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EFM Online Series featured projects on Music & Climate Action
The European Music Council had selected a set of projects putting music and climate action together, which were to be presented at the European Forum on Music in Bonn. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, they are now being presented online so get inspired and discover all these great initiatives enabling the music sector to become more environmentally sustainable and reducing its impact on the climate.
AEC Goes Green
The AEC is a voluntary association of European and international Higher Music Education (HME) Institutions. For its members, AEC is not only a strong network gathering the HME community, but also a think tank for new developments in the sector and a driver for change.
As shown by three chosen examples, environmental sustainability has a prominent position in AEC's current Action Plan 2020/2021.
► # 1 outlines the AEC goes green overall concept;
► #2 asks what 'Sustainability' might mean in music and music education;
► #3 presents a hands-on tool how to contribute to reducing the ecological footprint in the HME sector: LoLa.
BOZAR's focus on climate issues
The Brussels Centre for Fine Arts (BOZAR) aims to be an actor of a sustainable society. Highlighting how art and artists can help us to achieve this goal is part of our mission. BOZAR chose to focus on climate issues during the 20-21 season with two different artistic projects.
The “Gallery of Futures. Heatwaves, conflicts and solidarity” exhibition will invite photographers, visual artists, designers, poets and movie makers to offer a creative perspective on the climate challenge humanity is facing nowadays.
In the framework of the Beethoven Pastoral Project, the « Hotel Beethoven » exhibition and multidisciplinary festival will explore unexpected aspects of Beethoven’s legacy. Today, Beethoven inspires many activists and initiatives worldwide and allows us to reflect on our own relationship to our environment.
Clubtopia with Livekomm, member of Live DMA
Clubtopia devotes itself to sustainability and climate issues within the Berlin club scene, addressing clubs, event organisers, as well as club guests. The goal is to raise awareness and change behaviour for a brighter and climate friendly future. The project brings together experts of nightlife and sustainability during innovation labs and workshops as well as round tables. In addition, Clubtopia motivates practical climate friendly action in club and event management by providing knowledge through energy consulting and the green club guide.
The project is the result of many years of great cooperation with the BUND Berlin, clubliebe and the Clubcommission. The current project is also supported by Livekomm and the University of Sustainable Development Eberswalde and funded by the Berlin senate for the environment, transport and climate protection.
'Going home' from Live Music Now Scotland
The EMC presents the fantastic work of Live Music Now Scotland, and their 'Going Home' project. Combining audience development, access to culture and reduced travel emissions, it is a great example of alternative ways of touring and giving further access to music to less accessible audience.
Take a look at the case study launched on #GreenArts Day
“Take The Green Train” - Europe Jazz Network
The “Take the Green Train” activity was initiated by EJN in 2014 and has been an on-going consultative process with the jazz community to understand priorities, outline challenges, and find the opportunities in new, more environmentally sustainable ways of organising festivals, concerts and international tours. Between 2014 and 2017 they collaborated with Julie’s Bicycle, the leading UK organisation working on environmental issues in the music sector, on the development of a number of resources, case studies and a scoping research on green tourism initiatives across Europe, to see how these could interact with live creative music events. The two main outcomes of the activity developed together with Julie’s Bicycle have been a GREEN MANIFESTO, adopted by EJN Members during the General Assembly 2015, and a PILOT GREEN TOUR of renowned UK saxophone player Even Parker, with 7 concerts organised in different European countries, travelling by train between them and evaluating the impact and the challenges of the initiative. For the tour a specific GREEN RIDER was developed and circulated to all the venues, an adapted version of the rider is now used by different agencies and artists when organising their tour. They are planning to restart the Take the Green Train activity during 2020 with a new set of actions that will be discussed and implemented with all the EJN members.
Tree Opera from the Latvian National Music Council
A contemporary opera that explores the forest as a natural stage to create an unique experience of our interconnectedness with nature at large and forest in particular.
“Tree Opera” is an immersive musical experience that takes place in a forest, where forest itself becomes a protagonist in its own right. The concept was developed by Latvian composer Anna Ķirse and over the years has already seen three di‑erent versions created for various outdoor environments (from wild forests to a park). ‘’Tree Opera. Windthrow’’, the latest instalment, is the largest and most ambitious.
Carried out by a team of internationally recognised artists, the show premiered in August 2019 in the midst of an old-growth forest in Hyrynsalmi, Finland. It was performed by eight singers and eight chamber ensemble musicians positioned on specially made platforms in the trees. It draws the inspiration from the most recent scientific research in plants neuro-physiology and deep forest ecology showing that trees share information and nutrients through a subterranean network of fungi. Instead of seeing trees as separate agents competing for resources, it perceives forest as a wood wide web – a cooperative, deeply symbiotic system where trees communicate among themselves and with other species, producing a collaborative intelligence or ‘forest wisdom’. More on the Latvian National Music Council here