At the beginning of the 1990s, Mauricio Lizarazo Prada experienced his first major concert as a teenager - Paul McCartney - and was deeply impressed: vegetarian offerings and a drastic, cinematic display of animal testing on stage. On the one hand, this was the first time he came into contact with these issues, and on the other, a fundamental idea was imprinted on his mind: Culture, and music events in particular, can be used to create awareness and help shape social transformation with selected messages.
The idea of designing a kind of digital platform for players in the event industry that could be used to easily plan more sustainable music events came to Mauricio during his many years working as tour management service Pachamama Culture. Such a tool should make it possible to avoid or at least reduce emissions in the planning and production of events with little effort and make it clear that the cost-benefit ratio of music events can be optimized. From the outset, the aim was to understand sustainability as a three-dimensional construct (ecological, economic and social).

an idea is growing

In spring 2022, fueled by the pandemic situation, the project became concrete: Mauricio, with a university background in business administration and music business, brought Josephine Doepner (BA Social Sciences, responsible for general project organization) and Alicia Pfeifer (Communications Manager; responsible for external communications and social media) into the team. This interdisciplinary collaboration was complemented by a similar background of extensive experience in the - largely subcultural - event scene in and around Berlin, be it in a club context or at festivals. Among other things, these were experienced as places of experimentation and collectivity.
These experiences should be bundled as much as possible, especially with regard to the implementation of individual sustainable approaches: In the form of an app, which would combine a CO₂ calculator tailored to event areas with a directory for best-practice providers and serve sustainable networking.
We quickly agreed that the focus on CO₂ should not distract from other environmental pollution and destruction and from other, very specific areas of knowledge - such as resource management, biodiversity and social fairness. Our shared perspective is that neither CO₂ offsetting nor 'greenwashing' or, at worst, greenwashing will do justice to the status quo. 

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There is also no claim to completeness or scientific perfection with regard to the CO₂ calculation, but rather a hands-on mentality to transfer existing knowledge into practice as quickly as possible and make it effectively usable for users of the app. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the graphic designer Hebert Asprilla Cardenas, who actively supported us with the UX design.
The focus is on the proactive involvement of music stakeholders. With the help of the supplier directory, the aim is to promote intensified cooperation with local/regional, small and medium-sized suppliers (including those from outside the industry!).
The aim is to generate awareness and sensitivity for the topic of sustainability on the one hand and to offer the most concrete support for action possible on the other: By incorporating realistic criteria that can be implemented quickly and, at best, across the board, the aim is to achieve a leverage effect towards the immediate reduction of as many emissions as possible.
Smaller, non-commercially run but socially valuable venues, for example, obviously cannot be expected to overhaul their entire infrastructure with sustainable but expensive innovations. What is needed here are sponsors or targeted subsidies from politicians and structural starting points, such as the training of event professionals with sustainable expertise, legal framework conditions that do not simply mean regulation and prohibition but allow and enable new, creative ways of finding solutions.
We are aware that the app is not a complete solution and that linear economic activity itself needs to be fundamentally rethought. In this context, we would like to take a closer look at the social dimension of sustainability, which is also central to us. Two levels of social sustainability are important: On the one hand, there is the level that deals with all working conditions and consumption structures - this is a highly relevant field of action, particularly in the area of textile production, for example. 
On the other hand, there is the level at which the cultural industry in particular has the potential to motivate the respective audience and inspire them to think for themselves. More precisely: changes in event operations can be perceived as a restriction and meet with resistance, but it would be much better to focus on the opportunities and added value that can arise, i.e. how change can be thought of and made in a positive way ('handprint'). 

