Environmental Responsibility Policy

ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS ON DECEMBER 17, 2024

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1. CONTEXT

As an Indigenous non-profit organization, KWE! Meet the Indigenous Peoples aims to:

  • Promote the dissemination and recognition of First Nations and Inuit cultures in Quebec through the organization and production of various public activities, including the event KWE! Meet the Indigenous Peoples;
  • Organize and promote free public events to celebrate the cultures, traditions, and contemporary life of First Nations and Inuit;
  • Promote traditional knowledge as well as issues affecting Indigenous peoples;
  • Raise awareness among the public and organizations regarding the needs and realities of First Nations and Inuit;
  • Promote the artistic talents of First Nations and Inuit members;
  • Professionally produce shows and artistic performances by First Nations and Inuit in Quebec.

In the context of its objectives, the KWE organization is aware of its environmental footprint as an event organizer. Consequently, it has been undertaking eco-responsible actions since 2022, notably through the support of the Conseil québécois des événements écoresponsables (CQEER).

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KWE is committed to a more structured approach to improving its practices. Through this eco-responsibility initiative, KWE aims to continue developing its objectives while respecting the environment and raising public awareness through its actions and programming, particularly during our flagship event, the annual KWE festival and the KWE Grand Spectacle.

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2. DEFINITION

Within the framework of this policy, eco-responsibility is the adoption of behaviors and the implementation of actions that have positive environmental and social impacts. It involves being responsible and acting in favor of a quality environment and greater social equity.

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See Appendix 1 : Certain key concepts are defined to ensure an understanding of the policy.

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3. PRINCIPLES

3.1 Ethics

KWE has a responsibility to limit the negative impacts of its activities while optimizing positive outcomes.

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3.2 Land acknowledgement

KWE's activities take place on ancestral First Nations territories, for which we have responsibilities of protection and preservation.

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3.3 Universal accessibility

KWE aims to pursue its objectives by ensuring it reaches a diverse audience and by mitigating, to the best of its ability, barriers to participation for all audiences. Furthermore, it wishes to ensure the development of skills and knowledge regarding accessibility and the adaptation of its venues and activities with the support of RP03 and Kéroul. KWE has adopted a universal accessibility policy and holds Kéroul certification.

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4. SCOPE

4.1 This policy applies to all of the organization's activities:

  • Administration;
  • Production;
  • Programming;
  • Communications;
  • Partnerships;
  • Reception.

4.2 The individuals subject to this policy are:

  • Members of the Board of Directors;
  • Human resources hired by KWE;
  • Volunteers.
5. ORIENTATIONS

5.1 Orientation 1: Organize activities that are respectful of the land and mindful of resources.

  • Promote a sensitive and thoughtful use of resources;
  • Make responsible purchases that contribute to the local economy;
  • Encourage active modes of transportation and consider the carbon footprint;
  • Collaborate with stakeholders to improve KWE’s environmental and social footprint.

5.2 Orientation 2: Optimize the mobility of works and people (scouting trips, distribution, touring, participation in KWE activities) in order to reduce their carbon footprint.

  • Optimize travel and offset it;
  • Evaluate resource use in creative processes;
  • Increasingly offset our carbon footprint;
  • Raise awareness among artists and their teams about more environmentally conscious creative practices.

5.3 Orientation 3: Develop solidarity-based artistic practices by fostering accessibility, equity, diversity, and inclusion.

  • Reduce barriers to participation in our activities;
  • Continue efforts regarding equity, diversity, and inclusion, and contribute to the well-being of our human resources, artists, and craftspeople throughout all our activities.

5.4 Cross-cutting orientation: Raise awareness and promote best social and environmental practices among all stakeholders, including participants in our activities.

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This cross-cutting focus is reflected in all of the preceding orientations. KWE is committed to being a driver of best practices within the artistic community; sharing and raising awareness are therefore intrinsic parts of our eco-responsibility approach. The goal is to mobilize all stakeholders so that they better consider their environmental, social, and economic impacts.

