Charter

As a festival and as a team we deeply value diversity and inclusion. We recognise and celebrate diversity in our audience and the team that brings Electric Picnic to life. We will not tolerate discrimination because of someone’s disability, religion, race, gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity in any form. Discriminatory words or actions have no place at Electric Picnic.

Festivals bring together music fans of different backgrounds and from all walks of life. At Festival Republic/Live Nation (FR/LN) we are committed to doing everything we can to promote a culture of inclusion and accessibility for all of our customers. We aim to provide, and constantly improve on, accessible infrastructure and services, delivered in a way that respects the needs of each individual and does not exclude anyone.

We celebrate difference and believe that there is strength in diversity. We welcome all people equally, on, behind and in front of the stage. We have a comprehensive diversity training programme at Festival Republic that is available to each employee.

Only 14% of songwriters and composers signed to publishers and fewer than 20% of artists signed to record label rosters are female* and it is in this context that the challenge of achieving equal gender representation at festivals needs to be viewed. However, we have been proactive with our Rebalance programme. In 2017 we created the Rebalance programme to offer opportunities not just for artists but for studio engineers and producers. This started as an initial 3-year projection and has now been extended for a further 3 years. The project has provided studio time, mentoring and gig and festival slots to 33 people, many of whom have gone on to sign label deals or work permanently within the industry.

In addition, since 2018 we have committed to increasing the percentage of female identifying stage managers at our festivals, from 11% in 2018 to a total of 32% on average across our events in 2021. This far surpasses the industry average and we are looking to do the same in many more roles across

our festivals. In 2021 we also contracted the first all-female stage crew at Download Pilot Festival. We are not passive about the work that needs to be done.

Together, as a team, we strive to offer a 24/7 all-inclusive safeguarding system meaning whatever support or treatment is required, it can be provided as quickly as possible within the festival site. We believe that no one should experience abuse of any kind, and that we have a duty of care to protect customers and staff as much as is practicable and proportionate. This is regardless of age, disability, gender, race, domestic situation, religion, belief, or sexual orientation.

As set out in our Green Nation Sustainability Charter, we recognise our responsibility to preserve the live music experience for generations to come and have a tremendous opportunity to inspire climate action at Electric Picnic Festival.

We acknowledge the impact that our business has on the environment, are committed both to telling the truth about the scale of the climate and ecological emergency, and to taking urgent action.

Our primary impact areas are transport and energy, as well as waste, water, food and beverage, and the effect of the festival on the flora and fauna of the site. Each of the festival’s environmental impact areas have been assessed in the context of their impact on, and the contribution to reaching the relevant UN Sustainable Development Goals1.

Electric Picnic measures its carbon footprint annually, and in 2019 received four out of five stars in the Julie’s Bicycle Creative Green Certification, striving to achieve a full five.

We employ a dedicated sustainability team who work as an integral part of the festival planning process, developing a sustainability action plan for the festival and ensuring these actions are undertaken on site.

We know that we cannot tackle climate change alone, and as such we support climate positive initiatives in the broader music industry. Electric Picnic is part of Vision 2025, contributed to the The Show Must Go On Reports in 2020 and 2015, and has signed up to Music Declares Emergency.

Electric Picnic is working towards a target of 50% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030. This is in line with the Paris Agreement goal of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, which we are still committed to despite the national pledges at COP26 being forecast to exceed this level of warming. We will review our progress annually in step with a science-based approach.

We support Laois County Council’s Climate Change Adaptation Strategy and will work in partnership to help reach their carbon reduction targets.

The energy we use is the main contributor to the on-site GHG emissions at Electric Picnic. Our strategy is to first reduce our required usage, and then to replace our energy sources with renewables.

Energy Reduction

• Through our membership of Powerful Thinking we are working to reduce the power consumption at the festival to a minimum.
• Battery storage solutions and solar hybrid generators are utilised at Electric Picnic in suitable areas, and we calculate the emissions savings they generate.
• We monitor fuel consumption annually, to determine the potential to reduce generator sizes and related fuel volumes.
• We require that LED festoon and tower lights are used to reduce energy consumption, and that onsite suppliers plan power distribution efficiently.

Replace with Renewable Energy

• Our aim is to use 100% renewable energy from either biofuel or mains supply by 2030.
• We calculate how much biofuel we need to use to meet our emission reduction targets, and will increase its share of total fuel usage to 50% in 2022.
• The biofuel we use is Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) biodiesel, which emits 90% less carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) when compared to using regular white diesel.
• We assess our biofuel’s provenance, endeavouring to use European sources that are from a second-generation waste product such as used vegetable oil, not palm derived.

We strongly recommend and promote low-carbon travel options to get to Electric Picnic.

We partner with Marathon Coaches and Martley’s of Portlaois, who provide shuttle buses from Portlaoise train station to provide lower-carbon alternatives to single-occupant car travel.

We are committed to implementing closed-loop waste management systems at Electric Picnic and work to support the development of a circular economy.

