Archives
Categories
- GENERAL (138)
- GREEN MUSIC (71)
Useful Links
Subscribe to Feeds:
A Greener Festival Blog
The Green Music Group launches in the USA
February 8th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
The GREEN MUSIC GROUP has launched in the US bringing together a collection of high profile musicians and music industrry leaders who are joining with reverb.org to green the music industry and activate fans.
Founding members include the Dave Matthews Band, Linkin Park, Maroon 5, The Roots, Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt, Barenaked Ladies, Guster, Warner Music Group, Brushfire Records, Shoreline Amphitheater, Comcast Center, Verizon Wireless Music Center, Wolftrap National Park for the Performing Arts, Brooklyn Bowl, and American Airlines Arena.
The new group celebrated its official launch on the 1st February 2010 in Hollywood, CA with the hope of implementing widespread environmental change within the music industry and around the globe. To announce its launch, Green Music Group founding members and friends gathered at Jane’s House in Hollywood for live performances by members of Dave Matthews Band, The Roots, Guster, and Maroon 5. Guests were treated to eco-friendly appetizers and drinks provided by Shin’s BBQ, VeeV, ZICO, Eel River, and Newton’s Vineyard. “Tonight we celebrated a watershed moment – music industry leaders and fans coming together to create significant change. Reverb has been helping individual artists and venues green their tours and shows for the last six years. We wanted to do more – our founding artists, venues and labels wanted to do more, and our fans were calling on us to take the lead,” said Guster guitarist/vocalist Adam Gardner, who founded Reverb with his wife, environmentalist Lauren Sullivan. “Green Music Group answers that call by using the collective power of the music community to bring about real lasting environmental change.” Since 2004, Reverb has greened over 80 major music tours while conducting grassroots outreach to over 10 million music fans. The nonprofit group has also worked with various entities within the music world from record labels to radio stations.
Green Music Group will build upon what Reverb has already accomplished, creating and implementing industry-wide green guidelines and standards while providing a dynamic online community where fans can take action. “DMB has been working with Reverb for a number of years to green our tours and have seen amazing results both backstage and from our fans’ response,” said Dave Matthews Band. “We are excited to exponentially multiply these results by joining forces with other like-minded bands through the Green Music Group.” Prominent music industry leaders agree. “We are proud to have several of our venues as Founding Members of GMG,” expressed Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino. “We look forward to continued growth of our environmental efforts to follow the example set by these standouts and the other founders of Green Music Group.”
Born out of the Internet age, Green Music Group has launched GreenMusicGroup.org, which provides fans and artists with a vibrant online community to engage in regular calls-to-action, beginning with the “GMG Challenge” set to launch next month. As additional incentive to take action, fans have chances to win prizes like VIP tickets and autographed guitars. Mike Brune, incoming Executive Director of the Sierra Club commented, “Green Music Group’s incredible reach and deep connection to young people has the power to be a major megaphone for our organization’s environmental campaigns.” GMG has partnered with a diverse group of non-profits ranging from Union of Concerned Scientists to Oxfam America to Hip Hop Caucus. Green Music Group encourages everyone who loves music and wants to be at the forefront of change to join the coalition.
The sun is in the sky, oh my oh my!
February 8th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
One day the oil will run out. One day the gas will run out. One day the coal will run out. They are finite resources. And they are polluting – and burning them (according to most scientists) causes global warming. But even if you dont believe the science, and some don’t, why would you base your economy, your miltary power, your society, on a finite and fast dwindling resource? Why indeed, and a question I am sure the oil, gas and coal industries really hope won’t be asked too often. It would take only 62 miles of mirrors in the Mojave desert in California to produce enough clean, cheap electricity to power the whole of America. Perhaps this is why the oil companies are so keen to discredit scientists and global warming. Imagine the USA proudly self sufficient in cheap renewable energy benefitting consumers and the economy!
In some of the sunniest countries in the world there is a cruel irony that many people spend much time in darkness for a want of cheap energy. And more cruel still is that the remedy is so easily available – if there was just enough seed money to harness solar power. Well now SolarAid is slowly providing funding to turn the sun’s natural power into energy – to light schools, to light hospitals and operating theatres, to allow medicines and drugs to be refrigerated, to light homes. In Malawi many many farmers are beginning to swap kerosene (paraffin) lamps for small solar panels which can be used for lighting, and charging mobile phones. The average £1 per week savings on kerosene more than pay for the panels which cost £19 – and have the added benefit of free mobile charging which often saves a long walk to a charging station where shopkeepers also expect to be paid – oh, and avoiding house fires! In Malawi only 4% of homes are linked to the national electricity grid. If farmers cannot afford kerosene they usually illegally take wood from rapidly diminishing forests, to furl fires for light and cooking. And this could so easily be avoided!
