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Last year, after the Annecy Festival, the attendees received a questionnaire aimed at establishing a carbon footprint assessment of the event as a whole. For example, we were asked to to indicate the mode of transportation used to attend the festival and provide some information about on-site travel.
We recently asked CITIA, the organizer of the Festival, when the results would be available, and here they are!
Credit – header: Disney-Pixar
A Long Journey
If, like the 3DVF team, you have been attending the Annecy Festival and the MIFA for many years, you probably already know that this event has come a long way. Significant efforts have already been made. We remember, for example, the time when we would receive a rather large amount of paper documents upon collecting our accreditation, including hefty books detailing the program and information that are now available on the online platform. Paper waste was a real concern.
While efforts have been made over the years, the attendance of the festival has greatly increased (15,820 accredited individuals last year), multiplying the impact of each attendee. Having a clearer understanding of areas for improvement thus became urgent.
Hence the initiative launched after Annecy 2023, which aims to target the most problematic areas. Should priority be given to transportation, air conditioning in the venues and the MIFA, or equipment transport? What is the impact of online resources and meals? These are the types of questions that the assessment attempted to answer.
Results
Here is the summary of the assessment. The Annecy Festival accounts for 6,905 tCO2e (tons of CO2 equivalent). The majority comes from accredited individuals, with each person attending the Festival representing approximately 440kgCO2e.
Transportation constitutes the vast majority of emissions (60%), followed by “inputs” (30%): in other words, purchases, rentals of products, and services necessary for the organization of the Annecy Festival and the MIFA. Freight comes next (88), followed by categories with a much smaller impact. Air conditioning, for example, has a relatively limited impact due to the French energy mix.
It should be noted from the outset that this type of assessment is always biased and has limitations. As highlighted during discussions on the subject at the last SATIS conference, achieving an exact assessment is close to impossible. Variations in the scope studied can significantly influence the assessment. More than the overall figure, it is therefore more important to study the distribution of categories and their evolution over time, with a consistent scope.
Transportation
As transportation has a colossal impact here, this category was further detailed in the publicly released elements (in French only). The first visualization distinguishes between the CITIA team (which organizes the Festival) and the accredited individuals. Not surprisingly, for the latter, long-distance travel dominates emissions: a flight from the USA will emit much more per person than shuttles between various locations in Annecy.
The second visualization emphasizes how the choice of transportation mode can make a difference: train, bikes and public transportation in Annecy have a reduced or negligible impact compared to airplanes or cars.
What’s Next?
Having a carbon footprint assessment is good, but it remains to be acted upon. CITIA explains that the goal is to create an action plan with several objectives.
While the impact of airplanes seems difficult to avoid in the context of an international festival, many measures can still be taken.
For example, as detailed in the assessment, promoting soft and shared mobility in Annecy, reducing energy, water, and paper consumption can be done.
Changes in food, waste disposal, and purchasing are also discussed, as well as public awareness at the event. A carbon offset mechanism is listed among the possible actions.
These points involve questioning long-standing practices. This won’t happen overnight but it could have real impacts. Many behaviors that were once seen as immutable can, in practice, evolve.
For instance, last year at the NewImages Festival in Paris, one of the companies that attended the event explained that they manage to exhibit at trade shows without using their cars. They carefully choose what they bring, so that it can travel by train.
Tote bags are another example of tradition that we could probably do without. If you attend several festivals each year, chances are these bags end up in the trash or in your closet, used only once.
Of course, we will have to check whether this initiative by the Annecy Festival really translate into change. Furthermore, we can hope that this decision will lead to broader reflection within other event organizers. It might also encourage animation studios to follow the same path.
We will have the opportunity to revisit this topic in the months and years to come.
