sustainability

Join Julie’s Bicycle for Sustaining Creativity

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The Sustaining Creativity Lab LIVESTREAM will launch at 10.20am on Wednesday 28th May – stay tuned and follow the event online!

http://www.juliesbicycle.com/Sustaining-Creativity

http://www.juliesbicycle.com/Sustaining-Creativity

View agenda for Sustaining Creativity Lab

We want to understand how the creative community is thinking about the coming decade and what it perceives as the critical drivers for change. We will be making the case that environmental sustainability is a big one, and, with your help, mapping a five to ten year plan.

‘Sustaining Creativity’ is a series of conversations and events exploring environmental challenges, drivers of change, and the opportunities that transformative solutions offer to the creative community.

‘Sustainability’ generally refers to an approach that balances social, financial and environmental considerations. Julie’s Bicycle’s focus is environmental sustainability. While we recognise and seek to reinforce the synergies between social, financial and environmental wellbeing, economic and social development are ultimately contingent on a healthy planet.

Sustaining Creativity will take a holistic approach, intent on shoring up strength and wellbeing over the coming decade. It will consider the likely systemic changes already influencing mainstream thinking and put sustainability at the forefront of creative and cultural innovation.

Sustaining Creativity will:

Discover what the business critical issues are perceived to be from a wide range of representatives from the creative community.

Extend ambition about what is possible using real examples.

Identify some key shifts needed to develop a creative infrastructure commensurate with global challenges.

Outline what might be done over the next five to ten years to create optimal conditions for change.

Foster confident decision-making that looks beyond political and funding cycles

Produce a series of events and publications

We are working with partners including the Technology Strategy Board, Sustain RCA, RSA, Volans, Pervasive Media Studios, John Elkington, John Kieffer, John Holden, and Haworth Tompkins Architects exploring the following themes:

Value
Alternative approaches to how we measure and explore value culturally, socially and financially

Digital
Thinking about how digital connectivity and data can influence our approach to environmental change

Circularity
Developing design methodologies and partnerships to increase circular use of resources and materials within the sector and more widely

Governance
How do these key issues affect Boards and Senior Leaders in the arts?

Watch videos from the Sustaining Creativity launch event in November 2013 byclicking here.

We will be holding a conference on Wednesday 28th May 2014 to present some of the early findings from our survey, and to engage the sector in a further debate about what the next steps should be. For more information about the day, click here.

Read the Where Science Meets Art publication here

http://www.juliesbicycle.com/Sustaining-Creativity

Blog: Mulling it Over

Creative Carbon Scotland, ,

This post comes from Creative Carbon Scotland

Director of Creative Carbon Scotland, Ben Twist, gives us his reflections on our recent artist residency – Mull, thinking about art and sustainability.

A couple of week’s ago Creative Carbon Scotland went with ten artists to Mull in brilliant weather for an intense and powerful weekend long discussion about what it might be like to be an artist in a sustainable Scotland, and what we at CCS needed to do to engage more artists in this debate. It was exhausting and exhilarating with hours of discussion, an exercise involving listening and imagining what might be there in a future Scotland, and many cups of tea (and a few beers and glasses of wine). Our thanks to Comar in Mull for hosting us.

We had two facilitators, composer Dave Fennessy and producer Suzy Glass. Dave is self-confessedly a newcomer to thinking about sustainability – he might well have said ‘what’s this got to do with me sitting in my room composing?’ – whilst Suzy has more experience with the ideas. We’d asked them to structure the discussion precisely because they had different takes on the idea of sustainability. The eight participating artists (two fell by the wayside) had been selected for their varying experience and knowledge of sustainability and different disciplines.

