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OUR WORK

Building people-to-people relationships to tackle climate change is a key priority for the British Council around the world. Our offices in North America participate in initiatives such as International Climate Champions and Cape Farewell – we’ve also developed work around Greening the Arts, notably during the Arts Presenters annual conference in January 2009. Alongside our project work we strive to continually improve our own environmental performance as an organization.

UK BEST PRACTICE

Britain leads in addressing environmental impact from within the cultural sector – in recent years several influential UK organizations (alongside TippingPoint) have supported artists’ attempts to stimulate radical and imaginative thinking in wider society about our changing planet.

Cape Farewell: Aims to pioneer the cultural response to climate change by working internationally, bringing artists, scientists and communicators together to stimulate the production of art founded in scientific research.

RSA Arts & Ecology: Catalyzes, publicizes, challenges and supports artists who are responding to the unprecedented environmental challenges of our era. Aims to create a positive discussion about the causes and the human impact of climate change through commissioning, debate, interdisciplinary discourse and a high-profile website.

For more insight into UK best practice in environmental sustainability from within the arts community, see our events at the Arts Presenters conference in New York this January.

Creative ferment came to New York this past winter during the first American TippingPoint

TippingPoint is a groundbreaking British organization which explores the boundary between artistic and cultural life and the extraordinary challenge of global climate change. At the core of its activities are a series of 2-day events which put contemporary artists and practicing scientists in collaborative conversation.

With the aim to enrich both scientific and creative practice through dialogue and debate, TippingPoint events are a rare opportunity for professionals from the arts and science communities to celebrate their shared capacity for transformative innovation and engage with peers from across many disciplines.

Past TippingPoints have been held in Oxford, England and Potsdam, Germany. The first-ever American gathering was hosted in December 2009 in a partnership between TippingPoint; the British Council; the Earth Institute, Columbia University; and the CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities.

Want to network with other Americans interested in the intersection of environment and the arts? Become a fan of TippingPoint USA on Facebook.

Portion of orange leaf, detail. Image Credit: image 100.

ABOUT OUR PARTNERS

TippingPoint
TippingPoint aims to ‘harness the power of the imagination to help stabilize the climate,’ offering a range of activities centered on exposing creative artists to the enormous challenges of climate change. At the center of their work are a series of meetings involving high quality, intense dialogue between artists, scientists and others close to the heart of the issue.

Earth Institute, Columbia University
The Earth Institute’s overarching goal through scientific research, education and the practical application of research is to help achieve sustainable development by expanding the world’s understanding of Earth as one integrated system. With 850 scientists, postdoctoral fellows and students working in and across more than 20 Columbia University research centers, the Earth Institute is helping to advance nine interconnected global issues: climate and society, water, energy, poverty, ecosystems, public health, food and nutrition, hazards and urbanization.

CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities
The CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities seeks to create awareness and understanding of the connections between the everyday lives of urban citizens and their natural world, leading to the discovery and use of cities like New York as a learning laboratory to create a sustainable future for cities worldwide. The core projects of the Institute, focusing on climate change and energy use, consumption of resources, and cities by the coast, hone in on central issues of societal concern.