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6. REVIEW

This policy will be reviewed by the Board of Directors every two years from its adoption date to ensure that its provisions remain current and suitable for KWE's operations.

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APPENDIX 1: DEFINITIONS AND REFERENCES

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Sustainable and responsible procurement aims to integrate environmental and social considerations into an organization's procurement processes. On one hand, it is sustainable, meaning it supports the long-term viability of an organization's operations, the environment, and social and economic spheres. On the other hand, it is responsible, meaning it limits negative effects on the environment and well-being. The guidelines for sustainable and responsible procurement include, among other things, local purchasing. It requires a thorough knowledge of the supply chain, the environmental footprint of the chosen products, and the eco-responsible commitment of suppliers.

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A carbon footprint is an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions generated by an activity or by all of an organization's activities. It consists of measuring the environmental footprint of resource consumption, waste management, transportation, and all other actions using a common unit of measurement: a quantity of CO2 equivalent. For each action included in the footprint, an equivalence factor is used to represent its carbon impact. An organization's carbon footprint is therefore the sum of its environmental footprint expressed in CO2 equivalent emissions.

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Carbon neutrality is achieved when the balance of generated emissions and offset emissions is zero. If an organization or event is carbon neutral, it means that the emissions compiled in the carbon footprint have been fully offset through recognized offset projects.

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The device life cycle is the sum of all phases a device goes through from its manufacture to its withdrawal from the market. For electronic devices, the stages considered include the extraction of raw materials, design and manufacturing, transport, distribution, use, and end-of-life management, including recovery, recycling, and landfilling. To measure the environmental footprint of a device, all of these phases are taken into account.

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Eco-design is the act of introducing environmental considerations into the artistic creation and design process. It involves rethinking works to limit their environmental footprint at every stage of their life cycle, notably by choosing more ecological materials (used, certified, free of toxic products, etc.), avoiding the waste of resources, and preventing landfilling at the end of their useful life.

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Mutualization is the sharing or pooling of material or human resources, spaces, equipment, or knowledge between individuals or organizations that each derive benefits from doing so.

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Responsible digital technology is the concept put forward in this policy. The responsible digital approach proposes a set of means to reduce the social, environmental, and economic footprint of digital technology. This approach is not opposed to digital sobriety—a trendy concept that involves replacing our instinctive use of digital tools with a more conscious and thoughtful approach. However, this policy chooses to emphasize the concept of responsible digital technology because, in our view, it encourages a more positive approach to the issue.

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Solidarity practices in the arts are concrete actions implemented by cultural institutions to level social and economic inequalities. These can consist of measures to improve access to artistic offerings as well as institutional inclusion (access to employment, improved working conditions, compensation, etc.).

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The 3Rs, 4Rs, or 4Rs-D principle assumes a hierarchy for resource management. It suggests prioritizing source reduction (R), reuse (R), and recycling (R), followed by recovery (R) before disposing of materials at the end of their life (D - disposal).

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In some cases, a fourth "R" is added to refer to the recovery of materials, an intermediate step required to ensure recycling. The overall goal of this principle is to use fewer resources and less energy and to reduce the environmental footprint associated with our consumption.

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‍Source Reduction (R)

A way to prevent or limit the amount of waste generated during the design, manufacturing, distribution, and use stages of a product or service.

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Reuse and Recycling (R) + (R)

Includes the sharing or pooling of material or human resources, spaces, equipment, or knowledge between individuals or organizations for mutual benefit.

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Also includes the sorting of materials (paper, plastic, glass, electronic devices, batteries, etc.) to minimize the amount sent to landfills at the end of their useful life.

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Recovery (R)

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Refers to any operation aimed at the reuse, recycling, composting, biomethanization, or recovery of residual materials to create useful products or compounds, including energy. Recovery is the opposite of disposal and gives materials a second life.

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APPENDIX 2: RESOURCES