Gemma and I provided some harder facts dosed with poetic licence, on the Saturday evening, by painting a picture of what Scotland might look like physically and socially in 2050. We described a country with hotter, drier summers; milder, wetter winters; and more extreme weather events, increased flooding and raised sea levels. Crops such as apricots and tomatoes would grow well, whilst a quarter of the country would be covered in forest and we would be increasing the size of peatbogs to capture more carbon. Meanwhile Scotland’s ethnic diversity had increased as people fled a southern Europe too hot to live in and climate refugees from the developing world and Eastern Europe came to the UK. Interestingly London had become too hot for comfort and the northern cities had become increasingly attractive. Travel had become much more expensive and the era of cheap flights to artists’ residencies and for touring performances had come to an end.

What did we learn? One thing that came out of it very strongly was that whilst much of our work with arts organisations has been about carbon reduction, the discussions over the weekend were all about adaptation to a low carbon environment. This makes the most of individual artists’ ability to imagine other futures – an idea that has always had resonance for me as my own field, theatre, is in many ways a thought experiment where the artists and audience together imagine a possible other world.

Also important was a combination of a thirst for knowledge, ideas and the opportunity for discussion of these topics with a richness of individual experience and thinking about them already. We all learned a great deal about each other’s practice, how it had been affected by thinking about sustainability and how it might be affected by the weekend’s work. This reflects our experience of working with arts organisations – there’s a great deal going on already but the need to bring it together and share the learning.

Finally there’s a real need for a wider resource of writing, information and artistic work on sustainability, the environment and art in all its shapes and forms. We’ll create a new area of the CCS website for a library of this material and we hope you’ll contribute to it once it’s ready.

Thanks to our facilitators and artists, Suzy Glass, Dave Fennessey, Angharad McLaren, Hannah Imlach, Alex South, Catrin Evans, Tom Butler, Natalie McIlroy, Jake Bee and Rachel Duckhouse for their enormous contributions.

Image: Tom Butler – Mull

The post Blog: Mulling it Over appeared first on Creative Carbon Scotland.

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Creative Carbon Scotland is a partnership of arts organisations working to put culture at the heart of a sustainable Scotland. We believe cultural and creative organisations have a significant influencing power to help shape a sustainable Scotland for the 21st century.

In 2011 we worked with partners Festivals Edinburgh, the Federation of Scottish Threatre and Scottish Contemporary Art Network to support over thirty arts organisations to operate more sustainably.

We are now building on these achievements and working with over 70 cultural organisations across Scotland in various key areas including carbon management, behavioural change and advocacy for sustainable practice in the arts.

Our work with cultural organisations is the first step towards a wider change. Cultural organisations can influence public behaviour and attitudes about climate change through:

Changing their own behaviour;

Communicating with their audiences;

Engaging the public’s emotions, values and ideas.

Go to Creative Carbon Scotland

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Green Culture Conference

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This post comes to you from Cultura21

GREEN CULTURE CONFERENCE, 15-17 MAY, 2014, MONTENEGRO

The Green Culture Conference is one of the groundbreaking events in Southeast Europe to address the role the Creative Industries play in environmental sustainability.

Green-Culture-Conference

Those working in the Arts & Culture have always been social leaders. Without them, some of the greatest achievements, discoveries and historical moments would not have been possible. Artists and cultural workers are some of the most influential and strongest catalysts of change, and when it comes to sustainability, their presence is pivotal. This hands-on and interactive conference will bring to light the latest achievements and developments in sustainability within the Creative Industries. You will learn what your regional and international colleagues have been up to, share your own innovative ideas and projects, and gain a better understanding of what sustainability means in SEE. Through knowledge exchange, brainstorming, and workshops, you will set the sustainability agenda for the region.

Efforts to progress sustainability most definitely include sustainable building and architecture. Sustainable living is directly connected to sustainable building, which is especially pressing for this part of the vulnerable Adriatic coastline due to the high volume of developments over the past 20 years. Therefore, the conference will feature a special segment on Green Building.

Montenegro’s town of Tivat will be the host for this year’s conference.

