Terraforma: reshaping the festival space

Festivals have long been a celebration of culture, of the arts, of life itself. But their expansion into the mainstream has also unfortunately increased pressure on resources and created mountains of waste that end up in landfill. Thankfully, in recent years awareness of the impact that this revelry has on the planet has brought about a shift in attitudes among organisers and attendees. Terraforma is one such festival focused on making environmental sustainability key to its working practices.

Words

Maria Mouk

Photos

Giselle Galvão

Leaving the heat and the crowds of Milan behind, the bus transporting festival-goers zooms north and the roads become quieter and more picturesque with each kilometre. As the bus whizzes past blossoming fields, excited chatter builds among the passengers, before suddenly a waft of lavender from surrounding fields heralds our arrival at the imposing 18th-century Villa Arconati.

‘The small Versailles of Lombardy’, as Italians call the northern Italian villa, is the site of Terraforma, an electronic music festival on its fifth edition. Terraforma is proudly advertised as ‘experimental and sustainable’, marking this cultural project in the French-inspired gardens as one of the increasing numbers of festivals aiming to go greener.

Whether a zero-waste methodology can ever be achieved when large groups of people congregate in open spaces is debatable. But as the consequences of mass plastic pollution and ever-dwindling resources become increasingly clear to the mainstream, even the dancefloor has started to look like a necessary place for improvement.

To address the environmental impact of festivals, organisers have started to employ innovative techniques which have led on from the early days of environmental responsibility such as Burning Man’s commitment to ‘leave no trace’. Terraforma has utilised a broad range of methods to do its bit, including building the festival with environmentally friendly materials, taking a creative approach to restoration efforts in the venue’s gardens, forming partnerships with ethical corporations, and providing post-festival impact reports on waste, supplies, mobility, energy and water consumption. These efforts reflect the growing interest to preserve resources, as well as serving the vital function of instigating a public dialogue on responsibility among festival-goers and organisers.

‘You can always do more,’ says Leone Manfredini, a member of Threes, the agency that produces Terraforma. ‘That’s something that keeps me going and excites me… a work in progress.’ Leone says that Threes seeks not only to reduce the environmental footprint of the project, but to also ‘do something that remains’. These sustainability goals are deeply related to preserving Italian heritage. Site-specific performances are ‘applied to the development of locations which are already soaked with a cultural background… We have a lot of history and we have to keep it alive.’

In reference to what the the organisers call their ‘cultural sustainable approach,’ Terraforma has revived the unkempt grounds of Villa Arconati. The producers have also began work on restoring the original garden labyrinth that once made the villa famous. Based on the 1973 engravings of Italian Marc’Antonio Dal Re, and with the aid of the cultural organisation Fondazione Augusto Rancilio, the inner maze of the ‘garden of delights’ was completed for the 2018 edition. There, revered electronic musicians created an instrumental installation.

Using the villa as a springboard for innovation, Leone says that the festival always encourages its sponsors to participate in special greening projects. ‘What we wanted to do through the festival was to start work on this place, start to put it in order, do some gardening projects and things that would be useful, not just for our festival but useful throughout the rest of the year,’ he explains. The labyrinth was developed with the help of cosmetics company Borotalco. And a whiskey-maker funded the compostable cups distributed throughout the festival bars. Leone says that even with corporate link-ups, the festival aims to uphold its community-oriented principles. Another sponsor is EticaSGR, an ethical asset management company focused on socially responsible investments. As well as helping to design and develop the solar-powered lamps across the Terraforma campsites, EticaSGR also funded the electric cars used to transport artists and offset emissions, as well as producing the reusable wooden festival signs and bins for waste and recycling collection. In 2016, EticaSGR collaborated with Terraforma to create a system to measure the festival’s impact regarding collected waste, supplies and vehicles, as well as energy and water consumption.

'We have a lot of history and we have to keep it alive.'

