These pages outline GCC’s policy and methodology for ‘Strategic Climate Funds’ (SCFs), which is a model for ethically financing climate action that allows individuals and organisations to support rapid and effective climate action, both within the visual arts sector and on the front line of the environmental crisis - without the problems associated with conventional carbon offsetting (outlined in the following sections).
SCF summary
Rather than spending money on conventional carbon offsets, GCC advises its members to:
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Measure their own greenhouse gas emissions and create an action plan for reducing them by at least 50% by 2030. SCFs cannot be used to avoid or delay urgent decarbonisation.
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Set aside money into a fund primarily by calculating a small percentage of the organisation’s financial metrics such as revenue or unrestricted funding (more information on calculating contributions here).
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This fund can be spent on External Donations to support effective frontline environmental initiatives and Internal Investments that are guaranteed to remove greenhouse gas emissions directly from operations and supply chains within the 2030 timeline.
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Repeat the process annually alongside a robust decarbonisation strategy without claiming that these activities in any way "neutralise" or "cancel out" the emissions they are responsible for.
This policy was developed by GCC in collaboration with environmental advisor Danny Chivers and in consultation with GCC members and leaders in the cultural and environmental fields. This is version three of the policy (published in June 2024), the original of which was published in 2021. GCC would be happy to speak with any member who needs help establishing their SCF programme. Reach out to a member of our team at info@galleryclimatecoalition.org.