  • By participating in three days of insightful presentations, stimulating discussions, and inspiring workshops, with a fabulous line-up of evening entertainment.
  • By sharing knowledge, exchanging ideas and acquiring tools on how to incorporate sustainable practices into everyday work and living.
  • By getting the latest industry news from around the globe from regional and international experts and talking with them face-to-face to widen professional creative networks.
  • By stimulating action and creating specific tasks to set concrete goals and milestones for future progress.

More Information.

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Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)

– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)

– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)

– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

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European alliance of artists and arts institutions promote environmental sustainability

Culture Futures,

This post comes to you from Culture|Futures

European alliance of artists and arts institutions promote environmental sustainability

Green Art Lab Alliance is a European-wide programme dedicated to promoting environmental sustainability and how that can be challenged in practical, ethical, and artistic ways across arts genres and cultural communities across Europe. On 12-13 March 2014, the alliance’s next workshop was held in Berlin, Germany.

green-art-lab-alliance

The alliance investigates the challenges and opportunities that environmental sustainability implies for the practice of artists and art institutions:

“We believe it is time that arts and culture takes responsibility in its own innovative and artistic ways. The arts shouldn’t see environmental sustainability as a side issue, but as an essential part of its practice. What that exactly implies for the visual arts and design, is what this project will investigate on different levels and in close collaboration with designers, artists and scientists across Europe,” the initiators of the project stated.

Based on the concept of a ‘knowledge alliance’ developed by DutchCulture|TransArtists in partnership with Julie’s Bicycle the Green Art Lab Alliance of twenty cultural organisations in Europe have created a partnership, building a collaborative project with cultural organisations and artists all over Europe and Georgia.

The project has a total budget of 400,000 euro, of which 50 percent is co-financed by the EU Culture programme. The Green Art Lab Alliance officially started with a kick-off meeting in June 2013 at the Jan van Eijck Academy in Maastricht, the Netherlands, and it will run for almost two years, ending in March 2015.

During this period the collaborating partners organise workshops and labs to share knowledge and raise awareness amongst citizens and artists in particular.

On 28-29 November 2013, Art Motile and the Gas Natural Contemporary Art Museum presented a two day programme of talks, workshops and a round table discussion with TransArtists, ResArtis, On-the-Move and Interarts, among others.

On 12-13 March 2014, the Green Art Lab Alliance hosted a workshop on green issues for the sustainable support of cultural mobility in Berlin, Germany. This workshop targeted EU funders and cultural policy makers interested in including green criteria in the way they support culture and cultural mobility in particular.

On the Move, Julie’s Bicycle and DutchCulture¦TransArtists co-organised the workshop together with with ITI-Germany and IGBK.

Sholeh Johnston from Julie’s Bicycle is tutor of the training.

“This workshop provided an overview of various approaches taken to embed environmental criteria into cultural funding. We shared the tools, resources and methodology used by example funding bodies, such as the Arts Council England, which has embedded criteria around environmental reporting into funding agreements since 2012. We covered case studies of how cultural organisations are interpreting environmental sustainability and the potential impact of policy in aiding and supporting this work, with a focus on touring, residencies and other mobility-related work. There was ample opportunity for discussion and thinking through how these learnings can be practically applied in various European contexts,” explained Sholeh Johnston.

Along with this workshop a training for ecological and sustainable cultural work took place, entitled ‘Training sustainability!’. This training – supported by the German Federal Cultural Foundation (Kulturstiftung des Bundes) – targeted leaders and stakeholders in the performing arts.

Experiences were shared and synergies were created at a joined introductory presentation by Julie’s Bicycle and at a ‘Green Salon’ on 12 March 2014. The participants also got a chance to visit in Berlin cultural and “green” places, including UFA Fabrik.

»For more information about the workshop, you can send an e-mail to mobility (at) on-the-move.org

Advocate for legacy and standards

“Maintaining the diversity of response in the context of a shared ambition will be critical for ensuring that the project has a strong foundation for legacy. With this project we will establish a strong network of artists and organizations engaged with this topic of environmental sustainability, which will be the foundation for establishing a European Knowledge Alliance. This European Knowledge Alliance will consist of knowledge hubs (ambassadors/artists and organizations) across Europe on the different ethical, practical and artistic aspects of environmental sustainability.