While the first edition of Terraforma managed to eliminate 44% of festival waste, 2018 aimed for a full 60% through recycling, organic waste composting and the separation of rubbish. Leone says that with these numbers, the waste processing of Terraforma tends to be more successful than most towns. Terraforma has also brought in a no-plastic straws policy, aimed to limit the use of ice, provided biodegradable soap in the on-site showers, and offered portable ashtrays to participants.

Terraforma’s infrastructure is also created sustainably. Reusing the wood from former years’ stages, architecture students from the Politecnico di Milano helped to design many of the benches and chairs throughout the site and were credited for their participation. Conscious of the European refugee crisis, Leone adds that for the 2018 edition, workers from Africa were hired to help with construction and taught carpentry skills, for which they received a diploma.

However, one of the biggest sustainability issues for Terraforma and the villa, as well as for other off-the-grid events, is the lack of on-site water and access to electricity. Organisers currently have to bring in water tanks for drinking and washing, and construct sinks throughout the site for hand washing and bottle refills. This still doesn’t cover all of the water needs of the festival, however. Staff are encouraged to use refillable water bladders but water bottles are still sold at the bars, which inevitably results in plastic waste. Showers are restricted to certain times of the day but improvements need to be made to better anticipate need and encourage responsibility in consumption. Leone explains that there is an economic challenge to relying entirely on water tanks and says that the plan for 2019 is to distribute refillable water bladders to every attendee. The organisers are also in dialogue with the local government about supporting the festival’s green initiatives.

The organisers have been looking into using solar-powered generators to cover the festival’s electricity needs. Although the Italian-made prototype wasn’t completed in time for this year’s edition, Leone and the team are hopeful about its implementation in 2019.

Also included in the festival’s ongoing sustainability effort is the transformation of the event into an all-camping model (as opposed to having an allowance of daily walk-ins). With this model, Leone hopes to create a connected community that puts into practice the slogan of sustainability that hangs at the entrance gate. With 1,500 campers making up half of the 2018 attendees, Leone says that future festivals will aim to remain intimate while teaching the crowd how to be responsible revellers.

This edition of Terraforma saw the appearance of the not-for-profit organisation A Greener Festival (AGF). With their team of independent environmental auditors, this sustainability alliance helps to evaluate, grade and encourage greener practices at events around the world. Two members of the AGF team met Leone and the Terraforma sustainability team to go over their 56-question checklist of green priorities and analyse whether these are being implemented at the festival. The organisation also offers Environmental Assessor training courses for interested festival planners seeking to improve their knowledge of environmental issues. Each year, AGF gives the Greener Festival Award to events and festivals making outstanding strides in environmental improvements. In 2017, AGF awarded top marks to the UK’s Green Gathering, Norway’s ØYA Festival, We Love Green in France, and the Wood Festival in the UK. Roskilde Festival in Denmark, DGTL festival in the Netherlands and Primavera Sound in Spain received  honourable mentions. In 2016, Portugal’s long-running Boom Festival made it to the top of the list.

As Claire O’Neill, co-founder of AGF, explains, ‘Events which have achieved the Greener Festival Award … have shown an incredible dedication to walking the talk, minimising the environmental impact of their events, and using them as a positive and much-needed portal for change.’

Although they haven’t yet made the cut for the AGF winner ceremonies, Leone is hopeful that Terraforma’s audience is paying attention. He is committed to promoting awareness of environmental issues and says that sustainability practices have started to have a positive impact on team members who were formerly unfamiliar with sustainability. ‘It permeates, it goes everywhere. It’s a journey.’

As the word Terraforma implies, ‘earth shaping’ is the deliberate process of modifying an environment to make it more habitable. Becoming more sustainable in the way that we live, work and play, both in urban and rural environments, is essential to the human race’s survival. By finding ways to minimise the impact of our actions, we are slowly finding ways to reverse the damage already done by mankind in a way that brings communities together.

