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AFO celebrates its 30th Birthday at its Annual Conference

Powerful Thinking Talks Sustainability at The AFO Annual Conference

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The Association of Festival Organisers (AFO) will celebrate the Association’s 30th birthday at the annual AFO Conference on 11-13 November, 2016 at Ettington Chase Conference Centre, Stratford-upon-Avon. Chris Johnson, chair of Powerful Thinking will be there to celebrate the AFO and to host a session on sustainability at festivals for the 250 delegates attending.

Since its formation in 1986, when a small group of like-minded festival organisers got together to chat and share ideas, The Association of Festival Organisers membership has grown to over 200 festival and event organisers, suppliers, agents and freelance individuals.

The AFO Conference is open to all in the industry: delegates are a mix of volunteer and professional festival and event organisers, bringing together teams that have been running for generations with first time organisers, new suppliers with familiar names, programmers and marketing specialists.

From Friday evening to late lunch on Sunday, the session rooms and stages will be buzzing with headline speakers, presentations, discussions, ‘how to do that’ sessions and panel debates. The Trade Market forms the all-important networking hub and two Showcase concerts showcase the best up and coming artists on the festival scene.

Speakers and sessions announced so far:

Sustainability – Chris Johnson (Powerful Thinking)
Health and Safety and Risk Assessments – Mike Richmond (The Event Safety Shop Ltd)
Beginners Guide to running a festival – Steve Heap (AFO)
Eventree case study – Mo Jones (TheTicketSellers) and Jon Walsh (Shambala Festival)
Legal advice with Jon Payne (LSL Solicitors)
Looking after your audience –  Panel includes Dave Boardman (The White Ribbon Campaign) on the safety of women plus speakers on the safety of children and the safety of vulnerable adults.

For a full list of topic sessions and speakers and to book tickets visit the AFO website at www.festivalorganisers.org.

Delegate passes are now on sale at the early bird rate of £110 for AFO members, £135 for non-members (until 31 October 2016). Trade stands are £300 for AFO members and £400 for non-members.

revolutionary off-grid catering concession

Power Behind the Festivals: Off-Grid Catering Concession & Top Tips for using renewables

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As part of the coming updated Power Behind the Festival Guide we are writing a series of case studies of best practice in sustainability at Festivals. The Pembrokeshire Beach Food Company is an example of how a catering concession can meet the challenge of using renewables and save money in the process. Their Cafe Môr trailer offers a range of high quality food inspired by West Wales produce. In March 2015, they won a Sustainable Development Fund (SDF) support from Pembrokeshire National Park Authority to test out an approach that could revolutionise the catering concessions industry and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).  The SDF support was used to part fund the installation of solar PV panels and a small wind turbine, along with a solar inverter and a battery bank.

Instant benefits to the business included a reduction in generator noise, less staff time required for generator operation and maintenance, fewer trading days lost due to generator issues and increased power security as a result of having a battery back up. In the longer term the new system will also considerably reduce operation costs.

Read the full case study here.

Cafe Mor have also put together some Top Tips for any caterer thinking about making the change to renewables:

Tips for catering concessions on using renewable energy.

Julie’s Bicycle video on the role of arts in environmental change

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Alison Tickle, CEO of Julie’s Bicycle, speaks about the role the arts can play in helping to build a more sustainable society. Julie’s Bicycle is a leading global charity bridging the gap between environmental sustainability and the creative industries. It works to build a creative community with sustainability at its heart, helping over 1,000 arts organisations across the UK and internationally to measure, manage and reduce their environmental impacts.

The video shows their work with artists and organisations and visits a broad range of stakeholders who explain how Julie’s Bicycle are galvanizing the creative industries to create environmental change.

 

Portable Solar Energy by Gaia Group UK

Portable Solar Energy by Gaia Group UK

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We love these new portable solar energy products developed for events by Gaia Group UK renewable energy.