The Knowledge Alliance will advocate for legacy and standards for the arts and cultural sector on environmental sustainability on the longer term.”

Transartists.org wrote that this first meeting of all partners “demonstrated what it is that makes this project so unique: the variety of profiles of participating organisations and different geographical backgrounds offer a diverse approach to the different aspects of sustainability.”

There are residencies involved where artists, the general public and partner organisations get the chance to experiment and explore the role of sustainability in the arts.

Others are European cultural networks, government related institutes which have impact on (national) policy level, educational institutes and organisations which are stimulating the exchange of scientific knowledge with the creativity of artists.

The issues related to sustainability that these organisations are going to address vary from mobility to waste, water and energy.

“All partners believe that it is time for the arts and culture to take responsibility in their own innovative and artistic ways. By exploring the different approaches and by sharing knowledge and best practices, the partners aim to identify realistic first steps to create a better understanding  of the meaning  of sustainability for and through the arts.

The GALA partners want to promote and support artists and cultural workers in their contribution to this goal. The ambition is to create a Europe-wide network of individuals and organisations engaged in combining arts and environmental sustainability.”

»Report about the kick-off meeting: www.transartists.org

More information

»Open or download: planning document for the Green Art Lab Alliance 2013-2015 (PDF)

»Discover or rediscover the Green mobility guide for the performing arts sector which On The Move co-produced with Julie’s Bicycle.

»More info on www.on-the-move.org

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Culture|Futures is an international collaboration of organizations and individuals who are concerned with shaping and delivering a proactive cultural agenda to support the necessary transition towards an Ecological Age by 2050.

The Cultural sector that we refer to is an interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral, inter-genre collaboration, which encompasses policy-making, intercultural dialogue/cultural relations, creative cities/cultural planning, creative industries and research and development. It is those decision-makers and practitioners who can reach people in a direct way, through diverse messages and mediums.

Affecting the thinking and behaviour of people and communities is about the dissemination of stories which will profoundly impact cultural values, beliefs and thereby actions. The stories can open people’s eyes to a way of thinking that has not been considered before, challenge a preconceived notion of the past, or a vision of the future that had not been envisioned as possible. As a sector which is viewed as imbued with creativity and cultural values, rather than purely financial motivations, the cultural sector’s stories maintain the trust of people and society.

Go toThis post comes to you from Culture|Futures

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Aesthetics & Sustainability | Arlene Goldbard

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This post comes to you from EcoArtScotland

Clyde Research - photo Chris Fremantle

Clyde Research – photo Chris Fremantle

Arlene Goldbard’s recent blog on aesthetics and sustainability is very refreshing.  It acknowledges that we define sustainability by it’s negative, ie our current unsustainable lifestyles (and we can describe that unsustainability in myriad ways).

Arlene quotes Adrienne Goehler in sharply defining the challenge to move the idea of sustainability beyond “prohibition, asceticism, and morality” into the a relationship with, “new forms of learning. Aesthetic education means sensitive, perceptive, creative education, which, in the words of Hannah Arendt, culminates in creative action.”

If you are interested in thinking about sustainability then this is a good place to start.  Sign up for her posts.  They are always interesting.

Aesthetics & Sustainability | Arlene Goldbard.

ecoartscotland is a resource focused on art and ecology for artists, curators, critics, commissioners as well as scientists and policy makers. It includes ecoartscotland papers, a mix of discussions of works by artists and critical theoretical texts, and serves as a curatorial platform.
It has been established by Chris Fremantle, producer and research associate with On The Edge Research, Gray’s School of Art, The Robert Gordon University. Fremantle is a member of a number of international networks of artists, curators and others focused on art and ecology.
Go to EcoArtScotland

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Sustainable Living Festival

Cultura21, , ,

This post comes to you from Cultura21

Febuary 8th – 23rd, 2014.

slffestivallogo

The Sustainable Living Festival raised awareness and provided tools for change by showcasing leading solutions to the ecological and social challenges we face. The Sustainable Living Festival aimed to inspire and empower everyday Australians to accelerate the uptake of sustainable living.

