WELCOME
Here comes the sun
The summer is upon us and what a summer it promises to be , with the season packed with major music and sports events . I write this fresh from a meeting at Wembley Stadium , where its director Chris Bryant ran through the astonishingly vast and complex operational plan for staging the UEFA Champions League Final . In 2013 , the last time it was staged at the venue , the final generated £ 50m for the wider economy . The fiscal impact will be far greater this time , not least due to the level of additional activity throughout the city including a four-day festival across five sites , and two fan meeting points including a 20,000-capacity activation in Hyde Park .
As if one were needed , it was yet another reminder of the enormous financial contribution the live events industry makes to the economy . At Wembley Stadium alone , the UEFA Champions League Final will be followed by a summer concert season that includes eight sold out shows by Taylor Swift as part of a tour that is breaking revenue records by the minute . There ’ s no doubt a huge amount of money is being made at the top end of the industry , but for many in the festival sector this summer is proving to be a challenge ; with more than 40 events already called off this year .
On page 20 of this sustainabilityfocused issue , we explore whether financial uncertainty is impacting the festival sector ’ s progress toward becoming more environmentally sustainable and we hear how being less
‘ green ’ can actually cost event operators significantly more . We also hear from Cheltenham Festivals ’ Andrew Lansley about the progress of the Green Events Code of Practice ( P . 28 ), while CUR8 ’ s Mark Stevenson makes the case for carbon removals ( P . 17 ) and One Tribe ’ s Ric Porteus advocates offsetting ( P . 43 ). We also hear how the team at Greenland ’ s Arctic Sounds Festival ( P . 28 ) is at the heart of a project designed to inspire young people to take action to mitigate climate change .
You may have noticed that we have given Access All Areas something of a spring clean , with a new simpler design aesthetic aimed at making the content easier to absorb . I hope you approve .
Enjoy the summer .
Christopher Barrett , Content Director
access-all-areas-magazine @ access _ aa
@ access _ aa
CONTENT DIRECTOR Christopher Barrett
PORTFOLIO DIRECTOR Steve Theivendrarajah
MARKETING MANAGER Gus Agostini
PRODUCTION CONTROLLER Sabrina Boucher
CIRCULATION MANAGER Samy Shafeeq
PAGE PRODUCTION PA Media
PUBLISHED BY : Mash Media Group , Second Floor , Applemarket House , 17 Union Street , Kingston Upon Thames KT1 1RP . Tel : + 44 ( 0 ) 20 8481 11 22
SUBSCRIPTION : Free to qualified readers within UK . Non-qualified readers within UK - £ 50 . Readers in Europe / Eire - £ 70 . Worldwide - £ 105
SUBSCRIBE ON www . accessaa . co . uk
The opinions expressed by contributors to this publication are not always a reflection of the opinions or the policy of the publishers . Information on services or products contained within editorial sections does not imply recommendation by Access All Areas . No part of this publication can be reproduced in any form without written authority of Mash Media .
accessaa . co . uk 05