Waveform, being the ecologically green festival that it is raises some interesting questions which as an attendee I find myself wondering about.

The biggest concerns the actual peace ceremony at the heart of the festival. Billed as an Earthdance it actually consisted of a poem read by a hippy woman which I personally felt failed to connect with the majority of the crowd. The wording seemed too couched in hippydom to be taken seriously.

This raises a wider question, dance music has been around sometime now and so much of the audience was middle aged and middle classed. Some people have leveled criticism that the ‘NIMBYs’ and eco-conscious light warriors are actually just middle aged hedonists really there just to have a good time.

Showing little interest in saving the world or the environment and more in doing what they want, partying. As someone who went there I find this an uneasy criticism.

Certainly it was not all middle aged hedonists, there were young people there too, but was everyone carrying a torch for eco-ism? Certainly it was friendly and there was no trouble – so the peaceful side of the festival ideal is covered. But what about the eco message?

There was no hard sell of these messages, there were displays of eco shelters and alternative green living and some workshops on sustainability but these were more on shakras and changing your consciousness and rarely did I see many green workshops.

It seemed the hippy message was firmly embedded, and recycling materials for kids workshops and the compost loos were admirable, but many didn’t know how to use the loos – their split seats with a separate container for urine went unnoticed by many, males in particular.

The high levels of Greenhouse gas (N2O) abuse all weekend and the metal containers and balloons dropped everywhere were perhaps indicative that some were there to party and not to save the world.

Going back to the ceremony afterwards it seemed many were disappointed that they didn’t connect to the thing, so clearly there were also people with good intentions. Perhaps many also felt they didn’t do enough in the fight for the environment too. Or at least make an impact and that’s something that’s hard to achieve.

Certainly the site was pretty spotless and the recycle bins used – but a closer inspection of their contents showed than many couldn’t work out which bin was for what.

I’d like to think that overall the split was in favour of the environmentalists on the whole, and of course there were a lot of elderly locals on site - there to see the hippies but it’s hard to spot a hippy from a Trustifarian and proper living off the earth hippies from ‘Totnes weekend hippies’ but I think most had their heart in the right place. But I obviously have little proof of this.

I guess the point is that at least the organizers showed they were making an effort, solar panels, compost loos, in the main vegetarian catering, cigarette butt holders, local plant hire, bio-diesel and manageable wood, all point to them doing their bit. And I’m sure their ideal of a totally sustainable green festival was achieved. But can the same be said for those attending?

It’s hard to say whether the ‘green festival’ rubs off on an out and out hedonist. Or whether those living in the live in vehicles and shelters full time feel they need to make any more of an effort than they do already – being self-sufficient. I guess the fact they are there proves to some it can be done. I know we tried to do our bit – consistently sticking to the ‘leave no trace’ policy. But I still feel this isn’t enough, but what more can we do at a festival? I have no answers.

But ‘no trace’ I guess is at the heart of the eco-message – reducing waste, and with such a clean site I believe that worked. The organisers also made efforts to cut noise pollution with many stages having sound meters outside.

After witnessing the waste left over from other festivals this year, I believe this shows the message got through. But I do think weekend eco-warriors have a job on their hands to prove they are indeed saving the world to the on looking public.

How hippies can make the language of the sixties more relevant and connected to younger audiences is more of a problem and one that makes me wonder if the eco-message could in the future suffer from the same ‘out of date’ language. What happens if going green becomes untrendy?

What is interesting to note is that the ‘peace and love’ message has now become well embedded, and everyone there showed respect and friendliness to those around them, so festivals at least have bedded in that message. Can creativity, diversity and everyone having a good time possibly not be enough these days? I find it hard to believe many would seek more than that – perhaps it’s time we tried. Perhaps these kind of festivals will empower us to do just that.