The Festival attracts over 150,000 visits annually and engages with hundreds of organisations and individuals to stage Australia’s largest and oldest sustainability festival.

SLF 2012 from SLF on Vimeo.

The Festival’s expanded program engaged individuals and communities across Victoria to host and promote sustainability events. Beyond this, the Festival has extended the reach of the sustainability message to the cities, suburbs and streets of the nation.

The Festival’s Big Weekend event at Federation Square in the heart of Melbourne celebrated the very best examples of ecological and social sustainability. The event embraced interactive workshops, talks, demonstrations, artworks, exhibits, films and live performances.

‘The Sustainable Living Festival is a manifestation of a commitment to healing our environment, a demonstration of diverse proposals for changing our behaviour and reducing the damaging impact we are having.’

Dr Moss Cass, Australia’s first environment minister, SLF patron.

Program

Visitor Info

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Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

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Holland: Conference on the future sustainability of European culture organisations

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This post comes to you from Culture|Futures

The conference ‘The Future Is Not What It Used To Be’ aims to develop a range of practical strategies and tactics for the future sustainability of European culture organisations.

futureisnotwhatitused

‘The Future Is Not What It Used To Be’ is a three-day, interdisciplinary working conference on 2-4 April 2014, presented by Trans Europe Halles, Melkweg and P60, taking place in Amsterdam and Amstelveen, The Netherlands.

Key issues and questions will form the basis for in-depth discussions, workshops and presentations at the conference. For instance, one of the conference-workshops entitled ‘Big Change – Towards a Sustainable Cultural Organisation’ will be a hands-on workshop about introducing sustainable methods into a cultural centre.

The host organisation P60 and its adjacent cultural organisations will be used as examples. By identifying areas requiring improvement, diagnostics and developing strategies, this workshop builds on the Sustainability Charter and the expertise developed by Trans Europe Halles.

The idea of the conference is to explore how cultural organisations can meet the needs of the future: What are the prospects are cultural organisations operating in a future of reduced resources and a changing European society?

‘The Future Is Not What It Used To Be’ is for anyone employed in or connected to the cultural sector. It will also offer the opportunity for policy makers and politicians to engage in discussions with culture practitioners on work-related topics and issues.

‘The Future Is Not What It Used To Be’ is organised in partnership with Culture Action Europe, European Cultural Foundation, GALA, IETM, Kunsten ’92, On The Move, Res Artis, Trans Artists and VNPF.

Until 14 February 2014, registration as an early bird with a reduced price will be available. More information on the programme will be available on the conference website from 7 February. 

» www.tehfuture.net

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Culture|Futures is an international collaboration of organizations and individuals who are concerned with shaping and delivering a proactive cultural agenda to support the necessary transition towards an Ecological Age by 2050.

The Cultural sector that we refer to is an interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral, inter-genre collaboration, which encompasses policy-making, intercultural dialogue/cultural relations, creative cities/cultural planning, creative industries and research and development. It is those decision-makers and practitioners who can reach people in a direct way, through diverse messages and mediums.

Affecting the thinking and behaviour of people and communities is about the dissemination of stories which will profoundly impact cultural values, beliefs and thereby actions. The stories can open people’s eyes to a way of thinking that has not been considered before, challenge a preconceived notion of the past, or a vision of the future that had not been envisioned as possible. As a sector which is viewed as imbued with creativity and cultural values, rather than purely financial motivations, the cultural sector’s stories maintain the trust of people and society.

Go toThis post comes to you from Culture|Futures

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Culture Change Conference

Julie's Bicycle, news, , , ,

This post from Julie’s Bicycle.

