British Summer Time Hyde Park 2019 their most sustainable and community-led festival yet!
AEG Presents have announced a series of new sustainability initiatives alongside growing its community activity at Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park. In addition to their commitment to community and sustainability, AEG Presents’ strives to make their events accessible to everyone. This was recognised by recent wins at the Outstanding Attitude Awards and by securing Gold Status for Attitude is Everything’s Charter of Best Practice, which recognises the event’s long-term and continued commitment to inclusivity and access for deaf and disabled people.
Sustainable practices championed at Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park include achieving zero waste to landfill, ensuring all food packaging and cutlery is bio-degradable and a ‘leave no trace’ policy so every single item dropped in the grass is picked up by the litter team. A dedicated ‘Green Team’ work to maximise recycling rates, and 100% of the fuel used is from renewable sources such as HVO. Food traders are ethically and environmentally conscious with 80% of food traders offering meat-free options including Oh My Dog!, Eat Chay and Paellaria. Further to this all staff and visitors are encouraged to bring their own reusable water bottle and use greener travel options such as public transport or arriving by bike.
The event’s partners are also a key part of sustainability drives. As part of the work to eliminate single-use plastic, the event and Heineken will trail a new plastic-free paper cup made from plants (100% compostable). All serve-ware provided by the event is 100% recyclable, but non-recyclable items can potentially be brought in during the free-to-enter Open House event (July 8th to 11th). For these items, Barclaycard will be trialling a new bin system withRecycling Technologies to help recycle previously unrecyclable plastics such as crisp packets, carrier bags, wrappers and bottle caps entering the site as part of picnics.
As well as minimising negative environmental impact, it is crucial and of the utmost importance to AEG Presents and Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park that they work closely in partnership with The Royal Parks and the local community to ensure the festival has maximum positive impact on the area. This is why AEG Presents is committed to using local suppliers, operators and content providers such as Dreamarts, has a dedicated community impact management team on site, as well as attending meetings with local stakeholders year-round to gain invaluable feedback and suggestions.
AEG Presents and Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park further give back to the community by offering training and paid employment opportunities to local schools and universities, including University of Westminster. The event also holds a 4-day midweek event between shows, Open House, with free-to-enter activities. Open House 2019, takes place on Mon 8th – Thurs 11th July, includes free movie nights, live music and entertainment, street food, pop-up bars, tennis screenings, yoga with lululemon, cabaret, family theatre, The Royal Parks showcase, Piazza Birra Moretti & as a 2019 exclusive Sigur Rós bring their free live ambient performance ‘Liminal Soundbath’.
As part of AEG Presents and Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park’s commitment to their partner, The Royal Parks charity, they will continue to raise money to help support developments within their green spaces, as well as supporting multiple other charities through their partnership with My Cause UK.
Alun Mainwaring, Head of Events for The Royal Parks, said, “We work very closely with AEG Presents to ensure our Sustainability Strategy is embedded into the British Summer Time (BST) event planning process and so we welcome the pioneering green practices being introduced this year. Events, such as BST, are instrumental in bringing the community together as well as for raising vital funds to help with the maintenance of the parks. We are however acutely aware of the need to protect the parks and the wider environment.”
AEG Presents strives to be the most accessible event organiser in the UK andBarclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park is no exception to that rule. After winning big at the Outstanding Attitude Awards and gaining Gold Status for Attitude is Everything’s Charter of Best Practice, the event organisers have no reason to slow down now. Facilities include three accessible viewing areas over two stages and roaming drinks vendors at The Great Oak Stage and The Barclaycard Stage, British Sign Language interpreters for all acts on The Great Oak Stage, accessible toilets at every toilet block, Hearing Induction Loops, free Personal Assistant tickets for all ticket types and a dedicated access hub and entrance. All pre-event information is available in audio and easy read versions and there is a dedicated access customer service team available all year via email and phone.
Senior Event Maganer for AEG Presents, Jenny Hamada said, “As a ten-day event with nearly half a million visitors each year we have a huge responsibility to deliver for our visitors, the local community and Hyde Park itself. We take this responsibility extremely seriously and work with our partner The Royal Parks year-round to build and implement positive initiatives. Whether you are a ticket-buyer, watching a free cinema screening, live down the road or run a business nearby, we strive to continuously improve the experience for all those involved with the event. Protecting the park and surrounding environment is also central to our planning and management. We work tirelessly to develop creative solutions to ensure that we are leading the way in the industry and being as green as we can be.”
