Sustainable festival
Sustainability is a fundamental value of the festival, encompassing both social and environmental aspects. By following the principles of a sustainable festival, we ensure the well-being and protection of both our participants and the environment.
Viljandi Folk Music Festival has been selected in the TOP 100 Destination Sustainability Stories 2024!Viljandi Folk Music Festival was born from a student initiative and has grown into one of the biggest music events in the Baltic and Nordic countries. Since 1993 it has been continuously working to preserve and promote the living music tradition.The festival is an annual meeting point that holds a firm place in the calendar of Estonian summer events. It is the strong belief of organisers that only young people can ensure the vitality of traditional culture, and that is why their strategic aim has always been to engage young people with the help of natural role models. Foreign journalists who have visited the festival have often noted that, while in other parts of the world, especially in Western societies, the majority of the audience at folk and world music festivals is middle-aged and older, the ambience of the Viljandi festival is shaped by young people.
Read the festival success story!
SOCIALLY SUSTAINABLE FESTIVAL
Equal treatment and the well-being of the participants
It is important for us to treat all festival participants equally, regardless of their gender, origin, age, race, or beliefs. We approach everyone around us, including our environment, with friendliness and respect. The well-being of our visitors, performers, partners, and team members is crucial, and we do our best to create an open and safe environment for enjoying the festival. We also offer opportunities for underprivileged groups to attend the festival at a discount rate.
Accessibility
All music lovers are welcomed at our festival. A companion of a person with a severe disability is granted free entry. Most concert venues are accessible, but some locations might be a bit difficult to reach without assistance.
Accessible toilets are located near the food court next to the Freedom Square, in the garden of St Paul’s Church at the festival campsite, and at the Traditional Music Centre.
If you need help, please ask the nearest team member (a person with the festival T-shirt and the lanyard badge) or a G4S security guard, or call the festival headquarters at +373 5814 4114.
GREEN FESTIVAL
It is important to us to organize the festival as environmentally friendly as possible – this is the only way to protect the natural environment where Estonian traditional culture was born and still lives.
Recycled materials and zero-waste design practices are used to create decorations for stages and festival area. Most of the leftover materials are provided by companies who are trying to find more environmentally friendly solutions for their production waste. We reuse as much as we can at the festival – starting from signage and ending with furniture. After the festival, we take them all apart and store them safely over the winter so that they can be used again next summer.
The machinery of the festival uses reDiesel biofuel provided by our partner Terminal Oil, who helps us with a more environmentally friendly energy solution.
HOW CAN YOU CONTRIBUTE TO MAKE THE FESTIVAL GREENER?
- Choose the correct bin for food scraps, deposit packaging and mixed waste! When you’re having fun, it might be the last thing on your mind but by doing so, you help us recycle as much waste as possible.
- Drink tap water instead of bottled water – you can find several bottle filling stations around the festival area.
- Reuse your plates and cups! Bring your own strong dishes to the festival. You can wash them at the dishwashing stations. If you don’t have your own dishes with you, you can rent Eesti Pandipakend dishes for a deposit. Wash them after use and keep them with you for your next meals. You can get your deposit money back (2–3 €, depending on the dish) when you return them to their return station. A service fee of 1 € per dish will be retained by the festival to cover costs.
- Choose an environmentally friendly means of transport – come to the festival on a bike or take the train or bus. If you’re coming with your car, then fill it up with friends who are also heading this way. While in Viljandi, walking, cycling and using the Bolt scooters are the best options for getting around.