BBC Learnings · Section 8

Touring bands and climate change

Rob, I've been reading about ways to protect the environment and I've decided to eat less meat and maybe drive my car less too.

Level: B2 · 92 sentences

Transcript

  1. Rob, I've been reading about ways to protect the environment and I've
  2. decided to eat less meat and maybe drive my car less too.
  3. Good for you, Neil.
  4. And flying less can also help reduce air pollution.
  5. Right.
  6. Flying and driving less are two good ways to combat climate change
  7. because they reduce your carbon footprint that's the amount of carbon dioxide
  8. or CO2 released into the atmosphere as a result of your everyday activities.
  9. The idea of reducing carbon emissions is catching on in the music industry too.
  10. Bands and artists who go on tour around the world generate large carbon footprints.
  11. So recently some music groups like Massive Attack and Green Day started
  12. thinking about ways to reduce the impact their tours are having on the environment.
  13. Green Day what a good name for a band trying to be environmentally friendly!
  14. Today we'll be finding out about bands and musicians who want to continue going on tour,
  15. but do it in ways which reduce their environmental impact.
  16. And of course, we'll be learning some related vocabulary on the way.
  17. So, it seems like the days of rock and roll stars flying
  18. around the world in private jets may soon be a thing of the past.
  19. Indeed, Rob.
  20. And that brings me neatly to my quiz question.
  21. One British band recently announced they would stop going on tour
  22. until they were 100% carbon neutral.
  23. But which band?
  24. Was it...
  25. Well, Coldplay had a hit with their song The Scientist and we are talking about carbon dioxide and the climate,
  26. so I'll say...
  27. Coldplay.
  28. Good thinking, Rob.
  29. We'll find out the answer later.
  30. But first, let's hear from another artist concerned about her carbon impact.
  31. Faye Milton is the drummer of the band Savages and co-founder of the climate pressure group Music Declares Emergency.
  32. She spoke to BBC Radio 4's programme You and Yours.
  33. This year, I have actually turned down a tour.
  34. My income comes from touring,
  35. so it has put me in a bit of a precarious situation.
  36. But I actually feel quite good about it.
  37. It feels like the right thing to do in this moment.
  38. Even though Faye earns a living as a drummer by going on tour,
  39. she has started to turn them down,
  40. meaning to reject or refuse the offer of touring.
  41. Losing the income she usually gets from touring puts Faye in a precarious situation,
  42. a situation where things could become difficult.
  43. in this case financially difficult,
  44. because she isn't making money from playing the drums.
  45. But she still wants to do the right thing.
  46. In other words, do what is most fair, ethical and just.
  47. For Fay, fighting climate change is even more important than doing what she loves going on tour with the band.
  48. Well, good for her.
  49. I'm not sure if I'd be so committed as Fay.
  50. But if bands stopped touring altogether,
  51. fans wouldn't get to see gigs or live concerts and hear the music they love.
  52. Well, that's an interesting point because it might be possible for bands
  53. to carry on touring and also reduce their environmental impact at the same time.
  54. Bristol band Massive Attack want to do exactly that.
  55. Their singer Robert Del Naya explains.
  56. We're working with an electric bus company.
  57. We're going to look at all the energy being renewable and obviously
  58. the power we can create will go back to the grid.
  59. So we're hoping that we can actually create legacy green infrastructure which can then power future gigs.
  60. We plan to travel to Europe solely by train with the band,
  61. the crew and all the gear.
  62. Swapping tour planes for trains and encouraging fans to travel to gigs
  63. by bus are two good ways to reduce the total carbon footprint of the concert.
  64. And by using renewable energy, the gig can create power.
  65. This can then be put back into the national grid,
  66. called the grid for short.
  67. That's the network supplying electrical power across a country.
  68. Well, Massive Attack are certainly ticking all the green boxes, Neil.
  69. But who else is doing a good job?
  70. Remember your quiz question earlier?
  71. Ah yes, I asked which band has decided to stop touring
  72. until their tours were carbon neutral and you said...
  73. I said see Coldplay.
  74. And you were right.
  75. Are you a Coldplay fan, Rob?
  76. Just remember to leave your car at home the next time you go to one of their gigs.
  77. Right.
  78. OK.
  79. Well, today we've been looking at some of the ways music bands and artists are trying to fight climate change.
  80. They want to reduce their carbon footprint the amount of carbon they release into the air.
  81. Some musicians are starting to turn down or refuse long world tour
  82. dates because flying from country to country playing gigs or live musical concerts generates so much carbon dioxide.
  83. Bands like Savages, Green Day and Massive Attack are trying to do the right thing
  84. taking the most fair and ethical course of action, even
  85. though for some artists the income lost from not touring puts them in a precarious or difficult situation.
  86. But when they get it right,
  87. bands can be carbon neutral or even generate power which can be put back into the national grid.
  88. the network supplying electrical power across a country.
  89. All of which means we can keep on rocking into the next
  90. century without increasing carbon emissions and adding to climate change.
  91. So, Rob, you could say you were born to run on renewable energy.
  92. Very funny, Neil.