How to talk about the environment so people will listen

We are sector leaders in improving our environmental impact. It permeates all we do, including the art we commission. Festival Head of Production, Mark Denbigh, talks here to Ralph Kennedy, Director of Without Walls, the consortium responsible for commissioning innovative outdoor arts about how green thinking informs their working practices.

What does sustainability mean to you?

RK: Sustainability means in its simplest making sure that the activities we do in our life don’t leave the planet in a worse state than it currently is.

MD: When it comes to environment, we don’t want to just be balancing we need to be regenerating and we need to be working to restore. That includes social aspect – and looking for equity and justice across all of that as well.

How do you embrace the environment when commissioning artists?

RK: The things we consider are thematic, and how they are put together. So as a priority we look at commissioning a raft of work or shows that speak around environmental issues and sustainability.

We think that’s important because art is uniquely placed to allow us to vision the world in a different way. To think about things as they could be, not as they are. To look at the world through other people’s perspectives. And when we’re thinking about sustainability and effecting change, art and culture has a meaningful, direct role to play in creating that change in people’s minds, in believing things are doable.

What you’re both proudest of?

RK: The delivery of labs– we’ve had three green production labs, or creative labs which have focused on sustainability. Being able to bring together people to have conversations in a way which is constructive, and based on creative dialogue is a success as well.

What I would say though is that we can be proud of some things but we need to keep focus on what we want to do over the next three years funding period, to take that further, to build on it.

MD: Yeah definitely, I think that there is some work to be done with facilitating those conversations, highlighting the need, supporting the change that’s required, and not being afraid to have some of those more difficult conversations to either push the conversation, push the agenda, fight for resource.

But then also be able to share those learnings, share the mistakes, share the issues, so that hopefully can make a smoother path, and make things quicker and smoother for others as well is really important.

Find out more about our Sustainability Agenda at nnfestival.org.uk/about-us/ sustainability