Music is energy

by Eleonora Anello

Music as a means to spread environmental awareness? Of course it is, when its use has low environmental impact.

A study of the Observatory on environmental sustainability and music, commissioned by Edison in collaboration with Renato Mannheimer ISPO, has shown once again that in Italy we declare ourselves in favor of the environment but then we do little to protect it. 70% of the sample says they are very sensitive to environmental issues, although 39% does not implement any environmentally sustainable behavior.

From the published data it appears that the bigger problems are in the field of public transport. Very few manage to do without their cars to get to a musical event. And there's more. Some genres are greener than others: the most virtuous are those who love classical music, while the black jersey goes to the metal heads.

In this light, Edison, to spread a music more in line with the environment and develop a culture of sustainability and energy conservation in this area, decided to do its part by launching Edison-Change the Music, a contest addressed to emerging bands. Who will prove to be more environmentally friendly will open the concert by Jon Bon Jovi in Udine, July 17th. The project has been joined by several members of the musical world including Piero Pelù, Elio e le Storie Tese, Enrique Iglesias, Annie Lennox, Omar Pedrini.

"There are many ways of doing business - said Andrea Prandi, director of external relations of Edison - With this project we believe that we can tie the theme of energy to that of environment conservation. Along with Legambiente we intend to convey to as many people as possible a message that encourages the sustainable use of energy resources. We chose music as a mean of communication, both in its popular expression and through more educated music. Indeed, we are also sponsor of the Prima della Scala. Edison-Change the Music has also become partner of the Sustainable Energy Europe Campaign promoted by the European Commission: this is a source of great pride for us".

If one energy company focuses on young people, another relies on stars, going on with well-tested projects. We are talking about Enel that, after the success of Safari Tour 2008, renews its collaboration with Lorenzo Jovanotti. "Ora in Tour Lorenzo Live 2011 - Music CO2 neutral" is a series of concerts across Italy, which began last April and will conclude at the end of this year. Its aim is to neutralize the emissions of the musical event with a program of reforestation and development in Cameroon. Each individual viewer may also directly participate in the initiative through the Compenso Positivo website, through which you can enter a raffle for a tree and give it its name.

"The collaborative project with Jovanotti -Enel says- is fully integrated in the commitment of the company to promote sustainability through a process that involves the use of renewable sources in energy production, the use of new technologies in the reduction and storage of emissions, measures of efficiency and energy-saving, the use of products with low environmental impact, information and awareness campaigns on the consumption of energy. In particular, the beginning of the tour of the singer coincides with the launch of "CO2 Neutral", the new Enel brand that identifies the services of Carbon Neutrality. Indeed we have been active for a long time in the volunteer market of the footprints for a wide range of services. Events, campaigns, sales of energy and other initiatives can be neutralized through innovative activities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, contributing in a concrete way to improve the life on the planet and to the fight against climate change".

For years, however, environmental groups have tried to highlight other truths on the production of Enel. So much that some singers have decided to side with the citizens who pay the consequences dramatically. In August 2010, during the event Correnti Musicali, Simone Cristicchi, pressed by the environmentalists, refused to sing in the coal plant "Federico II" of Cerano (BR), which is not surprisingly dubbed “the plant of death", because it not only affects the beautiful landscape of Salento, hitting its tourism, but also keeps claiming victims among the inhabitants of the district. A dossier of Legambiente of 2007 has shown that the kindly-named plant, a true eco-monster that is located on the beautiful Adriatic beaches, produces over one third of total national emissions.

All this ambivalence between what is communicated and what is done can only create doubts and confusion.