Acting Sustainably
From our mission statement:
In a world facing a global climate crisis, we continually reassess our own actions and develop measures to reduce our resource consumption and increase our positive impact. By incorporating this topic into our programs and the museum’s day-to-day operations, we contribute to the public discourse on the environment, sustainability, and climate.
Our commitment to environmental, social, and economic sustainability reflects our holistic approach. As a memory institution, preserving art for the future is part of our identity, so that we may continue to be a museum for everyone in the years to come.
• Establishment of the Sustainability Working Group
• Cloud: Simplifies work organization; providers in Germany that use green electricity (check)
• On the path to a paperless office
▪ Mobility (MA)
• Ban on air travel for domestic business trips within Germany
• Public transportation for employees
▪ Materials and Energy ST
• Gradual transition to LED lighting and energy-efficient appliances
• Sustainable distribution strategy for print products and digital delivery of informational media
• Cross-departmental reuse of all exhibition materials
• Use of the nationwide materials exchange (link)
▪ Interlibrary Loans and Art Transport ST
• Incorporating sustainable practices into requests for proposals
• For loaned items: Avoid time-consuming individual shipments by using combined and consolidated shipments
• Reviewing every courier trip and using digital courier management
• Expanded climate corridor for museum climate control, as recommended by the German Museum Association and the Bizot Green Protocol (if possible)
◦ Renovation (LBN)
▪ A more general piece of text that rounds out the page (from the Building Brief)
▪ Symposium?
Renovation
In the context of the Kunsthalle’s comprehensive renovation aimed at ensuring its future viability, sustainability means more than just efficient technology, energy retrofitting of the existing building, or optimized workflows. It is not just about the
It is not just about the preservation and maintenance of the historic building and the collection, but about the effort to restore the building for future generations
to make it more functional and accessible.
The building will be adapted to meet the needs of a sustainable art museum in the 21st century through expanded exhibition spaces. In the future, the collection will be made more accessible as a cultural resource, contemporary art forms will be presented appropriately, and a diverse educational and event program will be expanded.
Only if the museum can adapt its practices to reflect social and artistic changes will it remain relevant, and only then can the cultural values it preserves have a lasting impact.
In the third part of a three-part symposium held in 2023 on October 27 and 28, we joined forces with national and international experts to explore the question of how a museum can become sustainable with a focus on sustainability and climate protection, under the title “Climate Box vs. Climate Crisis.” You can find more information about this and the participants on our blog. (Insert link)
Notes from Nadine, Sept. 25:
Art Education Texts: As if a) the texts were always written by us (B and V) and b) we hadn’t been able to do so until now….
Background Gallery: Exhibition Title
Top: Overwrite with “From Our Mission Statement”; bottom: paragraph, followed by a link without parentheses
Inclusion and Participation. Major revisions (content design) made to improve clarity
Renovation: Link
Social Sustainability
- Getting Started with Sustainability (SIN Consulting): An eight-month in-house consulting process on operational sustainability measures (Sponsored by: Action Network for Sustainability in Culture and Media and the Federal Academy for Cultural Education in Wolfenbüttel e.V.)
- Signing of the Sustainability Declaration for the Cultural Sector (Sponsored by Culture4Climate)
- “Sustainable Destination Partner” in the ERDF project “Model Region for Sustainable Tourism in the Teutoburg Forest ” (MoNaTour)
- German Institute for Urban Studies (Difu): Third Places as “Incubators” for the Community
- Museum Initiative in OWL, Inc.
- German Museum Association, Inc.
- Rathgen Research Laboratory of the Berlin State Museums: Consulting and Analysis on Sustainable Climate Management in Museums and in the Project “Climate Change and Its Impact on Pests in Museums”
Participatory Approach Through the Roundtable
The Kunsthalle Bielefeld Roundtable is an innovative participatory initiative that regularly brings together people from diverse social groups and communities with representatives of the Kunsthalle. The goal is to strengthen social participation in the museum, introduce new perspectives into the museum’s work, and expand networking within the city’s community.
Inclusivity Through Partnerships and Programs for Everyone
Through our work, we want to reach more and a wider variety of people. Becoming more inclusive is part of that goal.
- The Theaterwerkstatt Bethel e. V., where people with and without disabilities develop and perform plays, is one of our regular project partners.
- “Building Bridges—Creative and Sustainable.” This is a joint project of the Einschlingen Educational Center, IBZ Friedenshaus e.V., and the Kunsthalle Bielefeld. The goal of the project is to bring people from diverse backgrounds together through shared interests. The project aims to help people connect with one another beyond their usual social circles.
- Our referral program includes services for people with visual impairments as well as for people with dementia.
- Art education materials are increasingly being developed collaboratively through a co-creative process with people who are not experts in the field.
Environmental Sustainability
• Establishment of the cross-departmental Sustainability Working Group in 2024
• Use of a self-hosted, independent cloud solution
• Working from home
• On the Way to a Paperless Office
• Avoid domestic flights within Germany; use the train whenever possible
• Introduction of a public transportation pass subsidized by the employer
• Incorporating sustainable practices into requests for proposals
• For loaned items: Avoid time-consuming individual shipments by using combined and consolidated shipments
• Reviewing every courier trip and using digital courier management
• Expanded climate corridor for museum climate control, as recommended by the German Museum Association and the Bizot Green Protocol (if possible)
• Gradual transition to LED lighting and energy-efficient appliances
• Reduction in exhibition-related print materials
• Sustainable distribution strategy for print products and digital delivery of informational media
• Cross-departmental reuse of all exhibition materials
• Use of the nationwide materials exchange
Renovation
In the context of the Kunsthalle’s comprehensive renovation aimed at ensuring its long-term viability, sustainability means more than just efficient technology, energy retrofitting of the existing building, or optimized workflows. It is not just about preserving and maintaining the historic building and the collection, but also about striving to make the building functional and more accessible again for future generations.
In the third part of a three-part symposium held in 2023 on October 27 and 28, we joined forces with national and international experts under the title “Climate Box vs. Climate Crisis” to explore how a museum can become sustainable with a focus on sustainability and climate protection. You can find more information about this and the participants via the links on our symposium page.
Gallerie
