Decarbonization in Cultural and Creative Sectors

Within the discussion of decreasing CO2 emissions in the cultural sector, Daniel Povel, of NOW Partners Foundation & EoL Global, highlighted the importance of a threefold view on sustainability: cultural, social and ecological.

The culture sector has many options available to reduce emissions. Povel highlighted various strategies for cultural institutions to reduce their carbon footprint, including:

In addition to these measures, which support institutions to reduce their emissions, they can also develop plans to offset the unavoidable emissions. 

The remaining emissions that cannot be avoided can be offset directly or indirectly through carbon neutral carbon credits. These can be purchased as Carbon Credits like EoL’s Whole System Carbon Credits - which provide fair compensation to farmers for their crucial social and ecosystem services. In the case of EoL, farmers are trained in regenerative, organic and biodynamic farming methods - all of which sequester higher levels of carbon than industrial agriculture, in addition to regenerating degraded soil, increasing water absorption and improving resilience when faced with drought and flood.

Povel emphasized that carbon credits are not intended as a stand alone solution, but rather as a tool in addition to the essential reduction of systemic carbon emissions. 

Povel commented, "Here at COP29 we are launching EoL Global, which marks a pivotal moment in sustainable development. The EoL Carbon Credit system has been proven successful in Egypt, is available on the Egyptian stock exchange and endorsed by the Financial Regulatory Authority. It not only mitigates climate impact but also uplifts tens of thousands of Egyptian farmers. With EoL Global, we are now scaling this system globally in partnership with the Egyptian Biodynamic Association (EBDA) and NOW Partners Foundation - to internationally expand high-integrity carbon credits globally, supporting both environmental sustainability and farmer livelihoods." 

 

See also: forum special entry on COP29 - A collection of reports and comments by forum correspondents