Get involved in the GREENER FESTIVAL AWARDS
February 4th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
Our new GREENER FESTIVAL AWARDS scheme is open for 2010. If you organise a music or arts festival – or if you work at a festival – make sure you get in touch with us at agreenerfestival@aol.com. The Self Assessment form can be downloaded from the home pages on this website. This can be returned either to return digitally (preferred) or as a pdf to be posted back. Each Festival that enters needs to complete this Self Assessment and then submit this to us before your event with as much supporting documentation as possible – this might include a carbon footprint, an environmental impact assessment or a traffic and transport plan. There are some very useful tools on the Julies Bicycle website (the IG Tools) to help festivals and events measure greenhouse gas emissions – see http://www.juliesbicycle.com/resources and these can help reduce your carbon footprint. We will also need to appoint an environmental assessor to visit your Festival to complete an independent audit.
In 2009 37 festivals in the UK, mainland Europe, the USA and Australia were awarded our prestigious award and recipients included T-in-the-Park in Scotland, The Isle of Wight, The City of London Festival, Waveform, Croissant Neuf and Glastonbury in the UK, Bonnaroo and Rothbury in the USA and Bluesfest and Peats Ridge in Australia. The Awards are widely publicised in both trade press and in mainstream press around the world and are recognised as a significant independent award recognising best environmental practice. The overall Greener Festival Award for best environmental performance will be awarded to one festival at the UK Festival Awards 2010. We also have linked up with Yourope and Virtual Festivals for the European Festival Awards and they will award the overall Green ‘n’ Clean Award for best environmental performance for a European Festival at the European Festival Awards 2010. This year the winners in the UK were the Croissant Neuf festival and the Winners in Europe were the Oya Festival in Norway.
Controversial Brazilian dam approved
February 4th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
The controversial plan to build an immense dam in Brazil’s rainforest has been approved by the Brazilian Government this week and neatly and unpleasantly highlights one of those awful green dilemmas – yes we need cheap, clean, sustainable electricity – and hydro electric power is perfect – but is this sensible at the cost of the destruction of a massive area of rainforest? The project will also lead to the loss of homes of indigenous people and many many species of plants and animals. The plan, which has attracted a formidable bloc of opponents including religious leaders, politicians, ecologists, indigenous Indians and Sting, will be built in Belo Monte in the northern state of Para and would be the third-biggest hydroelectric dam in the world after the Three Gorges dam in China and Brazil’s existing Itaipu dam. It will produce 11,000 Megawatts of energy for Brazil’s rapidly growing economy, with the project’s total cost estimated at 11 billion dollars. But critics have warned that the dam it will leave vast environmental devastation in its wake with some 500 square kilometres (190 square miles) of land flooded and 30,000 people living along 100 kilometres (62 miles) of the Xingu River will be displaced from their traditional territories. Critics also fear that the growth in population brought on as a new workforce arrives will lead to further deforestation. The British singer Sting brought the issue to international attention last year when he invited a high-profile Brazilian Indian, Raoni, on stage to denounce the dam during a concert in Sao Paulo. The federal government, which has already had two other dams built on the Madeira river in the Amazon, insists the new dam meets environmental criteria.
Chilling facts – supermarkets fridges more damaging than plastic bags
February 4th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
Greenhouse gases used in supermarket fridges and freezers pose as great a threat to the environment than plastic bags, according to a study by campaign group the Environmental Investigation Agency – and chemicals released by fridges account for 30% of supermarkets’ direct emissions, yet only 0.5% of stores have been fitted with greener equipment, according to the report, called Chilling Facts. The research points the finger at “ethical” grocer the Co-operative Group, which scored the lowest marks of the major grocery chains followed by fellow bad boys Asda and Morrisons in a league table topped by best performer Waitrose. It seems that “fridges are not sexy” but that the environmental impact of supermarket refrigeration is a big issue and “it is a hell of a lot bigger than free plastic bags.” The EIA is concerned about the widespread use of damaging HFC (hydrofluorocarbon) gases as coolants.
