IN February 2024, Take Art, a South Petherton based company, commissioned Julie’s Bicycle, with partnership funding from the National Rural Touring Forum, to carry out an updated study of Rural Touring carbon emissions.

This updated study focused on a four-date tour by singer-songwriter Blair Dunlop across rural venues in Somerset.

Take Art collected data on audience travel and energy usage for each leg of the rural tour, informing a carbon footprint conducted by Julie’s Bicycle.

The carbon emissions of the tour were compared to those estimated for a hypothetical show at a central venue in a more urbanised location.

This used data from the Julie’s Bicycle Creative Climate Tools, which was normalised to represent the same total audience capacity as the four rural shows.

How would the carbon emissions of a performer doing four small shows to local audiences compare to a scenario where he performed once in a larger theatre?

The study illustrated the potential environmental benefits of working with small-scale, multi-purpose community spaces in which art is brought closer to the doorstep of audiences meaning they do not have to travel long distances.  

Key information:

  • This Rural Tour of four shows produced 57% less carbon emissions per audience member compared to a hypothetical representative single centralised show.

This analysis considered the audience travel and venue energy usage, which are typically the most significant emissions for live events.

Total emissions were normalised per audience member to account for the difference in venue capacity.

  • Audience travel emissions were 20% lower on the Rural Tour.

By bringing art to local audiences, Rural Touring can enable audiences to travel shorter distances to experience great cultural events.

This can have a positive impact on reduced emissions when combined with efforts to encourage active travel to events (e.g. walking and cycling) and reduced car usage.

  • Venues in this Rural Tour generated 90% less emissions from energy than the representative larger central venue.

This tour involved shows at rural community venues that have successfully installed renewable energy systems helping to reduce emissions.

Owing to the smaller size of rural community venues, it is feasible to meet energy demands through small-scale and cheap renewable energy supply.

Venues of all sizes should take this as inspiration to install their own renewable energy.

Danny Pedler, director of Rural Touring, Take Art said: “This case study serves as a successor to a similar analysis initiated by Beaford Arts in north Devon in 2012 which found that their Rural Tour reduced carbon emissions by a third when compared to a single theatre show. We hope this case study illustrates the contribution rural touring makes to a sustainable touring ecology where the artist travels to the audience. It is our intention to work with Julie’s Bicycle to carry out a larger scale study”.

Richard Phillips, music and climate change specialist said: “This tour is another great example that illustrates climate action taking place across the Rural Touring sector. The report highlights the need for further research on the methods and benefits of rural touring, as well as more funding for public transport in rural areas and support for renewable energy investments at venues.”

Deborah Clarke, a spokesperson for Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) said: “ACRE is impressed with the findings of the case study undertaken by Take Art.  We have always supported Rural Touring for the cultural and wellbeing benefits it brings to what can be isolated communities.  That reductions in travel and energy use are significant in village halls when compared with more urbanised venues is great news. We will continue to promote rural touring and to encourage funders to assist village halls to install energy saving measures.”