“ OUR AMBITION IS TO CREATE A SPACE WHERE PEOPLE , NATURE AND MUSIC CAN COHABIT .”
OPINION
How can music festivals alleviate
their impact on the environment ?
Pauline Bourdon , sustainability & social cohesion manager , at Team Love on what Bristol ’ s Forwards Festival is doing to mitigate its environmental impact
Festivals create beautiful opportunities for people to connect while enjoying their favourite act . But we know that they can be more than that , by gathering people together , we can harness the power of collective joy to raise awareness of climate and social justice and show that a different way of being together is possible .
At Forwards , the idea of festivals as living labs for creation and imagination is essential to the way we see our event . Our ambition is to create a space where people , nature and music can cohabit by partnering with like-minded businesses and organisations , programming thought provoking talks , showcasing new ways of being in communities alongside environmental innovations .
Our goal is to play a valuable role in implementing the forward-thinking changes and initiatives that will support local businesses , the creative industries , and wider society to take action on the climate change emergency already in motion . Continuing a conversation on the place of festivals as agents of change and key to creating social connections in the current socio-cultural climate .
Our sustainability ethos is embedded in intersectionality , we believe that there is no climate justice without social justice . Part of this ethos is also to transparently share our values and report on our initiatives so our public can witness the work behind the scenes and the story we ’ re creating for Forwards . In 2023 , Forwards was externally assessed by industry leader A Greener Future and received the Commended certification signifying a wellmanaged , environmentally aware festival going beyond expectation to make positive change .
Alongside our environmental assessment , we are also very happy to announce that we were certified Silver by Attitude is Everything for our work in making our event more accessible .
“ OUR AMBITION IS TO CREATE A SPACE WHERE PEOPLE , NATURE AND MUSIC CAN COHABIT .”
Forwards Festival also took part in a groundbreaking case study from A Greener Future on the intersectionality of accessibility and sustainability - helping in the creation of a new sustainability toolkit - No Climate Action Without Us . Some of our key initiatives last year include :
• Introducing a hybrid generator for our production area . This initiative helped us save 220 hours of fuel usage and reduce our carbon footprint .
Pauline Bourdon
• Raising climate awareness with attendees and stakeholders . Our audience raised £ 3,094 for EarthPercent and enjoyed some amazing messaging and videos in between acts from Climate Live and Music Declares Emergency .
• Continuing our work towards a more inclusive and diverse music industry . Capture Forwards , our project in partnership with Big Team , brought four aspiring photographers on a unique festival photography media placement at the event . Alongside this , we offered eight , paid , Big Team work placements at Forwards , in various roles across the site . We also continued our work behind the scenes including outreach sessions , undertaking crew surveys , demographic data collection and ongoing staff training .
The journey towards a fairer and better future for us all is ongoing and requires continuous innovation , collaboration , and commitment . It is important for the festival industry to continue on this trajectory so we can all contribute to a more sustainable future - something that Forwards is dedicated to . accessaa . co . uk 19