"Green Eyes." Green Tours. Can't Lose.
How might Coldplay tour the globe without doing harm to the environment?
Photo credit: Tim Saccenti via Rolling Stone
In November, Coldplay told BBC News that it would not tour its new album, Everyday Life. Why? The band is concerned about the negative environmental impact of a global tour, including carbon emissions from flights, prevalence of single-use plastics at concerts, and more.
Front man Chris Martin told BBC News "We're taking time over the next year or two, to work out, how can, not only our tour be sustainable, but how can it be actively beneficial? How can we harness the resources that our tour creates and make it have a positive impact?"
As an ardent fan of Coldplay's music, who has never seen them perform live, my first thought was, "Damn it!!" The British band is on my "bucket list" of bands/musicians that I must see before I die. Selfishly, I was not thrilled about the idea of Coldplay hitting pause on touring their new music for an extended period of time.
After a brief mourning period—which may or may not have included sobbing quietly to myself as I listened to "Fix You" on repeat—I became encouraged by their decision. This announcement doesn't mean that Coldplay will never tour again, but it does mean that once they hit the road, they will do so in a way that "harness[es] the resources that our tour creates and make[s] it have a positive impact," Martin said.
This could be powerful. If one of the world's most beloved band's creates a template for how to tour the globe in a "net positive" way for people and the planet, it could be replicated by any and every tour run in the music business.
If Coldplay can pull this off, Martin predicts that "everyone will catch up, I think, if you prove that it's easy to do it the right way."
The big question is—how do we do that? How does a band tour the globe, reach multiple continents and dozens of countries without creating a lot of carbon emissions? Without developing a ton of plastic waste? Without using a bunch of energy at venues sourced from fossil fuel-generated power?
Mr. Martin... Coldplay... I have a few ideas for you. Let's figure this thing out, and figure it out fast. We gotta get you back on the road, and I have to buy VIP tickets to your next show in Washington, D.C.! Hell, I'll even travel to see you guys live... By train or boat, of course.
Let's try and tackle some of the biggest environmental issues associated with touring, by breaking down each of the problems one at a time, and offering up a few potential solutions. I look forward to hearing from you and your team, Mr. Martin.
Travel
Coldplay's most recent tour, "A Head Full of Dreams," included 114 shows across five continents in 2016 and 2017. Over five million fans attended their shows, which delivered $523,033,675 in ticket sales, the third highest grossing global tour of all time. Holy shit.
With all of this globetrotting, Coldplay and their crew members took a lot of flights. Martin admits that "the hardest thing is the flying side of things," when it comes to designing a net positive tour.
A report done in 2010 by London based charity, Julie's Bicycle, reported that U.K. based bands released about 85,000 tons of greenhouse gas in 2009. That number has almost undoubtedly increased since '09, and air travel contributes to a band like Coldplay's overall carbon footprint.
So what are some of the ways we might address this problem?
Carbon Offsetting
According to Dr. Adam Bumpus from the University of British Columbia, carbon offsetting is "a mechanism that allows a company, organisation or individual to reduce its environmental impact on the atmosphere in one area by investing in projects that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in another."
To put it another way, purchasing carbon offsets means investing in projects that help remove the carbon that you put into the atmosphere. Examples of carbon offset investments could be a non-profit organization that plants trees, a sustainable development project, or investing in energy efficiency and clean technology.
Unfortunately, carbon offsetting is not a silver bullet for reducing environmental impact. As Dr. Bumpus writes, "Carbon offsets are neither the solution to climate change, nor the antithesis of carbon mitigation action. If carried out correctly and as part of a wider climate change strategy offsets can create both atmospheric and social benefits."
So while Coldplay might consider investing in carbon offsets, the band should think about them as a small piece of the larger puzzle to creating a "net positive" tour. And if they do invest in carbon offsets, they should be sure to align with the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) standard set out by the United Nations in the Kyoto Protocol.
What else could Chris Martin and the gang do to reduce carbon emissions from their tours?
Travel by Land and Sea
Over the summer, climate activist Greta Thunberg traveled from Plymouth, England to New York, New York on a zero-carbon yacht that utilized wind, sun, and hydro power. The journey took two weeks, but it prevented some 1,000 kg of carbon dioxide being emitted into Earth's atmosphere—the estimated emissions on a flight from the UK to New York City.
Greta Thunberg on her cross-Atlantic trip. Via Greta Thunberg/Twitter
Among all travel options, aviation is the most efficient time-wise, but the least efficient when it comes to emissions of CO2. This makes the idea of a band like Coldplay traveling by land and sea on tour a complicated one. The band has played shows on every continent except Antarctica, and sailing around the planet to get to shows would be unrealistic time-wise.
