How do we mitigate the impact of Climate Change in our work?

By Adrian Campbell CEO Change Building/Living Object Partner

Our approach is guided by your ambition of achieving sustainable development and to contribute towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals and to play our part in helping communicate environmental issues to audiences and to mitigate the impacts of climate change in the work that we do. 

We aim to incorporate ambitions of sufficiency in our designs, using only what is needed, to satisfy the requirements of projects and visitors, caring for collections whilst accepting that there are absolute limits to human use of resources and emissions. We want to contribute to the upliftment of all through equal and easy access to exhibitions we help curate celebrating diverse human cultures.

Principles

Designing exhibitions is a multiple stage, collaborative process that requires understanding of the work of all parties to the project. Our approach requires attention to the design, tender and dismantling phases of an exhibition. 

1.Align and agree methods

We set out the carbon assessment methodology and scope for collation of data in the preliminary design. We will agree this with the client so that the data can be collated across the team and requested as part of the procurement process to suit the client’s carbon reporting criteria.

This would include the scope boundaries and carbon assessment methods, agree established generic impact data and final reporting requirements.

We establish and agree a carbon budget for our design works and travel and include this in a revision to the Appendix 6 financial statement so that a baseline for our impacts is established early on and can be managed.

2. Design support

We further develop and refine our proposals in line with our ambition not just for efficiency, but sufficiency of designs. We will establish and agree with the client what is really needed. 

This will be set out in the preliminary design stage and developed further for the detailed design, working off the inventory of showcases and equipment that we have already used to inform our proposals. We will extend this into a more detailed assessment of the partitions once we understand their actual construction. 

We would adopt a hierarchy to enable as much reuse as possible starting from: 

• Reused as is

• Refurbished (with refurbishment to suit the new design)

• Repaired (mending to suit overall visual quality of the installation)

• Reconfigured (taking elements apart to then adapt and reuse them)

• Regenerative (made from low impact, bio-based, renewable materials)

• Restocked (collected for the next installation)

• Recycled (finding the best next use if not suitable for use)

This process follows typical circular economy strategies to maintain materials in use for as long as possible or find ways to use a service rather than make a product. Partnerships with other contractors or salvage/residue material processors known to the client would be helpful to maximise the potential for retained resource value. 

3. Establish sustainable procurement criteria

We will set out methods to procure materials and equipment for sustainable development in the final design report to be used for the Phase 2 tender. Satisfying these criteria would form part of tender assessment process and therefore needs to be agreed early.

This would include provision of product environmental information such as product-specific EPDs, meeting sourcing and possible take back criteria. Data on reuse and waste will be required to be collected and reported by the contractor.

4. Evaluate and monitor the works on site

During the implementation works we will review and monitor progress of the works in line with the sustainability requirements and ensure that any changes that may be required are agreed so that they also meet the project intent.

As reuse and repair is dependent on the established inventory, will work with the contractors and their teams to develop a suitable programme for these works and set out and approach to meet the opening dates. 

If operational carbon assessment of the exhibition is required we would arrange for suitable sub-metering data to be gathered. We will request and gather sourcing and transport data (origin, mode, fuel type) to help evaluate site-based impacts for life cycle, and consider the end of life reuse.

5. Close out and learn

At the end of the exhibition implementation we would collate and provide the data from across the team to suit the agreed carbon footprinting process. 

We would participate in a feedback session with the Client to close out the project and feedback the learning from it that may help with the future implementation to other following exhibitions.

Adrian Campbell

Adrian provides expert sustainability guidance to the Living Object team to embed sustainability methods into the design and tender process  and to assist with the collation of data for the carbon footprinting and wider material evaluation. He has over 35 years of global experience in the built environment and is currently advising on sustainability and net zero carbon approaches to major UK arts & culture institutions such as the British Film Institute  and the National Gallery (UK).