Finnish Jazz Federation’s carbon neutral touring model 2022-2023

In 2022-2023, Finnish Jazz Federation will carry out a carbon neutral touring model project, which seeks to steer the organisation’s touring activities towards a more sustainable direction. The development project will be delivered through a two-pronged approach: the carbon footprint of the Jazz Federation’s tours will be measured, and an action plan will be devised in order to move towards carbon neutral touring practices. In addition, as part of the overarching national scheme, Finnish live music industry’s environmental impacts will be mapped in collaboration with other live music industry organisations.

In autumn 2022, Finnish Jazz Federation will expand its regular touring program to include seven additional pilot tours which are designed to explore different ways of producing more sustainable jazz tours. The tours will be carried out using a range of transport and production methods, with data and audience experiences collected throughout, as well as getting the word out about environmentally friendly choices in general. In 2023, building on the pilot tour data acquired, the organisation will develop a roadmap towards a carbon neutral touring model. The project’s expert partners include environmental companies Puuni and Positive Impact.

The different modes of transport during the pilot tour will include the Jazz Federation’s tour bus, train, and electric car. One of the tour groups will venture outside of the regular touring circuits by stopping for a short-term residency in one of the locations and exploring the surrounding regions from there. Another tour group will trial a model of presenting school concerts and evening concerts as a combined performance in a bid to capture different audience groups in a single gathering and thus reducing the amount of transport required. There will be a dedicated tour of coastal and archipelago regions while another tour group will travel to Sweden, enabling a comparison of emissions caused by air travel against lower-carbon ground transport modes. Under their international Jazz Finland brand, Finnish Jazz Federation has been developing sustainable touring practices since 2020 in collaboration with its Nordic partners.

At concert venues, Finnish Jazz Federation will facilitate more sustainable choices through the introduction of “green riders”. The riders – artists’ specification lists sent to gig venues in advance – include requests such as asking concert organisers to ensure local audiences are aware of public transport options to and from the venue, to adopt energy-saving measures, to reduce the amount of waste created, and to make vegan food options available to artists and audiences.

Through this project, the Jazz Federation participates in the live music industry’s widespread sustainability efforts. The environmental effects of the whole country’s live music events will be mapped in 2022 by the network KEMUT, a sustainable music industry toolkit, and administered by the Finnish Jazz Federation. The network is a collaboration between the sector’s umbrella organisations, including Finland Festivals, LiveFIN, Music Finland, the Finnish Musicians’ Union, and the Association of Finnish Symphony Orchestras.

2023 will see the completion of an environmental roadmap for the Finnish live music sector. The roadmap will describe live music’s current environmental effects, set common goals for the entire industry, and suggest an action plan towards a carbon-neutral sector.

The carbon neutral touring model project is funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture.

More information on collaboration projects of the live music network KEMUT: https://www.kestavamusiikki.net/kemut-in-english