Today sees the launch of a new charity, Murmur, which brings together the worlds of art, music and climate science. This is a groundbreaking initiative in which visual arts and music organisations are committing to lead and drive change across their industries by funding the most impactful and effective environmental solutions.
Founding partners include galleries Hauser & Wirth, Mendes Wood and Thomas Dane; LUMA Arles and LUMA Foundation; international art organisation Frieze; art advisory Alexandra Mollof Fine Art; record label Beggars Group with constituent labels 4AD, Matador Records, Rough Trade Records, XL Recordings, Young; Secretly Affiliates with constituent labels Secretly Canadian, Dead Oceans, Jagjaguwar, Saddest Factory Records, The Numero Group, Ghostly International, drink sum wtr; music labels Ninja Tune, Because Music and !K7. Murmur is also supported by IMPALA, the European organisation for independent music companies. It builds on the work of Gallery Climate Coalition which advises its members to pay Strategic Climate Funds, rather than conventional offsetting schemes.
Murmur harnesses the transformative power of the arts and music industries in combating climate change. Our mission is to transform these industries from the inside out, making environmental responsibility integral to their operation. Joining us is not about gaining a privilege; it’s about making a profound commitment to change—not only in the way you conduct your business but also in how we collectively shape our industry.
Caius Pawson
Murmur sets a new standard for credible climate action in the visual art and music sectors. To become a partner of Murmur, businesses must commit to a carbon audit and reduction of their carbon emissions in line with a 1.5C future and make annual financial contributions to Murmur’s shared fund based on their environmental impact. Partners are redefining what it means to be a responsible business and advocating for change. Murmur welcomes new partners and aims to galvanise the whole art and music sector.
Murmur also celebrates and empowers artists and musicians and their ability to change the conversation and generate positive action. Artists represented by the founding partners have welcomed their record labels’ and galleries’ participation:
Murmur’s grants will fit into three categories: ‘Change the Industry’, ‘Change the Conversation’ and ‘Change the World’. Providing guidance on these grants are three separate advisory boards, made up of climate leaders from their respective industries. Grants to ‘Change the Industry’ projects will look to make positive change within the visual arts and music sectors, ‘Change the Conversation’ initiatives will inspire new ways of storytelling and positive action around climate change, and ‘Change the World’ will identify projects that have lasting and tangible impacts globally in tackling the climate crisis.
So far, Murmur has raised pledges of over £1m from partner organisations in art and music and has provided pilot grants for charities including Systemic Justice, a climate law group headed by Nani Jansen Reventlow. Systemic Justice works to radically transform how the law works for marginalized communities fighting for climate justice.
Also receiving a pilot grant from Murmur is the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and the Association of Independent Music (AIM). This grant will support these UK trade bodies to establish the Music Climate Pact and bring together the music industry to mitigate their contribution to climate change and take positive action.
Murmur has been created by Caius Pawson (founder of the music label Young), and Matthew Slotover (co-founder of Frieze and founding member of Gallery Climate Coalition) with Victoria Siddall appointed as the Founding Director. Victoria is a board member of Frieze and a co-founder and trustee of Gallery Climate Coalition. Joining them on Murmur’s Board include top figures in the field of climate and sustainability Chris Stark (CEO of the the UK Climate Change Committee), Vedantha Kumar (Climate Manager at the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation) and Will Hutton (Head of Sustainability for the Premier League).
Artists and the creative industries have a powerful role to play in addressing the climate crisis; they are often the first to embrace innovation and change, and their actions have a ripple effect that goes far beyond our sector. I’m thrilled to see Murmur’s founding partners, some of the most respected people and businesses in their fields, step up to support this new initiative. There is great work being done across the creative industries, we want to celebrate this and also galvanise the community to go a step further by joining Murmur and generating real impact.
Victoria Siddall
The launch of Murmur comes on the day of the publication of a report demystifying beyond value chain mitigation – a way for companies to take responsibility for their unabated greenhouse gas emissions while reducing their climate impact in line with science. The report “Funding Beyond Value Chain Mitigation – Step by Step Guidance for Organisations Taking Responsibility for their Emissions” is the result of a collaboration between Murmur, Gold Standard and Milkywire and provides guidance for companies who want to supplement action on their value chain emissions by supporting climate action that supports our journey to a net zero world.
The arts may be a small industry yet in their most potent and profound moments they speak to millions of people about seemingly contradictory things like the joy as well as the complications of life. This is exactly where the challenge of fighting climate change lies: how to portray this goal not as a kill-joy but as one that enriches us and makes us all winners. I support Murmur because it offers an actionable path for our industry to contribute to a goal that is so big that it can never be achieved by just a few alone.
Wolfgang Tillmans, artist
For more information about Murmur, including how businesses and organisations from across the visual arts and music sectors can get involved, visit: murmur.earth
