Brussels, 29th November 2023    

COP28 UN Climate Conference, which will take place in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, 2023, is set to focus on advocating for a just, orderly, and equitable energy transition, examining climate finance, putting nature, lives, and livelihoods at the heart of climate action. The just energy transition will be a key topic, aiming to ensure that the transition to a low-carbon economy is leaving no one behind.

In the light of this, IMPALA is using this global event to highlight best-practice examples within our membership and inspire more of our members to use the freely available IMPALA Carbon Calculator supported by Merlin and powered by Julie’s Bicycle. These testimonials are featured in our first Carbon Calculator Report, you can find the full report here.

IMPALA supports their members by providing customised and freely available resources, including guidance on Climate Investment (prioritising targeted financial contribution over offsets), voluntary climate declaration, guidance for members and more.

We also invite other stakeholders in the music industry value chain to collaborate with IMPALA in achieving efficiencies and meaningful change through organised cooperation. A great example of music industry cooperation is the Music Climate Pact, initiated by the UK AIM and the BPI.

Horst Weidenmüller, CEO and founder of !K7 Music and Chair of IMPALA’s Sustainability Task Force highlighted the benefits of sustainability initiatives within individual companies, stating that: “We count on COP to produce concrete results and support sector transition as sustainability is something that should be central to all companies. Having sustainability initiatives in place is making us take responsibility for the climate crisis and is proving to be the right business decision as more and more employees look to be part of a responsible working environment.”

It is also crucial to recognise the importance that creative and cultural industries can play in undertaking climate action and acting as a catalyst for broader social change. IMPALA supports the Climate Heritage Network, uniting to call for climate negotiators at COP28 to put cultural heritage, arts and creative industries at the heart of climate action. Discover more about it here. We also support the work and ambition of Music Declares Emergency, harnessing the power of music for impactful climate action.

Alison Tickell, JB Founder commented: “We need everyone from across the cultural landscape to unite and support this campaign – from artists, galleries and museums to designers and the film and fashion industries – we need organisations and individuals from every sector across the world to add their voice!”

It is great to know that the European Union is taking action on climate topics and is aiming to become the first climate-neutral continent, as underpinned by the European Green Deal and reinforced by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the Nature Restoration Law.

Helen Smith, IMPALA’s Executive Chair commented: “We welcome COP’s focus on a just transition and underline the role of culture in achieving this. We look towards the EU to boost Europe’s transition to clean energy sources like hydrogen, which needs to be made available at scale and to different industries, leaving no one behind. This should include the creative and cultural industries, which play an important role in the EU’s economy and have a great societal influence.”

In the last year’s COP statement, IMPALA invited its members to join the #WeMeasureTogether campaign, underlining the power of culture as a catalyst to boost collective action. To further promote collaboration within our membership and facilitate knowledge-transfer, IMPALA is organising a peer-to-peer session for IMPALA Carbon Calculator users in January, IMPALA members can reach out to krogozar@impalamusic.org for more information.

Some testimonials from users of IMPALA’s Carbon Calculator:

Louise Sizer, Sustainability Team [PIAS] , UK: “At [PIAS] we are dedicated to reducing our impact on the planet – from within each of our offices around the globe to across our entire distribution network. Working out our current carbon footprint in the UK was the first step to set ourselves a measurable, realistic target to work towards. IMPALA’s Carbon Calculator has been essential in helping us do this. The tool was easy to use and we were grateful for the support from the Julie’s Bicycle team throughout the process. Now we have our total figure for last year, we’ve been able to assess each area of the company and use the data to spur staff to action.”

Kristoffer Rom, Tambourhinoceros, Denmark: “IMPALA’s Carbon Calculator is a powerful yet simple to use tool that’s quickly become our main source of sustainability analysis. We do yearly reporting, which only takes a couple of hours, and has enabled us to see our performance in reducing emissions and identify areas to improve. We included our footprint in our newsletter as we want to be transparent and share our values with our community. We’ve had very positive feedback from artists and followers alike.”

Ionut Polexe, Roton Music, Romania: “We have been using the Carbon Calculator for a while now, and I must say it has been a game-changer in our sustainability journey. The tool’s user friendly interface made it incredibly easy for us to calculate our carbon footprint accurately. Submitting our footprint not only gave us a clear understanding of our environmental impact but also empowered us to make informed choices and actively reduce our carbon emissions.”

Anna Johnson, Anjunabeats, UK: “IMPALA’s Carbon Calculator simplifies carbon emissions accounting. It also generates reports, which provide top-line insight as to where to focus reduction efforts. Crucially, the initiative supports increased label industry alignment around our shared sustainability challenges.”

Mats Hammerman, Massproduktion, Sweden: “I tried the Calculator for my small label and found it easy to use. The most interesting aspect was to get an instant summary of your Carbon footprint and I was somewhat surprised that my CD and vinyl print was such a big source of emissions. I had already taken steps to use paper covers instead of plastic jewelcases for CDs but this showed that I need to do more, especially when it comes to vinyl and transports. It also raised some thoughts when I got to the “Beyond Carbon” page where questions appeared that you maybe have not thought of or maybe needed a small reminder. It was also good to easily compare years with each other and how the imprint changes. I found it very inspirational and will use it as a checklist as something to help me make good decisions ahead.”  

Dutch Van Spall, Big Help Music, UK: “Big Help Music is fortunate to have its own production facilities. Designed and built by a sustainable buildings team – STRAWHOUSE STUDIO is a unique ‘zero carbon’ structure that supports the biodiversity of the environment whilst operating at a ‘low carbon’ level due to its high insulation construction and renewable and off-grid energy supply. We were confident that the IMPALA Calculator would result in a low carbon score, however, we were surprised to discover this was in contrast to higher than expected operating emissions. It demonstrated that some of our assumptions were wrong and has informed and shaped changes in working practice and reinforced our policy to influence client and visitor behaviour.”

Find out more about IMPALA members who contributed to the build of the Carbon Calculator here and some of the actions undertaken by our members here.

About IMPALA

IMPALA was established in 2000 and now represents nearly 6000 independent music companies. 99% of Europe’s music companies are small, micro and medium businesses and self-releasing artists. Known as the independents, they are world leaders in terms of innovation and discovering new music and artists – they produce more than 80% of all new releases and account for 80% of the sector’s jobs. IMPALA’s mission is to grow the independent music sector sustainably, return more value to artists, promote diversity and entrepreneurship, improve political access, inspire change, and increase access to finance. IMPALA works on a range of key issues for its members, runs various award schemes and has a programme aimed at businesses who want to develop a strategic relationship with the independent sector – Friends of IMPALA.