Ed Sheeran games with sustainability. Will the rest of Hollywood get on board?
Five major explosions, one fiery crash, 15 cars destroyed and 2 store fronts demolished. Add waste generated by 100 people on set on any given day and easily over 1000 by the end of a production. Sustainability practitioners are NEEDED to address awareness and sustainable practices in Hollywood.
Fortunately, Hollywood is coming around. The first Environmental Media Association Impact Summit was held March 2017. Representatives from Disney, Fox, Sony, Paramount and Warner Bros. Studios attended. The summit was headlined by celebrities Shailene Woodley and Jaden Smith. Topics ranged from vendors, carbon emissions and energy conservation to community partnerships and the EMA Green Seal recognition program.
With this much interest in movie production, soon there will be a heading as the credits role for sustainability crew. Sustainability practices are similar across industries. Adopting sustainability practices in the entertainment industry benefits nature and the triple bottom line.
Producers need sustainability strategists. A course on sustainability in Hollywood would look like the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence’s (CSE) Sustainability Practitioner Program. Modules include reporting guidelines such as the GRI Standards, supply chain and carbon foot printing. What Hollywood still lacks and sustainability professionals can help provide is transparency in production practices and reporting. Movie production is a significant contributor to GHGs, but without a baseline and solid metrics, how can Hollywood improve?
Ed Sheeran, Beyoncé, Pearl Jam and Coldplay are some of the musicians rocking sustainability. Movies have global reach. The entertainment business is generally perceived as progressive. The blockbuster writer/director of Bridget Jones’s Diary Richard Curtis and Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron are both representatives of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
Good work already is being done. Now, more studio heads need to get on board. Sustainability advocates Angelina Jolie, Leonardo DiCaprio, Emma Watson, Ben Affleck, Jessica Alba: let’s make their lives easier with a cadre of sustainability practitioners ready to bring sustainability to the set!
CSE’s next California Sustainability Practitioner Program (Advanced Edition 2017) will be held in San Diego, Oct. 31- Nov. 1 at the SRI Conference.