Supermarkets are the biggest industrial emitters of HFCs, which were hurriedly introduced in the 1990s as a safer alternative to ozone-depleting chemicals such as CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) – these are greenhouse gases with one tonne of the widely used gas called R404a has a warming effect equal to 3,900 tonnes of CO2 over a 100-year period. The level of leakage of the chemicals is equivalent to 1bn car journeys to the average local supermarket. The gases escape in normal use and maintenance. There is also the fact that many supermarkets now have ‘open’ fridges with no doors or lids!
There are alternatives that can be used for refrigeration. More climate-friendly chemicals have been adopted in Sweden and Demark and by major multinationals including McDonalds and Coca-Cola. But British supermarkets have been slow to make the change. The Co-op scored just 19 out of a possible 100 because recent store refits included old HFC-based refrigeration. According to the EIA, there was also “heavy reliance” on ozone-depleting HCFCs in its distribution centres. The company said the report was based on “dated information” and ignored recent steps to reduce leakage, which was cut by almost 30% last year. Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Aldi all refused to share emissions data with the researchers. But even without their figures the EIA said the “reported” industry tally was the equivalent of 1.13m tonnes of CO2, suggesting the total release of climate-damaging HFCs is significantly higher. Waitrose jumped from near the bottom of the league table in the 2009 survey to the top, scoring 60 out of 100, after promising to put greener systems in all new stores and major refurbishments. Tesco was second, reflecting its plans to install alternative systems in 120 stores. However, by virtue of being the country’s biggest food retailer, Tesco is the biggest emitter and as yet has set no date to phase out HFCs. Sainsbury’s was disappointed to rank fourth behind Marks & Spencer, arguing its work in the area was “industry-leading”.
How the supermarket groups scored on green refrigeration, according to the Environmental Investigation Agency
Co-op 19/100
Asda 32/100
Morrisons 32/100
Sainsbury’s 38/100
Marks & Spencer 46/100
Tesco 55/100
Waitrose 60/100
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/feb/01/supermarket-fridges-pollution
New Glastonbury recycling film online now
January 25th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
Reduce, reuse, RECYCLE
If you were walking in the countryside would you throw your rubbish on the floor or wait for a bin? Hmmm, some people at Glastonbury seem to think that the floor is just fine and dandy. Luckily there is a plan in place to clear up and recycle whatever the Festival can.
This short film by Joe Wheatley gives you an insight into the huge operation that takes place to keep the Glastonbury site clean during the Festival. Every can or plastic bottle that goes into the recycling bins gets sorted by hand, by our dedicated recycling team in the green barn close to Worthy Farm. The stars of this are the Litter Pickers, the villains the idle careless fans who just, well, seem to prefer to live in filth.
http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/news/glastonbury-recycling-film
Glacier melt claim a clear mistake
January 24th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
The UN’s climate science body has admitted that a claim made in its 2007 report – that Himalayan glaciers could melt away by 2035 – was unfounded. But the chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Rajendra Pachauri, has now said that whilst the UN body will exercise more surveillance to ensure such a mistake does not occur again, he will not resign. Admitting the mistake for the third time in four days at a press conference in New Delhi, Pachauri said the criticism did not take away from the IPCC report’s overall conclusion that glaciers in the Himalayas were receding saying “I have no intention of resigning from my position. I was elected by acclamation by all the countries of the world and I have a task, I have got to complete the fifth assessment report and I shall do it and make sure that we come up with a robust report”. The admission today followed a New Scientist article last week that revealed the source of the claim made in the 2007 report by the IPCC was not peer-reviewed scientific literature – but from a media interview with Indian glaciologist Syed Hasnain conducted in 1999. Hasnain told the New Scientist last week that “it is not proper for IPCC to include references from popular magazines or newspapers.
Several senior scientists have now said the claim was unrealistic and that the large Himalayan glaciers could not melt in a few decades. The IPCC has now said the paragraph “refers to poorly substantiated estimates of rate of recession and date for the disappearance of Himalayan glaciers. In drafting the paragraph in question, the clear and well-established standards of evidence, required by the IPCC procedures, were not applied properly.” The IPCC says the broader conclusion of the report is unaffected: that glaciers have melted significantly, that this will accelerate and affect the supply of water from major mountain ranges “where more than one-sixth of the world population currently lives”. The Indian environment minister, Jairam Ramesh, said earlier in the week: “The [glaciers] are indeed receding and the rate is cause for great concern … [but the claim is] not based on an iota of scientific evidence.” Georg Kaser, an expert in tropical glaciology at the University of Innsbruck in Austria and a lead author for the IPCC, said he had warned that the 2035 prediction was clearly wrong in 2006, months before the report was published. “This [date] is not just a little bit wrong, but far out of any order of magnitude,” he said.
