green party

i was reading today in the new york times about the fabulous holiday extravaganzas thrown by the prominent museums and awards ceremonies who are notorious for their excess of trash after these one night events. this year, it seems, has the word "green" stamped all over these gatherings. the party planners seem to have made a certain statement by using materials that were recycled or will be used beyond the one night gala for which it was initially intended. the article goes on to describe the various elements used for these parties: bottle caps for decoration, post consumer cardboard for chairs, tables and the like, shredded documents reshaped into art pieces for ornamentation. the author comments on her observations that renting chairs, tables and decorations might be the optimum path for going green. i suppose these industries that create so much waste need to begin to be aware of the waste in a fancy, chic fashion before they take the step to making no waste. plus, i don't think these partygoers are ready yet to sit in rented chairs.
also, how come we don't pay tribute to all the people in all the countries who have been recycling trash and using it creatively and effectively? is it because their was no logo involved? no cash tendered? do "green" practices which stem from poverty get automatically disregarded?