How can arts administrators assess and mitigate the environmental impact of their projects?

1 Why care about environmental and social risks?

Arts projects can have positive effects on the environment and society, such as raising awareness, inspiring action, or creating community. However, they can also have negative effects, such as generating waste, consuming resources, or harming cultural values. These effects can affect the quality of life, health, and well-being of the artists, audiences, and communities involved in or affected by the arts projects. They can also affect the credibility, legitimacy, and support of the arts sector as a whole. Therefore, arts administrators have a responsibility to care about and address the environmental and social risks of their projects.

2 What are some examples of environmental and social risks?

Environmental and social risks for arts projects can vary depending on the context, scale, and nature of each project; however, some common examples include pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, human rights violations, labor exploitation, cultural appropriation, discrimination, exclusion, conflict, violence, displacement, resource depletion, waste generation, energy consumption, and water use. These risks can arise from different stages of the project cycle such as planning, production, distribution, exhibition or evaluation. Furthermore, they can interact with each other and create complex and dynamic challenges.

4 How to mitigate environmental and social risks?

Mitigating environmental and social risks for arts projects involves taking actions to prevent, reduce, or offset the negative impacts of the project on the environment and society. To do this, arts administrators can use an Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP), which outlines objectives, actions, responsibilities, resources, and timelines for addressing the environmental and social risks of a project. Additionally, Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) policies or procedures can ensure that the project complies with relevant standards and regulations. To maximize positive impacts on the environment and society, creative solutions such as Environmental and Social Innovation (ESI) can be employed. Moreover, Environmental and Social Engagement (ESE) processes can involve stakeholders in the design, implementation, monitoring, or evaluation of the project. Ultimately, these strategies and practices can help arts administrators manage environmental and social risks in a proactive, adaptive, and collaborative way.

5 How to communicate environmental and social risks?

When communicating environmental and social risks for arts projects, it is important to inform, educate, or persuade the stakeholders, such as funders, partners, audiences, or critics. To do this, different channels and formats can be used, like environmental and social reporting (ESR), environmental and social marketing (ESM), environmental and social advocacy (ESA), or environmental and social storytelling (EST). These can help arts administrators to communicate the risks in a transparent, credible, and engaging way.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?