Music has often played an important role in bringing people together for political change. And now the festival space is also a podium for a dialogue on sustainable living. Yet, better seen than heard, it is action that demonstrates change. Thanks to the efforts of green music festivals such as Terraforma, the benefits of improved production methods are becoming more obvious.

As the author Patrick Ness once said: ‘Worst is the one who knows better and does nothing.’ It feels like finally, we stand a chance of hearing the music play on in the great outdoors.

Check out Terraforma’s 2019 edition next summer at Villa Arconati.

Terraforma : 改造庆典空间

长久以来,庆典一直是文化、艺术或生活本身的庆祝。当它扩张到主流时,很不幸的对资源造成压力,并在掩埋场制造了如山的垃圾。庆幸的是,近年来主办单位与参加群众意识到这种狂欢对地球造成的影响,起了态度上的转变。Terraforma就是这样的一个庆典,致力实践他们的工作目标,旨在创造可持续环境。

Words

Maria Mouk

Photos

Giselle Galvão

将米兰的酷热与人群抛在脑后,载满参加节庆者的巴士往北移动,每行驶一公里路上变得更为安静、风光更显美丽。随着盛开的田野越过窗户,乘客间兴奋且喋喋不休,突然间,周围的树木飘来熏衣草预告了我们将抵达气势雄伟的18世纪阿尔克拉提别墅。

意大利人形容这个位在北义的别墅有如“伦巴底的小凡尔赛宫”,其为第五届Terraforma电子音乐节的所在地。Terraforma骄傲的自称为“具实验性与可持续性”的音乐节。让这个灵感出自法式花园风的文化项目,成为越来越多旨在变得更环保的庆典之一。

当大批人群聚集在开放空间时,是否能有效达到零垃圾方案目前尚无定论。但主流大众对大量塑料污染与不断锐减的资源所带来的影响越来越清晰,就连舞池看来也像需要改进的地方。

为了了解庆典对环境所造成的影响,主办方开始采用创新技术,这些技术源于早期的环境责任,如火人节不留圾垃的宗旨。Terraforma利用各种方法去尽自身本分,例如: 采用环保材料建造庆典、以创新方法在场地的花园内进行修复工作、与道德企业建立合作关系,并提供有关废物、供给品、流动性、能源与水消耗之后庆典报告。这些努力反映出人们对保护资源的意识日益提升,以及在庆典公众与主办方之间发挥关于责任的重要对话。

Threes之一的成员曼里欧(Leone Manfredini) 说:“ 你可以做更多,那让我保持下去并使我感到兴奋…就尚在进行中的工作。”里欧说Threes不仅要减少活动造成的环境足迹,还要去完成“剩下的工作。”这些可持续目标与保存意大利文化遗产紧密相关。特定场地演出 “适用于已沉浸于文化背景的场地发展…。我们拥有许多历史,我们必须使它保持活力。”

发起者将其称之为“文化的可持续方法。”Terraforma重建年久失修的阿尔克拉提别墅。制作人也开始着手重建让别墅闻名的原始花园迷宫。基于1973年意大利马可安东尼奥·达·莱的版画, 与文化组织基金会Augosto Rancillo的帮助,2018年完成了内部迷宫“欢乐花园。”受景仰的电子音乐人在那里创建了一种乐器装置。

虽然第一届的Terraforma设法除去了节庆上44%的垃圾。2018年的目标放在60%的回收、可施肥的有机垃圾以及垃圾分类。里欧说,这些数字表示Terraforma的垃圾处理比多数城镇都成功。Terraforma 引进不使用塑料吸管的新规定,并目标减少冰块的使用,在营地的淋浴区提供可分解式肥皂、可携式烟灰缸给参与者。

'我们拥有许多历史,我们必须使它保持活力'