This news, and the news that Professor Phil Jones, director of the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit, has been forced to stand down while an investigatoin takes place into the truth of leaked emails allegedly showing that he attempted to conceal data that was requested by climate change sceptics does little to help in the fight against climate change. Indeed it plays into the hands of climate change sceptics and the oil, coal and gas industries.
The facts that are clear are this: CO2 in the atmosphere traps heat and warms the earth – and burning fossil fuels pumps billions of tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere. But whether glaciers are retreating, sea levels are rising, sea ice is melting and global tempertures rapidly rising need to be careful researched and presented in a non-sensationalist way.
See the Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jan/24/climate-change-un-row and the Times http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article6999975.ece
Blur, Coldplay and the Arctic Monkeys all help raise funds for Haiti
January 22nd, 2010 | By Ben Challis
Please be generous, for Haiti's tomorrow
The Arctic Monkeys, Coldplay and Blur’s Damon Albarn are all donating items to be sold at a charity auction beginning today on eBay (22 January) to raise funds for Haiti earthquake victims, auction organiser and Glastonbury supremo Emily Eavis has said. The items on sale will include an offer from Albarn to record a specially written piece of music, the white Fender Stratocaster played by Arctic Monkeys’ Alex Turner in the band’s first video, and Coldplay singer Chris Martin’s signed Viva La Vida tour jacket. All proceeds from the 10 day sale will go to charity Oxfam’s work in Haiti.
If you don’t fancy buying Chris’s used jacket or a second hand guitar you can donate to Oxfam’s vital efforts in Haiti at http://www.oxfam.org.uk/ - it is VERY easy! Please help.
Stop monkeying about
Photos: Nick Cordes (c) 2007 and (c) 2009
KT and Graham Coxon added to Shift
January 15th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
KT Tunstall and Blur guitarist Graham Coxon have been lined up as guests at the Shift Festival at London ‘s Southbank Centre. Artist in Residence Cape Farewell, pioneers a cultural response to climate change, brings artists, scientists and communicators together to stimulate ideas and the production of art founded in scientific research. SHIFT is a festival with a climate focus inspired by Cape Farewell’s expeditions to the High Arctic and the rainforests in Peru. Leading up to two special concerts – Marcus Brigstocke with special guests (29 January) and Robyn Hitchcock presents a Maritime Evening with special guests (30 January) – the Southbank Centre will host free events engaging artists, architects and scientists in discussion about climate change and showcasing creative work in response to questions of sustainability. Cape Farewell is proud to be working with a series of partners including Camberwell, Chelsea and Wimbledon Colleges and the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London.
http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/find/festivals-series/cape-farewells-shift-festival
Oya Festival tops the green list at the European Festivals Awards
January 14th, 2010 | By Ben Challis
The Öya Festival in Norway has won the prestigious overall Green n Clean Award at the European Festival Awards which took place last night (January 13th) at Eurosonic Noorderslag convention in Gronigen in the Netherlands. The Award is one of a handful awarded by an expert judging panel, with most other awards up for audience members to vote for. The Awards were organised by our friends at www.virtualfestivals.com and the European festival organisers association, Yourope, along with Eurosonic Noorderslag.
Öya Festivalen, which also won a Greener Festival Award in 2009, is built on high sustainability principles that seem to infiltrate right through the event. On it’s websites green pages, it describes its aims to be one of the most environmentally sound festivals in Norway and to give our visitors an opportunity to act in an environmentally conscious way as well. Our own environmental auditor reported that at the event give the audience an opportunity to act responsibly with regards to the environment, as well as being encouraged to think about the issues. The festival uses renewable electricity from the national grid across most parts of the site. Being close to the centre of Oslo, the audience were encouraged to walk or use the good public transport system, including subsidised fares (by Oyacard) for festival ticket holders.
Other winners on the night included:
Best Major Festival: Heineken Open’er Festival (Poland)
Best Medium-Sized Festival: Dour Festival (Belgium)
Best Small Festival: Cactusfestival (Belgium)
Best New European Festival: Openfields Festival (Belgium)
Best Line-Up: Rock Werchter (Belgium)
Festival Anthem Of The Year: Coldplay – Viva la Vida
Best Artist Newcomer White Lies
Best Headline Artist: The Prodigy
Artists’ Favourite Festival: Rock Werchter (Belgium)
Promoter Of The Year: Herman Schueremans (Live Nation, Belgium)
Lifetime Achievement Award: Jan Smeets (Pinkpop, The Netherlands).