The Solatainer® and Solawedge® have been developed to provide an autonomous off-grid power supply, integrating renewable-power and storage with diesel-power back-up to reduce fuel consumption, carbon emissions and carbon footprint

Created sustainably from a single-use 20ft ISO shipping container, Solatainer® supports a PV array specified for maximum solar gain and efficiency. When equipped with the Solawedge® the unit is scale-able up to 50kw and in its standard setup comprises of a 4Kw PV array, 6Kw/h battery pack and 6Kw stand-by generator.

During daytime operation the energy created by Solatainer®’s PV solar panels is harvested and stored in an on-board lithium ion battery pack. The standby generator is configured to run only when batteries are depleted below a software-set limit or when a demand spike occurs.

The results are spectacular, reducing fuel costs by 80% when compared to a conventional diesel generator.

Solawedge® is a unique, inflatable mounting system that allows rapid deployment across unprepared land or water. Find out more here and watch the video:

 

Event Sustainability Are you Ready? Article in Connections BVEP magazine

EVENT SUSTAINABILITY: ARE YOU READY? in BVEP Magazine

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Alex Lepingwell, council member of the National Outdoor Events Association (NOEA) and MD of Green Stewards, writes about the move towards environmental sustainability and corporate social responsibility in business and the need for the currently unlegislated festival industry to take up to the challenge of creating a more sustainable future, in Connections, Business Visits and Events Partnerships (BVEP) Magazine.

Alex advocates NOEA members taking small incremental steps towards building in sustainable management processes in all areas of their business and talk about NOEA’s work with Powerful Thinking to help build these management systems.

Extract below and full article on p. 15 of BVEP magazine Spring 2016 edition.

“Currently there is no legislation in our industry demanding sustainable business practices, but it is not inconceivable that there will be in the near future. For most of us, that will be a serious challenge. Imagine health and safety regulations on steroids. What we need to do is start preparing now. Small, incremental, achievable steps across a range of areas that will allow us all to build in sustainable management practices over time. Much in the same way as we take sensible health and safety practice for granted these days, companies who don’t have sustainable procurement, closed loop product life cycle and energy ef ciency policies will stick out like sore thumbs.

To help our members with the building blocks of sustainable management systems, The National Outdoor Events Association is 
proud to announce that it will be working with Powerful Thinking. The industry led think tank that produced The Power Behind Festivals, an incredibly detailed and well-researched paper on energy use in the industry with practical advice on how best to manage energy sustainably. The Show Must Go On is its latest report looking at a much wider range of sustainability issues faced by the event industry. This report also launches The Festival Vision 2025 Pledge, aiming to get all festivals to halve their green house gas emissions by 2025.

Our industry has to take sustainability seriously, not for fear of legislation, loss
of market share or even the increased efficiencies it will show. We have to do it because we owe it to our children, their children and the generations to come. It really is that serious.”

Festival Vision News Update

Festival Vision: 2025 unites UK festivals for a sustainable future.

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Over 40 UK music festivals have pledged to work together to create a more environmentally sustainable festival industry by signing Festival Vision: 2025 — the vision and roadmap for a sustainable future presented by industry think-do tank Powerful Thinking in its seminal environmental report, The Show Must Go On.

Festivals both large and small, with genres from rock music to words, are united around the vision. Bestival, Hay Festival, Shambala and Secret Garden Party have all taken the pledge, and Festival Republic have signed up their entire portfolio of 11 UK festivals including: Latitude, V Festival, Reading, Leeds and BBC Proms in the Park.

The Vision: 2025 Festivals aim to halve festival emissions and reach 50% recycling rates by 2025. They have also pledged to reduce travel-related emissions and improve the sustainability of food sourcing. Integral to the pledge is the intention to measure, record and share key environmental impacts from festival operations using credible methods, such as the Julie’s Bicycle free Creative Green IG tools or by working with the A Greener Festival Awards, in order to track progress.

A full list of the participating Festivals and details of the pledge can be found on the Festival Vision: 2025 webpage along with key resources from The Show Must Go On report to help festival organisers make successful changes toward sustainable practices.

Festival Vision: 2025 Webpage: www.festivalvision2025.net

Follow Powerful Thinking on Facebook and Twitter for the latest updates and to ask questions and share information. Join the conversation with #FestivalVision2025  #PowerfulThinking

“As festival organisers we know how to create unforgettable experiences and how to inspire people. We know how to get things done in challenging circumstances and we are accomplished at communicating with audiences.

