The HES-SO is leading numerous projects aimed at activating the transition to a sustainable society.
Its sustainability strategy is based upon the 17 sustainable development goals set out by UNESCO and is being rolled out in 5 subject areas: governance, education, research and innovation, social responsibility, and sustainable management. The Haute école de musique de Genève (HEM) is drafting its own sustainability strategy by adapting the themes of the HES-SO to its specific needs and by linking them to its core activity: music!
The HEM and sustainability
Since the start of the 2022 academic year, the HEM has had a sustainability facilitator at the school, who is drawing up the strategy for the current year, coordinating action and passing on information. For a long time now, the school has offered instruction on maintaining and repairing instruments. During the 2023-2024 academic year, two themed days centred around sustainability are going to be offered: one will set out the most environmentally-friendly innovations in instrument manufacture, whilst the other will look at the potential relationship between electronic music and the environment. Lastly, the HEM is developing the concept of cultural sustainability: it is taking a close look at the ecology of creative repertories or practices that face the threat of dying out, and committing to make an effort to protect and preserve the world’s cultural and natural heritage.
Engagement
The HEM is socially engaged, in relation to its city and its students. All the public events and concerts organised by the HEM are open to all, meaning that musical excellence is brought to the people, in the school’s own venues or during its excursions around the city (musical performances at festivals, or at museums, hospitals, etc.). The HEM also takes part in the Créagir teaching programme, which puts professors in contact with students from the various Hautes Ecoles in HES-SO Genève, to discuss the city and reimagine its future. Conscious of the stakes involved when it comes to managing waste and resources, the HEM has procured sorting bins for all its teaching buildings, adopted a general policy of printing on recycled paper, and arranges campaigns aimed at collecting electronic waste. The school is open to all possibilities when it comes to improving its day-to-day management and the internal life of the school. In the spring of 2023, its student association (ADEHEM), in collaboration with sustainability and equal opportunities, introduced a clothing swap shop for students, and there are plans to repeat the event in the future.