We apply the following waste hierarchy, as set out in the Waste Regulations 2011:

• Waste Reduction
• Reuse
• Recycling
• Energy Recovery
• Disposal

To mitigate the environmental impacts of plastic pollution, Electric Picnic does not sell any virgin single-use plastic. This includes sampling containers, cutlery, plates, cups, bottles, serve-ware, sachets, stirrers and straws. We implement a sourcing policy that prioritises:

• Renewable over finite resources.
• Products with the highest recycled content available, including at least 30% where alternatives are not available.

Electric Picnic has implemented the following measures to reduce single use plastic at the festival:

• We provide water refill stations across site, and encourage fans, staff, and artists to use reusable bottles. These are also available for purchase onsite.
• No pre bottled water is provided as standard to crew or artists.
• All bottled water sold at Electric Picnic contains a minimum of 30% recycled content in line with the UK Plastic Pact, supporting the plastic recycling industry.
• All soft drinks are served in either a recycled plastic bottle, a reusable or paper cup, or a can where permitted.
• We operate soft drink post-mix outlets and bars are required to decant mixers from multi-serving bottles to reduce the number of bottles.
• Plastic cutlery and straws have been banned since 2009, and only EN 13432 certified compostable materials are permitted for food service containers.
• Bulk condiment bottles are required to be used instead of single-use sachets.

We aim to achieve at least a 50% recycling rate by 2030, and to go beyond County Laois Council’s recycling rate. Electric Picnic is zero waste to landfill, as all festival waste is either recycled, composted, or used to generate energy from waste.

Electric Picnic has a waste management plan, we receive annual reports from the facility and have tracked our waste and recycling since 2015.

We work with Cultivate and Nifty Bins to recruit a passionate group of volunteers to help spread the word about our recycling initiatives, including:

• Our recycling reward scheme, offering customers prizes for recycling in the campsites.
• The three-bin system we implement site-wide, allowing separation of recyclable, non-recyclable, and compostable waste.
• Our deposit return scheme on cups and bottles, incentivising recycling in the arena, supported by Coca Cola.
• Campsite recycling points and bags distributed to campers, allowing them to collect and dispose of their waste and recycling.
• Engagement campaigns including our Zero Waste Festival Goer initiative to encourage campers to take their tents home.
• Initiatives by Zero Waste Ireland and Precious Plastic.
• Collaborations with charities and not-for-profit groups including local scouts, sea scouts, guides, local schools, Inner City, Hope it Rains, Milestone, Grubs UP, Heartship, Enactus, Human Appeal, and others to repurpose tents and camping equipment that campers do not reuse themselves.

• Self-stopping taps are in operation at the Festival to minimise water wastage.

We advise our food vendors and caterers to follow minimum standards with regards to food sourcing.

• Eggs to be free range, fish sourced according to the MSC Good Fish Guide, and meat to be RSPCA Assured.
• We encourage using vendors local to the festival and ensure a number of dedicated vegetarian and vegan options are available to festivalgoers. Aiming for 20% of the total.
• We are committed to develop awareness of the carbon footprint of food, in 2022 we are working with London School of Economics to develop food carbon calculator to inform customer choices.
• We are reducing the carbon footprint of food consumed by our crew by not serving high-carbon food, and having at least one meat-free day per week in crew catering.

We are committed to engaging with our customers, staff and artists on environmental issues, and have hosted Global Green and Green Crafts area for 10 years, collaborating with local and national environmental causes and organisations. Our recent projects include:

• Pledges of positive action for the environment taken by festivalgoers, artists and staff as part of our Zero Waste Festival Goer campaign, featuring Hozier in 2019, – Our Global Green Eco Village curated by Cultivate based at the Cloughjordan Ecovillage, giving a platform to climate change campaign and community environmental groups including Young Friends of the Earth, Extinction Rebellion Ireland, Creativity & Change, Glas Energy, DAYSE, Tipperary Energy Agency, Community Power, Léargas, Not Here Not Anywhere, Make Port, WeCreate FabLab, CoderDojo Ireland, Raspberry Pi Foundation, Engineers without Borders, The Irish Cycling Advocacy Network, Concern, Sight Savers, Self Help Africa, Fuinseog Woodland Crafts, Community Gardens Ireland, GROW Place Ireland, OURganic Gardens, Greenside Up, Third Space Galway, Friends of Merlin Woods, Ards Community Garden, Ballinfoile Mur Community Garden, Donegal Community Garden Network, An Gairdin Beo, Foxford Community Garden, East Clare Community Co-Op, Cloughjordan Community Farm, Irish Seed Savers, Blue Door, Zero Waste Ireland, Annie Holland Photography, Sheelagh na Gig Bookshop The Market Kitchen, Kombucha ‘Full of Love’ Bar, Revel Coffee,
• We provide a space for Concern, Sightsavers and Self Help Africa to advocate for global change and will share incredible international stories of communities addressing extreme poverty, ending hunger, and ensuring equality for people with disabilities.
• Our GreenCrafts area curated by Nic and Marie Piper and brought to you by master craftsmen and women celebrates and teaches the ancient techniques and sustainable crafts of our wilder forefathers.
• Empowering our staff and artists to play their part in improving the sustainability of the festival, by educating them on the initiatives we put in place across site.

• We carry out measures to ensure that Electric Picnic avoids negatively impacting the wildlife that live on the site all year round.