Event Details | |
Host | Halifax Sailing Association |
Location | Daytona Beach, USA |
Certification Level | Gold |
Website Link | https://www.halifaxsailing.org/calendar/pink-ribbon-regatta |
Best Practices Achieved
3. Serve Food with Plastic-Free Dinnerware
This year we catered the Taco for Tatas dinner with a local business. The meal included vegan options again. We used paper plates that were made from recycled paper and reusable silverware from our club. We converted last year to no plastic silverware or straws (or plastic stir sticks or Styrofoam cups)
4. Skip Bags or Go Reusable
This year's regatta "gift" is a reusable dry bag with our regatta logo and our sponsor and partner's logo combined.
The logo artist for the regatta is pictured with the first bag out of the box. The competitors loved the bags.
5. Award Practical Items or Use a Perpetual or Upcycled Trophy
Our awards were beach towels with the regatta logo and year stitched on them. Here is the photo of the top Aero sailor, Andrew. As a college student, he was happy to have a practical award--especially for the wet sailing on a borrowed Aero!
7. Involve Local Organizations
We are growing our connections with local organizations which support getting the word out. Our newest partner is the local professional ball team, the Daytona Tortugas, which plays at the Jackie Robinson Stadium nearby.
Sheldon, the mascot, came to cheer us on! (Sheldon is actually a sailor who lives aboard her sailboat in the marina between our club and the ball field. We've invited her to sail with us, when not in her mascot gear)!
We solicited for local sustainable and environmentally friendly businesses for items for our silent auction. WiggleBrew gave us a basket of supplies that uses worm castings for natural fertilizer. A highly sought item at the auction
9. Serve Local Food or Source Seafood Sustainably
Our taco dinner was catered by Blue Chip Catering, a locally owned and operated catering business. They delivered to the park pavilion that we rented in the park next door to our sailing club. A perfect evening with time to celebrate, sell swag (regatta sun protectant shirts) and hold a silent auction.
11. Ensure Proper Waste Bin Placement and Signage
Our club is on city property and doesn't qualify to receive recycling services from the city. Instead, club members help with the recycling. We labeled this big bin to make sure we didn't put aluminum cans in the trash.
14. Host a Beach or Marina Cleanup
We registered locally to run our International Coastal Clean Up Day on 9/21/24. We collected 59 lbs of garbage, including syringes, many plastics and marine debris.
We planned the clean up at low tide to maximize the results along the Halifax River, which includes the Intercoastal Waterway
10. Organize a Green Team
Halifax Sailing Association is now registered with the local Volusia County Environmental Team, so we are included in the data collection and in the communications around county wide activities.
15. Promote Alternative Transportation
Again, for safety and convenience, we were able to use a golf cart to minimize driving into our small club. The golf cart crew helped us move picnic supplies to the pavilion for the taco dinner.
12. Divert Food Waste from the Landfill
Any left overs from our taco dinner were carefully stored in a food safe manner and we had "leftovers" for lunch after racing. A hot meal after a windy, wet day of racing was welcomed. AND any leftovers from that --went home with the college students from the sailing team from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. They were happy!
6. Publicize Your Sustainability Efforts
We included the green goals while the Windward Women planned the regatta. The club was enthusiastic about participating. We even had a party to wrap the silverware in pink napkins, tied with twine and prep the regatta swag and auction items.
8. Post Educational and Reusable Signage
We had signs made last year that we can reuse for the regatta. Here we are pictured with our partners from the Halifax Health Foundation development office and the breast cancer program directors.
16. Increase Awareness of Wildlife and Habitat Protection
In the foreground, the ibis are very comfortable at the Halifax Sailing Association. We avoid fertilizers on the "lawn" (for folding sails) and work with the Marine Discovery Center and the local turtle rescue if we find a marine animal in distress at our club (this year--1 bird and 1 turtle so far)
Club members, Susie and Kim, are long time turtle nest monitors. They presented an excellent talk on their work and the importance of protecting the nesting environment.
18. Use Eco-Smart Management Techniques
We combined two regattas this year--the Aero State Championship and our 3rd Annual Pink Ribbon Regatta. This ensured we got more racing in for the same amount of effort on the race course and on land. The Aero fleet was very grateful to our Windward Women for collaborating on this effort as they lost their regatta venue.
1. Eliminate Single-Use Water Bottles and Provide Water Refill Stations
At last year's regatta, we provided reusable water bottles to competitors. We have city water that is filtered through our water fountain/refill station--set to the coldest temperature!