I'm not sure that it’s possible for Coldplay to completely eliminate flying from their tour travel plans; however, they might consider limiting the number of flights to three or four per tour. It would then be a challenge of organizing an efficient tour plan so that the band could take trains, or clean energy automobiles from one city to another.
Hypothetically, the band could tour in Europe without taking a single flight. They could then fly from their home in the UK to New York City, and then tour its American sites by train or automobiles.
Solving these transportation logistics challenges is beyond my experience and expertise, but I hope some of these ideas are helpful. Perhaps we could think about alternatives to traveling. What if we eliminated travel from the equation? How would Coldplay "tour" the globe without leaving London?
Streaming
It's difficult to replicate the experience of a live music performance. Going to see artists live and in-person is one of the biggest appeals for music fans that spend money on concerts. However, we may have to consider fewer in-person shows if we hope to reduce the environmental impact of the music industry. Streaming technology could serve as part of the solution.
Coldplay's Everyday Life: Live in Jordan concert could be a peek at the future of live music. The band performed their new album in Amman, Jordan on November 22nd, and streamed their sets live on YouTube. The performance, like the album, was broken into two sets — a 30-minute sunrise performance and a 30-minute sunset performance. Here are the two recordings: Sunrise | Sunset. I can't recommend them enough.
As I watched these performances earlier this week, I couldn't help but think: what if the content streaming platforms dove deeper into music? YouTube, Spotify, Netflix, Amazon, Apple, HBO — tons of companies would line up to deliver live streaming concerts as an added benefit of their subscription services, or perhaps, as an on-demand product which millions of users could purchase for a small fraction of the cost of a live concert.
From a band's perspective, they could limit travel, and sell tickets to their live performance at a venue close to home. This would look more like the residency model used by some artists in massive entertainment markets like New York City and Las Vegas. Plus, they could sell a high volume of streaming "passes" to fans across the globe. All of this without having to take a single flight.
Again, I don't think this would eliminate touring, but it could help to replace some of the lost revenue that bands like Coldplay would forgo by refusing to travel internationally on a global tour. Considering how competitive "The Streaming Wars" have become, I imagine that top artists would have considerable negotiating power to license their live concerts to Netflix, YouTube, Amazon, Apple, and Spotify.
But we agree that as great as streaming video is, it can't replace being there in person. So what if we tapped into the next frontier of technology to bring fans even closer to their favorite musicians without having to travel?
Virtual and Augmented Reality Tours
One year ago, on the Saturday prior to the Super Bowl, DJ Marshmello performed a live, 10-minute set inside of a video game.
That's right... a virtual concert. And over ten million people attended it—(almost twice the number of people as attended the entire Head Full of Dreams tour in '16-'17). Marshmello's show was delivered inside of the massive hit video game Fortnite which became a global phenomenon in 2018 and 2019. I believe that this show could also provide a peek into the future of touring.
Marshmello performing inside of Fortnite. Via Marshmello/YouTube
As virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technology continues to progress, combined with the implementation of 5G wireless communication technology, almost every industry will be disrupted. The music industry is no different.
If bands are concerned with the negative impact of their tours on the environment, they might consider building out a virtual reality "tour." I'm not quite sure how this would play out, but perhaps the performers could be captured by virtual reality cameras in one location, and then beamed out to fans who would "attend" the show at their local concert venue.
The venues would need to be equipped with VR streaming hardware that would either a) project the artists and their music onto the stage and into the audience or b) provide VR headsets for each attendee so that they could all be immersed in the concert-going experience. For that matter, any fan could "attend" the live concert from home if they own the necessary hardware.
One way or the other, virtual reality could help music fans hear, feel, and experience live performances that are happening halfway across the globe. We may be a few years away from having the capability and the infrastructure to create VR or AR "tours," but I am excited to watch how the music industry adapts and utilizes the tech once it is here.
Waste
Single-use plastic has become a increased focus area for environmentalists in recent years due to the amount of plastic waste that has been found in Earth's oceans. Advocacy group Ocean Conservancy estimates that 8 million metric tons of plastics enter our oceans each year, on top of the 150 million metric tons that already float around in seas across the world.
The plastic problem ends up affecting marine wildlife, which ingest plastics that they mistake for food. This leads to several problems for animals like seabirds and sea turtles including "reduced fitness, nutrient uptake and feeding efficiency—all vital for survival."
Live concerts often include a lot of single-use plastic use, and for Coldplay, eliminating or reducing the amount of plastics at their shows is a big priority.
