This ARC Research Project looks at the role that Australian performing arts organisations can play in responding to the climate crisis.
Building on earlier Culture for Climate work, it focuses on what is happening on stage, behind the scenes, and in public commitments, and asks what support is needed to speed up change across the sector.
We are working alongside a group of 5 case study organisations to identify the barriers and opportunities for climate action in the sector. Through workshops and pilot projects, we co-design, test, and refine practical sustainability strategies, then share what we learn to support wider uptake and inform longer-term policy directions.
We use a collaborative, iterative approach that brings together diverse perspectives across the sector. As a transdisciplinary team, we co-create and dream together new possibilities for sustainable practice, then test ideas in real contexts and refine them through cycles of learning, feedback, and adjustment.
The 3Ps framework is the foundation of our research, providing a holistic lens through which we evaluate and transform our cultural impact. By organising our research and initiatives into these three distinct categories, we remain grounded in the human connections, material choices, and systemic changes needed to build a more sustainable future for the performing arts.
Performances that make environmental issues visible through story, theme, or framing. This includes works with explicit ecological messages such as eco-plays, cli-fi drama, and eco-critical performance and also seasons that intentionally foreground climate, Country, and human–nature relationships.
The day-to-day choices that shape a production’s environmental impact. It includes sustainable and ethical approaches across how work is made and delivered, materials and construction, reuse and sharing, waste and energy, and the practical processes that support the people and places involved.
The statements and plans that guide decision-making and make sustainability measurable over time. This can include mission statements, action plans, strategies, directives, annual reporting, sustainability statements, setting expectations, responsibilities, and pathways for accountability.
Our Culture for Climate report series investigates the intersection of the Australian performing arts and the climate crisis.
Despite the radical impact of climate change on Australian communities, there has been very little research in the Australian performing arts sector’s response to the climate crisis and aspiration to do so. While cultural organisations are embracing greener strategies in other countries, we are yet to fully grasp what the definition of climate leadership means in the Australian cultural context. The environmental impacts of the Australian performing arts sector are yet to be adequately researched, documented, and disseminated. Furthermore, there have not been any systematic attempts to examine how organisations are pursuing ecological values and processes, or the policies supporting them to do so. Many companies do not have publicly accessible environmental policies or climate action plans. This makes it difficult to determine how sustainability is being addressed across programming, practice and policy structures.
This report explores how a small selection of Australian performing arts organisations are currently responding to the global ecological crisis. The study was conducted at Griffith University in 2022-2023 with the intention of highlighting leaders in the field.
Beer, T., Hassall, L., Lazaroo, N., Meyrick, J., Marquet, K., Manton, W. and Barfod Dye, S. (2023). Culture for Climate: a preliminary study into how Australian performing arts organisations are responding to the global environmental crisis. Performance + Ecology Research Lab, Creative Arts Research Institute, Griffith University, Brisbane. https://dx.doi.org/10.25904/1912/4756.
Despite the radical impact of climate change on Australian communities, there has been very little research in the Australian performing arts sector’s response to the climate crisis and aspiration to do so. While cultural organisations are embracing greener strategies in other countries, we are yet to fully grasp what the definition of climate leadership means in the Australian cultural context. The environmental impacts of the Australian performing arts sector are yet to be adequately researched, documented, and disseminated. Furthermore, there have not been any systematic attempts to examine how organisations are pursuing ecological values and processes, or the policies supporting them to do so. Many companies do not have publicly accessible environmental policies or climate action plans. This makes it difficult to determine how sustainability is being addressed across programming, practice and policy structures.
This report explores how a small selection of Australian performing arts organisations are currently responding to the global ecological crisis. The study was conducted at Griffith University in 2022-2023 with the intention of highlighting leaders in the field.
Lazaroo, Natalie, Tanja Beer, Linda Hassall, Eunjae Park, Grace Nye-Butler, Julian Meyrick, Brooke Killalea, Sophie Barfod Vuilleumier, and Penny Challen. 2025. Culture for Climate Survey Report: The Australian Performing Arts Sector’s Response to the Climate Crisis. Brisbane, Australia: Performance + Ecology Research Lab, Creative Arts Research Institute, Griffith University. https://doi.org/10.25904/1912/5811.
We have been working with industry partners across the performing arts sector to find out how they can respond to the climate crisis in unique and powerful ways. Our case studies include small to larger organisations across Australia who are passionate about sustainability and creating positive change.
