Offsetting emisssions is essential for the future of the planet and Tomorrowland’s ongoing dedication to this has already made waves across the industry. But for emissions that Tomorrowland isn’t able to eliminate yet, there’s a solution that can benefit the local community and create wonderful relationships that work towards a better future. A partnership with Claire, the platform that connects companies with local, sustainable projects, has already seen inspiring returns: particularly in the case of Arteveldehogeschool.
With the installation of solar panels across their buildings at Hoogpoort, Kantienberg, Kattenberg and Sint-Amandsberg, the school has committed to offsetting their own emissions: through these panels, they are providing some of their own electricity production, and the CO2 reduction achieved by this is 67.5 tonnes a year.
When Claire was made aware of this, they saw the opportunity to connect two local businesses and contacted Tomorrowland to facilitate a support network between the two. Tomorrowland has now funded part of the solar panels installed in order to offset some of the festival’s own emissions, marrying into the desire to support local ventures and reduce the carbon footprint of the event. This extra funding is then used to install additional panels for the buildings. Elena Lievens, policy officer for sustainability at Arteveldehogeschool, was taken in by the idea:
“For us, the match with Tomorrowland is ideal because we believe that through their brand we can further strengthen awareness and commitment among our students about sustainability. After all, both Tomorrowland and Arteveldehogeschool want a healthy planet for this future generation of young people. Our dream is therefore that we can develop actions with Tomorrowland to increase our impact together, as for us there lies an added value for local offsetting.”
The benefits are clear and this mutually supportive relationship is one that inspires and illustrates new possibilities between those that wish to build a better future. As Joris De Keijser of Claire said, this is a fantastic project, “not only because of the locally compensated CO2 but because both the Arteveldehogeschool and Tomorrowland are making it explicit that an acceleration in the climate transition is needed. Both organisations are at the heart of future generations. By endorsing the collaborative model Claire stands for, they show that it is quite possible to take action together now. They are sticking their necks out for change today. That makes them real climate heroes for us!”
This is just one of many projects that are set to change the way Tomorrowland supports the local area. You can find out more about the collaboration with Claire here.