Massive Attack and Manchester University's Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research have recently worked together to chart a more eco-conscious future for live music in the UK, and the group's Robert "3D" Del Naja is calling on the government to lead the charge in reducing carbon emissions of the music business.
As The Guardian reports, Del Naja has criticized the government for a lack of support in leading the live music industry to shrink its carbon footprint, asking, "Where's the industrial plan for the scale of the transformation that's required for the UK economy and society? It doesn't seem to exist."
Del Naja's comments come after the June publication of a report from the Tyndall Centre that Massive Attack commissioned in 2019, which, in part, tracks carbon emissions from touring.
Last year, the band and the Tyndall Centre shared a short film that called for the industry to embrace change and sustainability in rebounding from the coronavirus pandemic.
"The live music industry, especially after Brexit, is so important to national identity and self-esteem. It's one of the few areas you could describe as genuinely world-class and has a vast social and economic value, as well-reported, generating over £4.6bn for the economy every year and employing thousands of dedicated people," Del Naja told The Guardian.
"But where is the government planning to support the rate of adaption we're going to need to hit compatibility with [the Paris agreement]? It doesn't seem to exist. The data [from the report] is not surprising, it's the strategy that's missing here."
Del Naja explained to the publication that the report was commissioned in 2019 to provide a greater understanding of reduction of carbon emissions in the live music industry, rather than mitigation. He shared, "We looked at our last tour and thought, you know, we've allocated x amount of money based on the calculation of the carbon we produced in the tour in 2018 And then it was like, 'are we just going to go on another offset, or should we do something a little bit more interesting and radical?'
"The proposition to go to [the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of Manchester] was suggested to us and we thought that would be a good thing to do, because how many times have we sat in an interview and said we would love to do something but we don't know what to do? And we're messaging the fact that there's a climate catastrophe out there but we don't know what to do about it."
The complete report from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Massive Attack — which outlines energy use targets for "buildings and outdoor events, surface travel and air travel (for people and equipment) and audience travel" — is available here.
As The Guardian reports, Del Naja has criticized the government for a lack of support in leading the live music industry to shrink its carbon footprint, asking, "Where's the industrial plan for the scale of the transformation that's required for the UK economy and society? It doesn't seem to exist."
Del Naja's comments come after the June publication of a report from the Tyndall Centre that Massive Attack commissioned in 2019, which, in part, tracks carbon emissions from touring.
Last year, the band and the Tyndall Centre shared a short film that called for the industry to embrace change and sustainability in rebounding from the coronavirus pandemic.
"The live music industry, especially after Brexit, is so important to national identity and self-esteem. It's one of the few areas you could describe as genuinely world-class and has a vast social and economic value, as well-reported, generating over £4.6bn for the economy every year and employing thousands of dedicated people," Del Naja told The Guardian.
"But where is the government planning to support the rate of adaption we're going to need to hit compatibility with [the Paris agreement]? It doesn't seem to exist. The data [from the report] is not surprising, it's the strategy that's missing here."
Del Naja explained to the publication that the report was commissioned in 2019 to provide a greater understanding of reduction of carbon emissions in the live music industry, rather than mitigation. He shared, "We looked at our last tour and thought, you know, we've allocated x amount of money based on the calculation of the carbon we produced in the tour in 2018 And then it was like, 'are we just going to go on another offset, or should we do something a little bit more interesting and radical?'
"The proposition to go to [the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of Manchester] was suggested to us and we thought that would be a good thing to do, because how many times have we sat in an interview and said we would love to do something but we don't know what to do? And we're messaging the fact that there's a climate catastrophe out there but we don't know what to do about it."
The complete report from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Massive Attack — which outlines energy use targets for "buildings and outdoor events, surface travel and air travel (for people and equipment) and audience travel" — is available here.
