A couple of weeks ago, Coldplay announced that they will not be touring their most recent album, Everyday Life, because touring is not considered eco-friendly.
The lead singer, Chris Martin, told BBC News, “We’re taking time over the next year or two, to work out how our tour can not only be sustainable [but] how can it be actively beneficial.” Until touring becomes environmentally beneficial, you won’t be seeing Coldplay in your ‘Paradise’ any time soon.
There’s a bullet pointed list full of specifics that go into creating a successful tour that includes fan satisfaction, food and merchandise production, and electricity; all of these things play a big part into touring, and that’s only a few bullets off the list.
There are so many aspects that go into touring, but can traveling the world as a band become environmentally friendly? Only time can truly tell us the real answer, but there are many things to think about when posing this question.
It’s interesting to put the word sustainable or even eco-friendly next to touring. Depending on the size of the buildings that bands and singers hold their shows in, thousands of people attend.
Our carbon footprint on Earth has a huge influence on sustainability. When fans attend shows, there are not only thousands of people in the same area, but their cars are too. Many people get to the shows by cars or even planes so there are a lot of ways they are affecting the concert experience.
Associate Professor of Ecology and Biology Pedram P. Daneshgar said, “Flying increases our carbon footprint greatly as does taking buses around the country.”
With this happening, massive amounts of carbon monoxide are released into the air, feeding into the problem of air pollution.
Daneshgar went on, “There’s no quick solution to this, unless planes are designed that do not rely on fossil fuel to fly. These solutions are not coming tomorrow, but perhaps eventually.”
There may be many negatives to touring that won’t be resolved for a long time, but there are some actions that can be taken for successful touring for years ahead.
When designing an eco-friendly tour, developers can make all tickets available for cell phones
Many people who attend events that include tickets use the smartphone wallets or other cell phone features involving tickets, but if paper tickets are eliminated entirely, this can add to the environmentally friendly portion of touring.
Without paper tickets, fans might have easier access to their digital tickets. Some people, like myself, have that nervous thought that they forgot their tickets at home, so with the digital ticket change, two problems are eliminated. Digital tickets are environmentally friendly and make the job as the ticket holder more accessible.
Another idea would be to install solar panels to the places that hold their concerts. Solar panels can get very expensive due to their production, but are known to be a way to save money on electricity bills and they are better for the environment.
The environmental impact can vary between solar panels due to production, yet they are known to be a greener route when saving on electricity. The solar panels would also have to be portable if Coldplay wanted to be the first band to be eco-friendly.
There are a couple of other ideas that Professor of Science Giovanna Bonadonna, Ph.D. had which included traveling by train instead of buses or trucks. Traveling by train is known to be the most eco-friendly way to travel long distances.
Food can also be turned to only sell vegetarian products, but it might upset fans who are not vegetarians because there won’t be a lot of choices for them.
Although there are a lot of aspects in making touring one hundred percent eco-friendly, Bonadonna said, “I think it is good that they are trying to support the cause and launch a signal to their fans.”
Bonadonna continued with, “It is very hard to organize a no-impact tour, but it can be more eco-friendly.”
The 100 percent availability for eco-friendly touring for bands and musicians seems to find success in the far future. Coldplay might be better off with touring and donating their money to researchers who can ensure pure sustainable touring for everyone.
Coldplay should think over their announcement of pausing their touring until it’s considered to be ‘environmentally friendly’ because there’s a lot that goes into it, and they may not tour for decades due to this.
Their idea is not impossible, but it is harder to obtain quickly.
IMAGE TAKEN from png.com