Terraforma 引进不使用塑料吸管的新规定,并目标减少冰块的使用,在营地的淋浴区提供可分解式肥皂、可携式烟灰缸给参与者。

Terraforma的设施也是以可持续建材建造而成,重复使用前几年舞台上的木材,米兰理工大学建筑系学生也帮忙设计场地中许多长桌和椅子,其参与受到赞誉。意识到欧洲的难民危机,里欧补充说2018年雇用非裔工人,其帮忙建造并传授木工技术,他们也因此获得一纸学历。

然而,Terraforma与别墅,及其他未公开活动面临最大的可持续性问题为场地中缺乏供水和电力供应。目前主办方须搬来大型水塔供饮用与清洗,并在场地内建造盥洗台以供洗手与瓶装水。这些还不足以涵盖节庆中所有的水需求。然而,虽倡导工作人员使用饮用补水包,但瓶装水仍在吧台提供贩卖,这无可避免的造成塑料污染。淋浴只限定一天中的特地时段,但需进行改进,更好的预测需求并鼓励消费责任。里欧解释,若完全依赖水箱是个经济上的挑战,2019年计划将饮用补水包发放给每位群众。主办方也与当地政府进行有关赞助、支持节庆活动推动环保的对话。

主办方也一直注意有关太阳能发电来满足节庆活动的用电需求。虽然意大利制的样品来不及完成,以致无法用在今年的活动中,里欧与团队仍对2019年的实施抱持希望。

在节庆中,除了不间断可持续性发展的努力,还包含了将活动转变成全露营模式,经由这种模式,里欧希望成立一个互联社群,将可持续发展的口号付诸实现。2018年有1500名露营者,共占了全数参与者的一半,未来的节庆活动目标放在保持亲密,并同步教育大众如何做负责任的狂欢者。

今年出现在Terraforma有一非营利组织“A Greener Festival (AGF)”。凭借其团队的独立审核员,这可持续性发展联盟有助于评估、评分、鼓励世界各地在活动上的环保实践。AGF中的两位成员会见了李欧与Terraforma可持续团队讨论环保优先事项列表上的56个问题,并分析是否可在节庆活动上实施。该组织还为其他感兴趣的主办方提供环境评估员培训课程,旨在提升他们对环境问题的认识。每年,绿色节庆会颁绿色节日奖给那些为环境做贡献的活动单位或节庆。 在2017年,AGF颁奖给英国的绿色聚会,挪威的ØYA节、法国的我们就爱环保、英国的森林节、丹麦的Roskilde节、荷兰的DGTL祭、西班牙的春之声皆获得了荣誉奖。葡萄牙长久以来的Boom音乐节成为2016年的榜首。

正如AFG的共同创办人克莱儿∙欧尼尔(Claire O’Neill) 解释: “那些达到绿色节庆奖的活动单位,已展现出了不起的奉献精神,他们在活动中减少对环境的冲击,并将作为积极和需要改变的门户”

虽然他们尚未对AGF冠军仪式做出决定,里欧对Terraforma观众的关注力抱有很大希望。他致力于提升人们对环境问题的认识,并表示实践可持续性发展对过去不熟悉可持续性发展的团队成员开始起了正面影响。“它渗透并随处可见,这是一段旅程。”

正如Terraforma字面上的含意:“塑造地球”为修改环境 使其成为更适宜居的刻意过程。在都市或乡村环境中生活、工作和娱乐的方式变得更加可持续性,对人类存活至关重要。通过寻找方法去减少我们行为的影响,我们正缓慢地找到方式,将小区聚在一起翻转人类已造成的破坏。

音乐经常将人们聚在一起,为了政治变革发而挥重要作用。现在,节庆空间也是可持续生活对话的讲台。然而,看到的比听到更好,行动证明改变。感谢如Terraforma绿色节庆的努力,改进生产方法的好处越来越明显。

如同作家奈派翠(Patrick Ness)曾说: “最糟的是知道的更多却甚么也不做的人。”感觉就像终于我们的理念被听见并付诸实行。

查看明年夏天2019 Terraforma阿尔克拉提别墅

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