Carbon Neutrality
In 2020, The Fox Den Collective committed to being carbon neutral. This is a small way that we can participate in climate action and work towards a more sustainable world!
We hope that this idea can take off in the Canadian theatre community. Together we can practice being more conscientious about how we work, and how we make production decisions on an ongoing basis. Purchasing carbon offsets is one way to start - and it's easy and even affordable! We hope this page can provide some basic answers and guidance to other theatre companies who might be interested in pursuing a carbon neutral setup, but who feel unsure about how to begin.
We hope that this idea can take off in the Canadian theatre community. Together we can practice being more conscientious about how we work, and how we make production decisions on an ongoing basis. Purchasing carbon offsets is one way to start - and it's easy and even affordable! We hope this page can provide some basic answers and guidance to other theatre companies who might be interested in pursuing a carbon neutral setup, but who feel unsure about how to begin.
FAQ:
What does it mean to be Carbon Neutral?
Carbon neutrality is the balancing out of carbon emissions. That means we purchase carbon offsets according to our carbon usage for each process/ production! Where Do You Purchase Carbon Offsets? We purchase our offsets through Less.ca. We choose to employ Gold Standard-Certified International Offsets, as these projects meet the Gold Standard Foundation's sustainable development criteria, as well as the UN's Clean Development Mechanism protocols. The offsets are endorsed by leading environmental groups, including WWF International. What do you take into account when calculating your carbon output? We carefully track and factor in aspects such as: - Travel (between cities, as well as to and from rehearsal and performances each day) - Paper (for scripts, posters, resources handed out to the audience, programs, etc.) - Rehearsal Space (calculation includes electricity and air conditioning) - Performance Space (calculation includes electricity and air conditioning) - Props: Plastic (recyclable and non-recyclable calculated separately) - Props: Fabric (recyclable and non-recyclable calculated separately) - Set: Wood, canvas, screws, and the use of electricity in the workshop -Costumes (secondhand and new clothing calculated separately) This gives you a just small taste of what we work through in order to ensure that TFDC is fully carbon neutral – not just when we travel, but in every aspect of our work. We have used myclimate.org to assist in our calculations - and it's so great and helpful! What if You Miss Something? We deliberately overestimate our emissions, and then we add a percentage to the final total. For instance, when calculating the emissions caused by performing The Big Sad in an air-conditioned venue in Edmonton, we did the math as though we were using the venue full-time (as opposed to just during our slot at the Fringe). When we get a final tally of our emissions, we round our numbers up yet again. All of this actually means that at the end of the day, we are probably a net-positive company! But we do it this way so that if there are any emissions we have missed, they will still be covered by our offsets. Has Anyone Else Done This? As far as we can tell, we are the first carbon neutral theatre company in North America, and one of only a handful of theatre organizations to have made this commitment worldwide. We hope you join us! |