A report evaluating the 2023 Reading Climate Festival and recognising the efforts of the partners in securing the success of the Festival.

The Committee received a report and watched a short video clip that gave an evaluation and overview of the 2023 Reading Climate Festival. A copy of the Gaia Evaluation Report, which included a full legacy plan, was attached to the report at Appendix 1.

The report explained that the Festival had taken place between 10 and 21 June 2023 with the stated aim of “inspiring and encouraging positive action on climate change”. The Festival, which had been held annually since 2020, had been organised and curated by the Reading Climate Action Network (RCAN), the public-facing brand of the Reading Climate Change Partnership, a multi-agency partnership for which the Council were the ‘host’ and accountable body. The Festival’s strategic priorities were; (1) to showcase the important role that Reading played on the world stage in understanding and addressing climate change; (2) to inform and engage the community about the work of RCAN/partner organisations in working towards a net-zero climate resilient town by 2030; and (3) to inspire and facilitate individuals/families to make clear pledges to adopt greener behaviours in support of the community’s effort to address climate change.

To help realise the ambitions of the Festival and given the ability of arts and culture to reach new audiences and to act as a vehicle to have wide ranging conversations, Luke Jerram’s iconic artwork Gaia had been brought to Reading Town Hall as a key focal point for the Festival. Gaia was chosen as a unifying piece of artwork that met all partners’ strategic priorities. It was a piece that spanned all audiences, and which could very easily be linked to the climate narrative in a positive and informative way. It was also internationally known and drew people from other parts of the country.

Gaia had been hosted in the Concert Hall at Reading Town Hall between 10 and 18 June 2023. The partnership had collaborated to deliver 57 public ticketed sessions, including ‘Twilight’ (evening) sessions and ‘Relaxed’ events (aimed at neurodivergent audiences). Sessions were charged at £2 per ticket for over 16s, with free admission for under 16s. There were 10 curated events and 10 school sessions that sat alongside Gaia. An additional 19 events had taken place as part of the Reading Climate Festival programme. The cost of bringing Gaia to Reading had been recovered through ticket income and the joint investment from partners thereby delivering high value for money at no cost to the public purse.

The report set out the key outcomes of the 2023 Reading Climate Festival and explained that using Gaia as the Festival’s centrepiece had increased the Festival’s reach to around 13,000 people. This compared to previous year’s audiences of around 1,000 and represented an increase of 1200%. The success of Gaia demonstrated the potential that cultural events and the arts had to attract new and different people to the climate change discussion. The report added that plans for the 2024 Reading Climate Festival were already in development with the same partners and centered around Show Your Stripes Day on 21 June 2024.The report explained that the partnership was keen to build on the success of the 2023 Festival and arts and culture would therefore continue to feature strongly in future years.

Resolved –

(1)           That the evaluation of the 2023 Reading Climate Festival, as outlined in Appendix 1 attached to the report, be noted and the efforts of the partners be recognised;

(2)           That the impact of Luke Jerram’s Gaia on participation and engagement in the Reading Climate Festival 2023 be noted;

(3)           That the value of arts, culture and creativity in engaging people in wider social issues, in this case climate change, be noted.