Arts Professional: Leading arts organisations achieve sustainability standard
Today, 5th February, 2025, Theatre Green Book is celebrating the theatres involved in developing Version 2 of Theatre Green Book achieving Basic standard across all three areas: Productions, Operations and, where they have them, Buildings.
Last June, Theatre Green Book launched Version 2 with updated tools and resources available to theatre and performing arts organisations and individuals aiming to make their Productions, Operations and Buildings more environmentally sustainable.
Theatre Green Book Version 2 was made with feedback and input from theatre makers across the UK, with particular input from Chichester Festival Theatre, English National Ballet, Headlong, The Lowry, The National Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland, Northern Stage, Royal Ballet & Opera, the Royal Shakespeare Company, Wales Millennium Centre, and the Young Vic.
These organisations committed to reaching Basic standard by the end of 2024. Using Theatre Green Book tools to chart their progress, they are now able to confirm they have reached this significant milestone.
“The Theatre Green Book is a vital and brilliant resource for us. Embedded across the organisation, our teams use it to identify what their priorities for sustainability are and create their own specific plans. It makes it easy to talk about sustainability with our staff and artists and it breaks down what can feel like a huge challenge into manageable and achievable targets.”
– Royal Ballet and Opera
Achieving Basic in Productions means that at least two-thirds of productions had 50% of materials on stage coming from reused sources, and 65% of materials went on to have a future life, as well as introducing sustainable thinking in the production planning process and considering the impact of technical equipment. For Operations it means planning across six areas of Operations and completing (and beginning to implement) sustainable plans in at least four of these areas, as well as setting up Green Committees. For Buildings it means using the Building Survey Tool to assess a venue’s sustainability and prioritise changes for the future, making a plan to begin working on the Easy Wins.
Feedback and input was also contributed by SAIL and SHIFT, sustainable arts networks in Leeds and Liverpool respectively. SAIL are now guiding a diverse range of theatre companies across Yorkshire to achieve Basic standard.