Collaborating for a zero emissions cultural district, South Ken ZEN+

South Ken Zen+ has involved the collaboration of 22 cultural institutions in the South Kensington area, from museums (the V&A, the Science Museum, the Design Museum etc) to universities (Imperial, the RCA, the Royal College of Music) and concert halls such as the Royal Albert Hall. The project, initially funded by the Royal Commission for the Exhibition 1851, aims to understand how these 22 institutions can work together to create a model for a cultural sector that is Zero Emissions and Nature Positive (ZEN+).

The institutions have been collaborating across four thematic working groups: Zero Emissions, Nature Positive, Circular Economy and Sustainable Travel.

This Future Observatory Cultural Policy Fellowship follows an initial four-month scoping project, and will support the development of findings into the South Ken ZEN+ model – a systemic model of how the UK’s densest museum quarter will work to reduce emissions and waste and increase biodiversity and green spaces.

South Ken ZEN+

South Ken ZEN+ is an ambitious programme to accelerate action in response to the greatest challenge of our age. The Exhibition Road Cultural Group is a partnership of 22 world-leading science and arts
 

Read: Cultural Policy Fellowship report

This research aims to develop and test a sustainability reporting framework to help organizations of varying sizes, maturities, and sectors progress towards sustainability goals. The framework will be developed within the context of the South Ken ZEN+ initiative and will be tested through phased interviews and workshops with ERCG members. The framework aims to support context-specific learning, aggregate performance, accommodate data at different levels of quality, and increase efficiency by reducing resource duplication and reporting time.
 
Author: South Ken ZEN+