Music industry unites to fight climate change

All the major music companies and many independents have signed a Music Climate Pact under guidance from the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP).

The pact was initiated by the Association of Independent Music (AIM) and the BPI under a vision ‘To harness the power of the music industry towards inspiring transformational action on the climate crisis’.

It commits signatories to a series of measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, mitigate the industry’s contribution to global climate change, and ‘ignite broader societal action on the climate crisis.’

This last point includes a commitment to support artists in speaking up on climate issues and to communicate openly with fans about the impacts of the music industry on climate change.

The founding signatories were Anjunabeats, Beggars Group, BMG, Brownswood Recordings, Full Time Hobby, Inside Recordings, !K7 Music, Ninja Tune, Secretly Group, Sony Music Group, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, Warp. Each has agreed either to sign the Science Based Targets Standard Commitment Letter or join the Race to Zero campaign by February 2022. Anyone wishing to join them must have already signed one of those two pathways.

In addition, industry bodies have signed up as supporters, who will share data, knowledge and resources to help deliver the Pact’s commitments. These include AIM and BPI, American Association of Independent Music and the International Federation of Phonographic Industry (IFPI).

The signatories have also determined to work with shared suppliers and streaming platforms to obtain data and drive emission reductions project in cooperation with each other.

As the pact group states, ‘The Music Climate Pact ensures that each of the Signatory businesses aligns with internationally recognised, best-practice climate mitigation frameworks in the Science Based Targets initiative and/or the UN Race to Zero platform. Using these frameworks as a basis for action sets our industry on a glide-path towards achieving decarbonisation in alignment with the latest climate science.’