Green Guardians 2023: Eviny, GMC Events, LOTUS
Welcome to the second part of IQ Magazine’s 2023 Green Guardians – our annual recognition of those eco-warriors and innovators at the forefront of the battle to make the live entertainment industry more sustainable.
The Green Guardians is spearheaded by IQ and an international panel of sustainability experts to highlight and congratulate companies and organisations who are improving the live music business when it comes to being more environmentally friendly.
This year’s list includes 20 entries across a wide range of event suppliers, campaigners, and solutions providers, all of whom are working tirelessly to reduce the carbon footprint of the live entertainment business.
IQ will publish entries across all categories over the coming days. Catch up on the previous instalment profiling Big Green Coach, Biopak, Green Producers Tool, Greener Power Solutions and ZAP Concepts here.
The renewables company Eviny is one of Norway’s largest energy and technology groups. It works with future solutions for the production and distribution of green and climate-friendly energy and to make it possible to use clean, renewable energy everywhere. Its goal is to work toward a future with zero emissions.
With 1,500 employees and nearly 500,000 customers, Eviny has been involved in establishing green jobs and infrastructure in local communities over several generations.
It uses the energy it generates via hydropower and other renewable sources to build out and operate tomorrow’s infrastructure in fibre, electricity, and district heating networks; digital communication; solar-and wind-power plants; lightning chargers for electric cars, trucks, and excavators; and one of the world’s first networks for the rapid-charging of electric boats.
Eviny also work for electrification through emission-free construction sites, aquaculture, and ports. It supplies concerts, festivals, and other events with batteries, and it provides clients with consultancy and contractor service.
With over 20 years’ experience, GMC Events is one of the UK’s leading live event production agencies, specialising in festivals, music, and extreme sporting events. GMC Events is dedicated to creating the most memorable, iconic, and efficiently delivered events across the globe for a long-lasting shared experience.
The company values its time more than ever and extends this philosophy to all staff who work with them on their shows. Work-life balance is extremely important, and energy and enthusiasm need to be given the respect they deserve. Looking after their staff is at the top of GMC’s agenda when planning any event.
Having worked internationally on hundreds of events, GMC’s music industry clients include the likes of Boomtown Fair, Shambala Festival, Bestival, Arcadia Spectacular, and BST Hyde Park.
Chile-based LOTUS Producciones has set a sustainability benchmark due to its green guidelines not only in Chile but also in the South American region. The company’s production workflow has its own sustainability strategy and action plan, which it applies to more than 30 events annually. LOTUS has an ambitious strategy and commitment to all these events, due to the urgency that is needed to deal with the climate crisis.
Their strategy is based on three pillars:
1 People: accessibility and universal inclusion.
2 Environment: aiming for carbon neutrality, compensation, and water and energy efficiency.
3 Community: building a legacy regarding the space to satisfy their needs.
The biggest event developed by LOTUS is Lollapalooza Chile, the country’s biggest music and cultural festival. One of Lollapalooza’s main priorities is to change the way the community understands our relationship with the environment and the importance of its preservation.
Accordingly, one of LOTUS’s sustainability objectives is to decarbonise Lollapalooza. The company is proud to announce that during the 2023 edition, the Aldea Verde Stage was 100% powered by 155 solar panels for three days.
For the 2024 edition, they also plan to run the Kidzapalooza and two other stages using solar panels, powering more than 20,000 m2 with clean energy! This will be a national and international milestone.
Morgenwelt GmbH has been pioneering sustainable events for more than ten years. Managing director Björn Hansen has been active since 1999 as an organiser of a wide variety of live formats, all of which have one thing in common: a special sustainability claim.
Since the founding of Morgenwelt, the company has implemented countless events as a service provider for various municipalities, public utilities, and companies, but also on its own initiative, thus gaining many years of expertise and building up a large network of service providers and partners.
All Morgenwelt’s formats and the work it does for clients take special account of the efficient and economical use of the necessary resources. Its aim is to prove that sustainability and fun are by no means mutually exclusive.
The agency produces attention-grabbing highlights across a portfolio that ranges from specialist conferences, seminars, and incentives to company celebrations, festivals, and major events.
The company’s services include approval procedures, catering offers, barriers, stages, and internal and external communication with all trades, exhibitors, and artists.
Morgenwelt staff package even unwieldy topics such as renewable energies, resource efficiency, and sustainability into exciting and entertaining live experiences – for every age, every target group, and every budget.
Climate protection is close to the organisation’s heart. That is why sustainability is not a a trend or box-ticking exercise for Morgenwelt – it is part of their DNA and a matter of course in everything they do: the question of whether there is a sustainable solution always comes first in any task.
Music Declares Emergency is a group of artists, music industry professionals, and organisations that stand together to declare a climate and ecological emergency and call for an immediate governmental response to protect all life on Earth. It believes in the power of music to promote the cultural change needed to create a better future.
Music Declares Emergency launched in the UK in 2019 and now has groups in 14 countries including France, Germany, Canada, the US, Brazil, and Indonesia. The declaration has 3,500+ artists, 1,560+ organisations, and 1,700+ individuals as signatories. It works with culturally influential artists to normalise the call for urgent climate action. Artists supporting the campaign include Billie Eilish, Radiohead, The 1975, Willow Smith, Bonobo, Jarvis Cocker, and The London Symphony Orchestra.
Music Declares Emergency’s campaigns include the globally recognised #NOMUSICONADEADPLANET campaign bringing the call for urgent climate action into music and cultural spaces; and Fan Club for Climate – a growing community of music lovers taking action together on climate.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.