How to Host Plant-Powered Events: Three Tips from the Plant Jam

Hosting plant-powered events is a fantastic way to raise awareness, create community, and celebrate sustainability on college campuses. Hosting these events, though, can feel like a major undertaking if you’re unsure where to start.

With a busy academic and social schedule, how can Plant Futures Leaders overcome the inertia of daily life to host events that shake up campus culture and food culture more broadly?

In this blog post, I want to share several tips from the Plant Jam I helped host last year at Brown University–an event that brought together plant-based food, fun activities, a clothing swap, and DJ’s. Here are three of my most effective tips for making your plant-powered event a success!

1. Rely on Your Core Team & Co-host with Other Clubs

A common mistake in event planning is trying to take on everything yourself. No matter how passionate or capable you are, larger events will need support from your peers and even other clubs. Lean into your core team and close friends and look to other clubs on campus for co-hosting support. For Plant Jam, our success came from collaborating with other student organizations who shared our vision. For example, the Fashion @ Brown club on campus helped coordinate the clothing swap, and the student garden club brought fresh, locally grown produce. These partnerships not only divided the workload but also enhanced the event’s reach and appeal, drawing in participants who might not have come otherwise.

2. Make Planning Fun Because You Are Throwing a Plant Party!

Let’s be real: planning a big event can be exhausting. Requesting a space on campus, getting products for the event, advertising the event can feel like a lot of work. To avoid burnout, make the planning process as enjoyable as the event itself. Regularly bounce ideas off your core team and any co-hosting clubs to keep them excited and see what ideas they might have. For the Plant Jam, this approach meant that our meetings were more like brainstorming sessions where everyone felt heard and engaged. Most of the planning just felt like fun conversations with friends about throwing an awesome party. Before we knew it, we had an exciting, collaborative, and unique event ready to go!

3. Crowdsource Activities & Look for Low-Cost/No-Cost Options

Funding can be a significant barrier for some Chapters and clubs, especially when hosting large events with multiple elements. However, many resources and sponsors are available to help support plant-powered events on a budget. By crowdsourcing low-cost or no-cost activities, you can pull off an engaging event without draining your funds. For the Plant Jam, we hosted a clothing swap with Fashion @ Brown, borrowed lawn games like Spikeball from the student activities office, and collaborated with the garden club for fresh produce displays. For the food, we received a tremendous donation of dozens of pizzas and cookies from Kim Anderson, owner of Plant City, who was my Plant Futures mentor. Also, we reached out to companies like NotCo, who generously provided free samples of vegan chicken nuggets and chocolate milk. These partnerships allowed us to offer a diverse and abundant experience while minimizing expenses.

Hosting Your Next Plant-Powered Event!

Hosting a plant-powered event is one of the most rewarding and fun ways to build community and advocate for sustainable food systems. By co-hosting with other clubs, making planning enjoyable, and strategically sourcing activities and products, your Chapter will be ready to host any number of impactful Plant Futures events. So, gather your friends and core team, bring in some like-minded partners, and start planning!