Culture Change Conference

5th Feburary 2014, 10.15am – 4pm (Registration from 9am)
Royal Opera House, Covent Garden

Providing business support to build sustainability in creative and cultural industries across the East of England.

culture-change

The Culture Change Conference 2014 will bring together expert speakers and workshop facilitators to address how the creative and cultural industries can take action on environmental sustainability.

Speakers include:
Professor Chris Rapley, Department of Earth Sciences at UCL
Sustainable fashion designer Orsola de Castro
Journalist and broadcaster Lucy Siegel
Jonathan Reekie, CEO of Aldeburgh Music
Donna Lynas, Director of Wysing Arts Centre
Martin Charter, Director of The Centre for Sustainable Design
… and more!

Find out more about the speakers.

The conference will launch the Culture Change programme, through which Julie’s Bicycle is providing free low carbon business support to East of England SMEs in the creative and cultural industries from now until March 2015.

On 5 February 2014, the Royal Opera House is hosting a free conference to launchCulture Change, a new business support programme for creative and cultural industries based in the East of England.

The conference will open at 9am with a networking opportunity, followed by an introduction by Alex Beard at 10.15am and the first presentation. It will close at 4pm.View the full agenda.

The programme, run by the Royal Opera House and supported by the European Regional Development Fund, is designed to encourage sustainable development in small to medium enterprises by offering bespoke advice, a support network and a series of free workshops and seminars.

The conference will include panel discussions about practical action on sustainability, led by speakers including Chris Rapley (Professor of Climate Science at University College, London), Orsola De Castro (leading eco fashion designer and founder of Esthetica) and Lucy Siegle (environmental journalist); taster workshops; introductions to the latest marketing strategies, carbon calculator tools and funding opportunities; and an interactive session to highlight sustainability objectives.

To book a free ticket, register now. For any further information, please e-mail Michelle Flinn at michelle.flinn@roh.org.uk, or phone 01708 892849.

The Culture Change programme has been created by a partnership between the Royal Opera House, Julie’s Bicycle, Creative & Cultural Skills, High House Production Park and Thurrock Borough Council. 

Click here to register your place and find out more.

UK: Measuring carbon emissions of arts organisations: ‘Sustaining great art’

Culture Futures, ,

This post comes to you from Culture|Futures

Arts Council England has published the report ‘Sustaining Great Art’, which presents results from the first year of environmental reporting by 704 major revenue funded organisations. 

sustaining-great-art

The results have been compiled into the single largest data set on the carbon emissions of arts organisations globally, and this achievement is reportedly already having ripple effects both in the UK and internationally, wrote Julie’s Bicycle in its December newsletter.

The report mentions a number of groups which are demonstrating benefits of collaboration, including:

• London Theatre Consortium, 13 theatres working to develop strategic, creative initiatives and share expertise and resources, including a sustainability strand

• Manchester Arts Sustainability Team, 13 arts organisations, venues and events, collaborating to support their own sustainability goals and Manchester’s climate change strategy

• Newcastle Gateshead Cultural Venues, 10 venues working to share learning and maximise their positive environmental, social, cultural and economic impact, with different workstreams, including a Green Campaign and Capital Investment Strategy which explores longer-term sustainable capital projects for the group

• Royal Opera House, Royal National Theatre and Royal Albert Hall, who entered into a three-year contract for collective energy procurement known as ‘The Arts Basket’ provided by the energy broker Power Efficiency in 2012. Other organisations have since joined and benefits include reduced costs, better risk management and longer-term price certainty on a green tariff supply.

The report was produced in partnership with Julie’s Bicycle. Currently working with over 1000 cultural organisations in the UK and Europe, Julie’s Bicycle offers free online tools, research, and bespoke consultancy to help arts organisations measure, manage, and reduce their environmental impacts.

