Post by IDEA - Culture, creative sectors, heritage & tourism

🌍Rethinking eco-responsibility in the performing arts – insights from the New European Bauhaus Festival At the recent Festival of the New European Bauhaus, our colleague Joris Janssens joined a panel discussion on the clean transition for and through culture. His reflections re-frame the question of eco-responsibility in the performing arts. Rather than treating responsibility as an individual moral question, he examines the institutional and policy conditions that shape what artists and organisations can realistically achieve. His thinking draws on observations from the Perform Europe initiative, looking at how international touring intersects with resource distribution, equity, and sector-wide incentives. A few ideas stand out: 🚐 On touring models. Beyond logistical optimisation, there is a shift toward more fundamental adaptations: smaller teams travelling to recreate work in local contexts, extended stays, and co-creation with communities. Here, ecological considerations become inseparable from strengthening local relationships. ⚙️ On structural friction. A recurring theme is the gap between individual willingness and organisational viability. Artists and producers favour slower, more deliberate forms of exchange, but operate within tight budgets, rigid venue scheduling, and competitive funding landscapes – conditions that frequently force trade-offs between stated values and practical realities. ⚖️ On policy and inequality. Cultural policy alone cannot address the structural barriers artists face. Education, mobility, social, and climate policies all shape the conditions under which artists work. Without acknowledging inequalities in access to mobility, resources, and networks, ecological responsibility risks becoming a matter for the privileged. Read Joris' full reflections here: https://lnkd.in/eHC39cRe