Your say / Politics
‘The creative sector can be at the forefront of the vital work towards net zero’
The long-term contribution the cultural sector can make to one of the central global priorities: climate change.
Theatre is an industry of stuff.
As a sector it creates work that is inherently temporary; makes use of raw materials; and asks people to travel to a particular location at a particular time.
is needed now More than ever
How can the creative sector reconcile that with sustainable practice? In many ways, it’s the greatest creative challenge that the sector has ever faced.
I know that to tackle big issues, we need big ideas.
This is what I will do if I am the secretary of state for culture, media and sport.
Paul Boateng, Thangam Debbonaire and Labour campaigners were campaigning on Gloucester Road on Tuesday – photo: Labour Party
I know the arts world has struggled under the Tories with the cost of living crisis and aftermath of Covid but I’ll do everything I can to support and enable them to get to net zero.
I know that the UK creative sector is world leading, is constantly innovating, and the brilliant artists and makers of our cultural sector can help society achieve the necessary transition to a net zero economy, both in the inspiring stories they tell and the ways in which they tell them.
The importance of storytelling can’t be underestimated. It will be vital in the journey to net zero.
One such innovation is the pioneering Theatre Green Book, which sets common standards for theatre across all areas of practice and operation and serves as a map to carbon neutrality.
This is a brilliant example of the sort of ideas that can be created from creative collaboration between theatre leaders, makers and artists.
The Theatre Green Book is now being adopted by cultural organisations across the world, another example of the UK creative industry-leading on the global stage.
The green economy demands new skills as we embrace new materials and new methodologies to reduce our impact on the climate.
Sustainability must be embedded in creative practice from the very start.
Thangam Debbonaire is a former professional cellist – photo: Royal College of Music
I speak to creatives from across the sector every single day and I know first-hand how small changes can have huge impacts.
Things such as sourcing new materials with a lower carbon impact – for example, polystyrene can be replaced by innovative new material Compost-a-blok, an ingenious mix of cornstarch and sugar cane, and sets can be created from modular frames allowing more flexibility for a future life.
This industry will also need to embrace more efficient management of existing resources if we are to achieve the circular economy that a net zero carbon future demands.
One such future innovation that the National Theatre is leading on is a shared facility which will bring together the theatres’ storage of costumes, props and recyclable scenery under one roof at a new site in central London to encourage reuse and reduce carbon impacts.
The National Theatre Green Store, a 45,000 square ft warehouse in Bermondsey, will mean production assets can be shared and reused with others across the sector.
All of these are just a few examples of how the creative sector can be at the forefront of the vital work towards net zero. For me this is non-negotiable.
And if I am elected on Thursday, as secretary of state it will be an absolute priority.
Thangam Debbonaire is the Labour candidate for Bristol Central
Main photo: Rob Browne
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