers can do to make Godiva Festival greener.  

These are our top five suggestions:   

Consider how you get to us - leave your car at home and travel to the festival on foot, bike or by public transport. The festival is a 10-minute walk from Coventry Railway Station, there are regular buses that travel past the festival site and there is plenty of cycle parking at the festival. Read more about this on our travel page.

Bring your water bottle - we have five drinking water re-fill stations that are free for the public to use and stay hydrated 

Eat, drink, recycle - remember that all cups and containers for food and beverages from vendors at Godiva Festival are either completely recyclable or compostable so look out for the right bins

Find your recycling stations – there are recycling stations located all around the War Memorial Park, please try and use the correct bins for waste materials and help our efforts to recycle as much as possible 

Learn more from the Council’s Climate Change team – the team will be onsite at Godiva Festival on Saturday and Sunday to find out more about what you can do at home, work and in your community to support our city in taking positive action on climate change. 

Awards 

The sustainability journey started last year as part of ‘A Greener Festival’ accreditation scheme. 

Working together, Godiva Festival was thrilled to get a certification for our sustainability efforts. 

The festival was also the only UK event nominated for A Greener Festival’s annual awards in Greener Transport category.

The Festival Policy sets out the Council’s key aims to become a Greener Festival and details the priority areas where actions must be taken to achieve this.   

Remember to reduce, reuse and recycle and join us in making Godiva Festival a beacon of sustainability.  

By choosing greener travel options and making simple, cost-effective changes like using refillable water bottles and recycling your waste on site, you’re already supporting us and contributing to a greener, healthier Coventry.  

See you in the War Memorial Park!