In the project «Sustainable Theater Alliance for a Green Environmental Shift - STAGES» RTU, in cooperation with 12 theaters from Europe and Asia, as well as with the European Theater Convention (ETC), will help promote the sustainable development of the theater industry by introducing the principles of sustainability not only in the general operation of the theater industry, but also in their artistic practice.
Based on the data of «The Shift Project» 2021 report «Decarbonization of Culture» (Décarbonons la Culture), the European cultural and creative industries, especially the performing arts, are a resource-intensive sector that contributes to the generation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and leaves significant impact on global warming.
Although cultural and creative industries are increasingly addressing environmental issues, there is not enough being done to reduce the GHG emissions produced by the industry. Therefore, the industry is exposed to risks and vulnerable to potential crises in the future, which may have serious socioeconomic consequences for the industry and its stakeholders.
To actualize the sustainability challenges of the theater industry, the «STAGES» project is being implemented, which is considered an ambitious sustainable theater experiment. The project was launched in 2022 and will continue until 2025. The initiative brings together the most influential European theaters and academic institutions with the aim of cooperating to promote cross-sectoral collaboration in the performing arts and culture sector, develop new and innovative production, creation, and distribution models, while promoting the development of new business models, as well as highlighting the need to reflect climate change more often in the performing arts subject matter. The project also aims to promote the wider use of the eco-design concept in the theater industry to reduce the amount of waste production.
In the project, RTU has established an international interdisciplinary research group. It brings together scientists who are active in various fields related to sustainable development. The scientists' task will be to evaluate the performance of the theater industry and help it become sustainable. The research group will also develop interdisciplinary scientific articles and various informative materials for publication in scientific sources. It is planned that RTU will develop a methodology for analyzing the sustainability of theaters' self-assessments, as well as organize the project’s final conference in 2025, which will take place in Latvia.
All partners involved in the project will implement various activities using the open innovation methodology, thus giving other institutions the opportunity to learn from the results obtained during the project. Artist participation is also key, as it will raise awareness of the central theme of the project among art creators and performers, drawing attention to the impact of artistic practice on the environment and social sphere.
The «STAGES» project is co-financed by the European Union. More information on the project website.
