Liverpool’s year as the first UN Climate Change Accelerator City has shown that the cultural sector can be a powerful driver of climate action, but cities need the right expertise, data, governance and infrastructure to deliver lasting change, according to a new report.
The evaluation, led by researchers at The University of Manchester’s Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations (CAST), analysed nine real-world pilot projects spanning music festivals and arena concerts, TV production, infrastructure and public transport.
The findings show that the Programme delivered practical changes with the potential for long term impact across Liverpool’s cultural sector, including new sustainability standards for film and TV production, improved carbon reporting at events and greener operational practices in the city’s major venues.
The programme delivered a series of high-profile successes, including:
Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena was recognised by A Greener Future as one of the UK’s greenest music venues after trialling fully plant-based catering, improved waste management and shared production infrastructure across a series of major concerts.
Two BBC drama productions filmed in Liverpool – The Cage and Waiting for the Out – reported reductions in their carbon footprints of 46% and 61% compared to the industry average through measures including LED lighting, battery power and dedicated staff with sustainability expertise.
BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend won the Green Award at the UK Festival Awards after introducing battery-powered infrastructure, low-carbon travel initiatives and the most comprehensive environmental dataset ever collected for the festival.
The UK’s first National Occupational Standards for sustainability roles in film and television were developed through consultation with industry professionals.
Beyond individual pilots, the research found that the programme changed how sustainability was considered within Liverpool City Council, improving understanding and confidence around sustainability, helping embed climate considerations in everyday decision-making and future cultural project planning.
Local authorities were found to have particular influence through using the levers already within their direct control, such as land-use and event permissions. In Liverpool, this led to the development of a new framework for events on council land, embedding environmental standards and data reporting into the approvals process.
Liverpool’s UN ‘Accelerator City’ status also provided momentum, helping bring together organisations across the creative industries to collaborate in ways that might have been difficult under normal circumstances.
However, the research also highlights the significant barriers and challenges cities face when trying to cut emissions.
A lack of funding, limited staff capacity and gaps in technical expertise slowed progress across several projects. In many cases, basic data on environmental impacts was missing, making it harder to target the most effective actions.
Efforts to introduce low‑carbon infrastructure during the year, such as replacing diesel generators or improving grid connections, were constrained by the cost, complexity and time needed to modernise existing systems.
Interventions that depended on external partners, such as integrating public transport, proved significantly harder to deliver at pace trials helped to identify challenges and opportunities and a plan for how this can be operationalised in the future has been developed.
Thes researchers say that the lessons are relevant far beyond a single city and the findings can help any city or cultural organisation reduce emissions.
Read the full report here: https://tyndall.ac.uk/reports/how-cities-can-decarbonise-culture-lessons-from-liverpools-year-as-the-first-un-climate-accelerator-city/