At this point, it should be mentioned that the three dimensions - ecological, economic and social - can only be separated in theory (i.e. they should always be considered together) and cannot be offset against each other.
Even during the initial discussions and decisions regarding the project, it became clear that contradictions and complexity would not be a rarity in this process, but the norm.
Decisions in event planning are certainly a question of mindset: it takes organizers, location owners, bookers and audiences who are willing to decide to spend more money or make greater organizational efforts in the short term because they know that this makes sense in the long term (=investive rather than purely consumptive behaviour). Or to put it another way; it takes conscious decisions to work with sufficiency as a guiding model. At this point, we therefore also advocate designing events that are smaller, more local, less costly and less frequent.

a project is born

The first realization of the concept in the form of a pilot version is made possible by funding from the Initiative Musik.  
In the current pilot version, the functions are limited so that, for example, only the process of planning a single show can be carried out as an example. The focus here is therefore on a CO₂ calculator, which was created in collaboration with Susanne Köhler, an environmental scientist working at myclimate. The calculator initially covers four areas of event planning: mobility & transportation, location, catering and merchandise. In addition to the environmental science perspective, the Cradle to Cradle impact matrix was also used as a guide ([source](https://adelphi.de/de/system/files/mediathek/bilder/2022-08-05_Labor-Tempelhof-Report.pdf) as of 11.09.23). The above prioritization was based on a comparison with our experience and ideas.
Topics such as water management or waste (which should ideally be a recyclable resource) could represent completely separate areas due to their relevance, but were initially incorporated into the Location area for the pilot version as far as possible. This decision was made to make the app more feasible and easier to use. Water is not so 'relevant' in terms of CO₂, but we wanted to emphasize the importance of this resource and not leave the topic out. 
An exhaustive review of 'all' areas and criteria of events is not entirely feasible due to indirect emissions caused by complex supply chains, for example. However, we have consistently used emission factors for the calculation that reflect an average/exemplary life cycle of activities or products as far as possible.
The term CO₂ used here is not entirely scientifically correct because, strictly speaking, apart from carbon dioxide, so-called CO₂ equivalents (CO₂e) are included: The values that are calculated therefore also include other greenhouse gases, which are converted and summarized in CO₂ for general comprehensibility and readability with regard to their effect ([source](https://www.myclimate.org/de-de/informieren/faq/faq-detail/was-sind-co2-aequivalente/) as of 11.09.23). 
Finally, it should be noted that selected areas and criteria as well as the results displayed always depend on individual decisions, available data, data gaps and reference values. All information is therefore subject to uncertainties.
Depending on the type of event, it also depends on where the priorities for selecting sustainable measures (should) lie. Use of the app is recommended before, during and after event planning. Ideally, it should be used repeatedly, for example for series of events. In this way, data and experience can be collected and concrete goals can be set and evaluated.
In addition to the calculations and information on the areas in which more sustainable action could be taken and the important factors to consider, the targeted search for suitable providers is key. For the pilot version of the app, the directory initially consists of a small, exemplary and 'hand-picked' number of companies, institutions and individuals.


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If further funding enables the pilot version to be expanded, we already have several ideas for the future:
Among other things, the exact derivation of the formulas, the concepts for calculating areas and individual criteria as well as the associated decisions on the type and manner of the respective user queries should be comprehensively processed and presented in the interests of transparency.
For a potential future version of the app, the guidelines for inclusion in the provider directory would be elaborated in more detail and significantly expanded.
As it has been difficult to quantify social sustainability criteria to date, independent development is also being considered for this, possibly in collaboration with a scientist with expertise in this area. In this way, the cost-benefit ratio of events could be considered in a more differentiated way. In addition, the app's accessibility is to be expanded with professional support.
The ultimate goal is to be able to offer the app as an open source version. 
For now, we hope you enjoy discovering and trying it out and that **Music C•A•R•E•S** can help you until _think global, act local_ becomes a reality!

a pilot version is being funded

About Music C•A•R•E•S

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Visit the [CO₂-Calculator](/co2) on the website to get support and information for a more sustainable implementation of your event. Go through the "Show" section and set the scale of your event.

Step 1

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Select an area of event planning and provide as much information as possible. Use the info icons for explanations of areas and criteria. You can perform summary calculations for one or more areas. 

Step 2

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After entering information for at least one area, the tool reactively displays an estimate of the CO₂ emissions caused. The results view helps contextualize these values!

Use Music C•A•R•E•S to make your event planning more sustainable with just a few clicks.

About Music C•A•R•E•S

an idea is growing

a project is born

a pilot version is being funded

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