OUR ENVIRONMENT

Located in an area of outstanding natural beauty and heritage, we are committed to protecting our environment – and encouraging others to do the same. As an event leader in sustainability, we are taking real action to reduce our impact.

Key Sustainability Initiatives:

♻️ Reusable cup scheme expanded to include coffee cups, raising over £13,000 for Scottish Coastal Clean Up.

🚮 99% of festival waste was diverted from landfill, with waste hand-sorted and separated on site.

🐟 Cod Stewart, the highly visible can-filled fish installation, helped encourage can recycling across the festival site.

🗑️ Daily Rubbish Chats highlighted the work taking place both on and off site to manage festival waste.

🌿 Love of Life / Biophilia put nature at the heart of FBTS 2026, with 40+ events exploring nature, climate and sustainability through music, art, film, performance and participation. New and specially commissioned work included Erland Cooper’s Sula Bassana, accompanied by a film by Lewis Gourlay; Naomi McIntosh’s immersive installation The Nest; Brian D’Souza’s Plants Can Dance; and Vision Mechanics’ The Flock, bringing puppetry, community workshops and parade to the festival.

🌼 Project Plant & The Scentery brought biodiversity to the festival, with the local community growing wildflowers for pollinators and planting designed to live beyond the event.

🚆 Greener travel was encouraged and expanded, including late-night rail, cycling and the new Happy Bus connections across East Lothian, Edinburgh and Glasgow, carrying 2,458 passengers across six headline nights.

🥗 The Street Food Village hosted vegan and plant food options serving up flavour with a lighter footprint.

As members of the Green Arts Initiative and Vision for Sustainable Events, we remain committed to delivering a sustainable festival and expanding Green messaging in East Lothian and beyond.