Founded by the music industry, with expertise from the arts and sustainability, Julie’s Bicycle bridges the gap between the creative industries and sustainability. Based on a foundation of peer-reviewed research, Julie’s Bicycle sustains creativity, enabling the arts to create change.

Arts Council England and Julie’s Bicycle entered into a partnership in 2012 to deliver an environmental support programme for National portfolio organisations, Major partner museums and Bridge organisations. The partnership, which runs from 2012 to 2015, combines the annual CO2e measurement of energy and water use using Industry Green tools, and support to develop an Environmental Policy and an Action Plan for each organisation.

» More information and an infographic of the results: www.artscouncil.org.uk

» More information: www.juliesbicycle.com

» Right-click here to open or download the report: Sustaining-Great-Art.pdf (43 pages, 7 MB)

Culture|Futures is an international collaboration of organizations and individuals who are concerned with shaping and delivering a proactive cultural agenda to support the necessary transition towards an Ecological Age by 2050.

The Cultural sector that we refer to is an interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral, inter-genre collaboration, which encompasses policy-making, intercultural dialogue/cultural relations, creative cities/cultural planning, creative industries and research and development. It is those decision-makers and practitioners who can reach people in a direct way, through diverse messages and mediums.

Affecting the thinking and behaviour of people and communities is about the dissemination of stories which will profoundly impact cultural values, beliefs and thereby actions. The stories can open people’s eyes to a way of thinking that has not been considered before, challenge a preconceived notion of the past, or a vision of the future that had not been envisioned as possible. As a sector which is viewed as imbued with creativity and cultural values, rather than purely financial motivations, the cultural sector’s stories maintain the trust of people and society.
Go toThis post comes to you from Culture|Futures

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Central’s Sustainable Cabaret Wins Green Gown Award

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Via News / Julie’s Bicycle.

The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama has won a 2013 Green Gown Award for work on its sustainable pilot production of the musical ‘Cabaret’.

The Green Gown Awards are an annual celebration of sustainability best practice organised by the Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges. The accolade, presented at a ceremony at Derby College on 12th November, recognised Central’s achievement in staging the production using sustainable methods and in considering and measuring the environmental impact and carbon footprint of each stage of production. The initiative, a pilot programme for Central, was undertaken in partnership with Julie’s Bicycle.

Central-Green-Gowns-2013-group-shot

 

Central staff and students involved in ‘Cabaret’ collect the award at the prestigious ceremony in Derby.

Central’s Environment and Safety Manager Susanne Page said ‘As a small, specialist performing arts institution, recognition from outside our niche profession, for an Award that recognises how creativity and sustainability can complement one another, further inspires and energises the continued nurturing of sustainable practices within our theatrical community’.

The judges particularly recognised the project for its role in bringing education for sustainable development to a novel and unusual setting, and they highlighted the scheme’s capacity to shape future practice.

Research undertaken by the students throughout the pilot contributed to the Julie’s Bicycle Sustainable Production Guide, a practical toolkit now available to arts organisations globally via the Julie’s Bicycle website as a guide to reducing their environmental impacts in production and to promote sustainability.  The work will also help to enable effective integration of sustainability into Central’s general curriculum and across future productions, and it has inspired the students involved to carry this knowledge and experience into their professional careers and make a wider, lasting impact on the industry.

Sholeh Johnston, Arts Manager at Julie’s Bicycle, who provided training and mentoring for students involved in the project said ‘The necessary shift towards a sustainable cultural sector is enabled through projects like Central’s Cabaret pilot. The learning and best practice explored by staff and students at Central is now providing practical information and inspiration to other student and professional practitioners. This award celebrates their commitment, and will hopefully galvanize others to get involved with this incredibly exciting movement – one that embodies the best of our sector’s creativity and ingenuity in finding and scaling up more sustainable approaches to theatre making.’

Read more about Central’s production of ‘Cabaret’ in Julie’s Bicycle case study.

Julie’s Bicycle be working with Central on their next ‘green’ production of ‘Greece’ in 2014.