Festival organisers working with their many and diverse partners…can provide leadership for what is perhaps the most important conversation of our time…[and] make a vital and significant contribution to a future that we want our children to inherit.”

The Show Must Go On report.

Event Sustainability Blog

Sustainable Events Blog

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Event Management students at Gloucester University have written blogs exploring sustainability at events as part of their Responsible Events module.

Topics include how managers can make travel more sustainable, how to use less water, providing sustainable food, the problems and solutions in managing and recycling event waste, and where the responsibility of creating a green festivals lies; with the organiser or the audience.

It is heartening to see the Event Managers of the future prioritizing environmental responsibility and the blogs make a fascinating and informative read with up to date facts, figures and case studies: https://eventsglos.wordpress.com/our-contributors/

You can also keep up to date with new ideas and research by following the students on Twitter: @eventsglos

Julie’s Bicycle Powering Change Workshop

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Julie’s Bicycle are hosting a half-day workshop in Bristol to explore the role of culture in transitioning to a sustainable society, through the prism of collaboration, creativity and new business models.

Discussion will focus on energy, partnerships, the legacy of the recent Bristol Green Capital year (2015), and how creative solutions and experiences shift thinking and values.

Speakers will include George Ferguson Mayor of Bristol, Ali Robertson of Tobacco Factory Theatres, Alex Orme of Good Energy, Wren Aigaki-Lander, Joon Lynn Goh of In Between Time, and Gary Topp from Bristol Green Capital Partnership.

The event is free and held at the Tobacco Factory, Bristol on Friday 19 February, 10am – 2.30pm with a networking lunch from 1.30pm – 2.30pm.

Full details and to book HERE.  

Powerful Thinkers: Sustaining Creativity in the Events Industry Seminar

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Chair of Powerful Thinking, Chris Johnson, will be hosting a panel at The Event Production Show, discussing ‘Sustaining Creativity in the Events Industry’; speakers include Alison Tickell, CEO & Founder of Julie’s Bicycle, Emma Hudson of Access All Areas, Melvin Benn from Festival Republic and Nick Green from Arts Council England. Join the seminar from 2–3pm on 3 March in Olympia, London.

In the promised sequel to the EPS 2014 panel (People, Planet, Profit), these leading figures in the UK creative industries will discuss combining successful business with responsible approaches, and how creativity can be harnessed to enhance the audience experience and communicate about the future.

With COP21 still fresh in the world’s mind, the recently published Show Must Go On report provides the most comprehensive review of the industry’s environmental impacts to date, and launches Festival Vision: 2025, a manifesto for change. The panel discusses the report, the vision, and reflects on how creative approaches can unlock potential for change and help the bottom line.

For more details about EPS 2016 and to book click HERE.

Powerful Thinking at The Green Events & Innovations Conference 2016

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Powerful Thinking’s Chair, Chris Johnson, will be hosting a panel discussing The Show Must Go On report and Festival Vision: 2025 at the 8th edition of the UK’s leading conference for sustainability at live events, on 3rd March in London. Delegates will then have the opportunity to help shape and join Powerful Thinking’s industry-wide commitment to achieve festival sustainability in line with government targets by 2025. The Green Events & Innovations Conference (GEI) is produced by A Greener Festival, Bucks New Uni and the ILMC and takes place at The Royal Garden Hotel, Kensington. This year’s edition of GEI will also include:

  • T In The Park’s Steve Taylor discussing the environmental challenges that the event encountered when they relocated to Strathallan Castle.
  • Representatives from festivals around the world speaking about the challenges they face in meeting and understanding their environmental impact, including Lake of Stars, Malawi.
  • The Greener Festival Awards: presented by Claire O’Neill and Teresa Moore.
  • ILMC’s Greg Parmley talking about the actions that the conference is taking to implement their sustainability targets.
  • A Keynote speech from Joanna Haigh, director of the Grantham Institute – Climate Change and the Environment.

Plus many more sessions to be announced. More details and book tickets HERE