"Our dream is to have a show with no single-use plastic, to have it be largely solar-powered," Chris Martin said. Fortunately, there are great organizations that Coldplay could team up with to work on this problem.
Last year, Billie Eilish worked with a non-profit called REVERB to implement a more sustainable tour. REVERB was founded in was founded in 2004 by environmentalist Lauren Sullivan and her musician husband, Adam Gardner of Guster. Their mission is to "partner with Musicians, Festivals and Venues to green their concert events while engaging fans face-to-face at shows to take environmental and social action."
Billie Eilish x REVERB water bottles from her 2019 tour. Photo via REVERB.
During her 2020 Where Do We Go? tour, Eilish will work with REVERB to ensure that her and her fans can put on the greenest shows possible. This includes a ban on plastic straws at her tour venues, the ability for fans to bring refillable water bottles to shows, plus water stations for fans and backstage crew. Finally, REVERB will activate a Billie Eilish "Eco-Village" at each tour stop to educate and empower concertgoers with more information on how to participate in the battle against climate change.
It seems that REVERB could be a strategic partner for Coldplay as they pursue their goal to put on shows with zero single-use plastic. This 2010 Huffington Post article by Adam Gardner suggests that the band has worked with REVERB in the past. Perhaps there is a new level, or standard that they can work towards that prevents plastic waste from making it onto their next tour.
Venues
Finally, let's talk about energy usage at the stadiums and arenas where Coldplay performs to tens of thousands of adoring fans. Musical performances on the scale of a Coldplay concert require a lot of energy. Shows require lighting, video projection, and acoustics, not to mention the energy needed to power luxury suites, bathrooms, concourses, and food & beverage vendors.
Stadiums consume a ton of energy, but in recent years, several football stadiums across the U.S. and abroad have made a concerted effort to construct stadiums in the most sustainable way possible. Perhaps Coldplay could exclusively book shows at stadiums where the energy sourced to power the show comes from 100% renewable energy sources.
The beautiful and sustainable Lincoln Financial Field. Via Philadelphia Eagles and SolarBlue
The shining example of sustainable stadiums in the United States is Lincoln Financial Field, home of the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles launched their "Go Green" program in 2003 (the year Linconln Financial Field opened), and became the first professional stadium in the U.S. capable of generating its own electricity onsite. In 2018, the Eagles stadium achieved LEED Gold certification, "for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions aimed at achieving high performance in: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality."
Sustainability has been core to the Philadelphia Eagles company culture since '03. The franchise diverts "more than 99% of waste from landfills and operat[es] on 100% clean energy," utilizing both solar arrays on the stadium and micro wind turbines. The Eagles also put a major emphasis on recycling and composting, water conservation, energy conservation, green purchasing, and reforestation efforts.
Coldplay could feel comfortable and confident that playing a show at "The Linc" would align with their sustainability mission. It appears that the stadium has the capacity to power their show using 100% clean energy, and could assist in the band's efforts to curb single-use plastic waste. The challenge will be finding venues with a similar level of capability when it comes to "net positive" shows.
My recommendation would be that Coldplay sets a standard for all venues that it books for its next tour. For example, the band could say, "Unless your stadium or arena meets the LEED Silver certification standard, at a minimum, we will not perform at your site." This standard would have the dual benefit of helping Coldplay reduce its environmental footprint on tour, and incentivize stadium and arena owners around the globe to invest in sustainable operations for their buildings.
***
This post does not cover all of the bases. Transforming something as complex as a worldwide concert tour for one of the world's biggest acts is no small feat. However, there is a path there for Chris Martin and his mates to fulfill their dream of building a net positive tour.
If Coldplay can design their tour with an improved sustainability of their travel logistics, eliminate plastic waste, and perform at venues that operate on renewable energy sources, they will make a considerable difference in the fight against climate change.
Even more important than the reduction in their band's carbon footprint, however, would be the power of their sustainability story to inspire people all over the world to join the fight. If they create a "clean tour template," musicians all over the globe could follow their lead. Fans could be educated and empowered to live in a more sustainable way. The music industry as a whole could be a net positive on people and the planet.
Here's hoping that they are able to pull this off. As a fan, I hope they pull it off sooner rather than later so I can finally go see them perform. If they do, it would make them "Champion of the World."
Win-Win-Win is a community for purpose-driven leaders in the sports and entertainment industry. Once a week, on Thursdays, I’ll send you a thoughtful essay/blog post about how we might leverage the influence of our industry for good. Please reach out to me on Twitter or LinkedIn if you’d like to connect and discuss my work or find ways that we might collaborate.