Couples choose the Center for its natural beauty, gorgeous landscapes, and scenic surroundings, but did you know that by hosting your wedding here you’re also choosing a green wedding venue? Located on 185 acres (with 6 miles of trails winding through wetlands, prairies, woodlands, and Lake Michigan beach), our sustainably designed building is a stunning place for eco-friendly wedding ceremonies and receptions. Our lovely optional add-ons provide a variety of unique ways to further support the environment while enhancing your big day!
The most earth-friendly aspect of a Schlitz Audubon wedding is the meaningful contribution to a nonprofit education and nature center that conserves valuable habitats and wildlife. We’re the perfect venue for couples who want their wedding to not only be a celebration of their love for each other, but also of the natural world.
Our Green Building is Your Amazing Backdrop!
When planning a wedding, choosing a venue is usually your first step. Selecting an environmentally focused venue can be one of the largest impacts you can make! Schlitz Audubon can host both the ceremony and reception on the same property for up to 220 people. This will save your guests from having to drive to multiple locations and save on the carbon emissions of travel! Our outdoor ceremony Pavillion is accessibly paved with local limestone from Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, surrounded by intentionally placed native plants that support our resident pollinators and birds.
Our impressive building features natural stone, wood accents, and pine pillars, creating both a cozy and grand atmosphere that can accommodate your entire party for dinner, dancing, and cocktail hour! Beyond its beauty, the building’s environmental features earned Wisconsin’s first Gold LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) award! It uses sustainable energy systems such as solar panels and geothermal heating and cooling to help keep your guests comfortable all year round. During your first dance under our magical café string lights, you can feel good knowing the electricity used has less of an environmental impact.
The durable, eco-friendly concrete floor helps keep it cooler in summer and warmer in winter while the abundant windows let in plenty of natural light – great for ambiance and lessening energy needed for lighting! Our facilities and events staff practice environmentally responsible water use, recycle, compost and reuse materials when possible, and use earth-safe cleaning and maintenance products inside and outside the building.
Go Above and Beyond with Eco-Friendly Add Ons
If you’re interested in creating a living legacy as part of your special event, we offer a unique service: our unity tree ceremony. Typically, this ceremony consists of the couple and/or family members pouring soil on the provided tree’s base to symbolize the joining of the couple and the new life they’re growing together. This is considered a tax deductible donation to the Center made in the couple’s names, and the tree will be planted into the habitat restoration of the woodlands and oak savannas throughout the property. We will share GPS coordinates when your tree is planted, so you’ll know exactly where it’s supporting the local wildlife and ecosystem.
Couples can also include a Meet & Greet with our owls, hawks, falcons, and even a Bald Eagle! Guests mingle during cocktail hour and learn from our raptor handlers about these magnificent creatures. It’s an opportunity to support our Raptor Program, which cares for rescued birds and trains them for educational outreach.
More Green Features
One of the simplest ways to reduce your wedding’s environmental impact is to focus on reducing the amount of new stuff you purchase. Single-use plastic items, décor, and favors can not only add to your budget, but are also likely to end up in the landfill. Renting décor items instead of buying new can ease some stress of transportation, set up, and clean up. We offer repurposed fallen trees from the property as rentable tree slices used for centerpiece bases and our ash tree ceremony arch. This gives these trees a new life as beautiful accents, all while easing the burden on you! We also offer fun rustic whiskey barrels available to rent instead of cocktail tables.
Many other décor items can be rented through your caterer or florist – not only furniture, but also vases, table numbers, linens, and more. Be sure to ask your vendors about their own sustainable additions.
Our bar service has the option of renting glassware for cocktails, wine, and champagne, which can help reduce the amount of single-use plastic at your event. Our staff are diligent about recycling plastic when it’s used and are committed to mindfully offering bar service items like compostable straws and picks.
Earth-Friendly Florals, Favors, and More!
From big to small efforts, there are many ways to make your wedding a green one. We have seen potted plants instead of floral arrangements for centerpieces, which could then live on in gardens and homes. Another trend for favors is native plant seed packets as wedding favors (we sell some in our Nature Store) or tree saplings for guests. Imagine not just one tree planted for every wedding, but one hundred! That kind of thoughtful planning is memorable and meaningful beyond just one day.
Don’t want to deal with leftover florals? Petals for Patients offers a takedown service of centerpieces and delivers the flowers to area hospitals for use beyond the single event. Schlitz Audubon partners with Compost Crusader and invites staff, programs, and catering to join in our effort to compost what we can, reducing waste sent to the landfill.
Other eco-friendly wedding ideas include:
- Going paperless with online invites and seating arrangement charts
- Green giving – in lieu of gifts ask guests to donate a small pledge in the new couple’s name to an environmental charity
- Wearing vintage or secondhand wedding attire
You don’t have to do this alone! Find vendors who are already making earth-conscious decisions or ask yours how they prioritize sustainability. They can help bring your green vision to life!
Sustainability and weddings can be a perfect match with meaningful intention as well as the right venue and vendors. As you say “I do” to Schlitz Audubon Nature Center as your green wedding venue, you can feel confident that your special day is special for the earth too.
Featured image credit: Ryan Davis
