The Association for Cultural Enterprises, a charity and trade body for the arts, heritage, and cultural sector, has announced the launch of its new Retail Sustainability Framework, a free resource for Cultural Enterprises members.
The framework assists members in their efforts to integrate sustainability into their retail and commercial activities. It is one of several initiatives created by the Association for Cultural Enterprises, which aim to promote sustainable practices in revenue generation in arts, heritage and cultural organisations.
Actionable resources
The Retail Sustainability Framework discusses the science and theory which underpins achieving net zero and establishing a circular economy. It also explores approaches to partnering with suppliers to create more sustainable products and practices.
14 actionable resources, with downloadable templates, case studies, expert tips and strategies, have been designed to support commercial teams in implementing new sustainable working initiatives. The resources have been developed by the Cultural Enterprises team following feedback from members.
Fi Anderson, creative development manager, says: “Tackling sustainability and knowing where to start can feel overwhelming. These resources are designed to help break it down into practical, actionable steps. With knowledge and materials ever evolving, we intend to keep adding to the Framework and will be rolling out additional case studies over time.”
“The Retail Sustainability Framework is an outstanding piece of work which I am now using on a day-to-day basis – I’ve already written a policy using it,” says Matthew Henderson, Cultural Enterprises trustee and retail consultant. “It’s another example of the incredible benefits the Association offers.”
The Retail Sustainability Framework is exclusive to Cultural Enterprises members, and is available to download here.
Members using the framework are asked to join a Sustainable Retail Pledge and contribute to a national picture of positive action.
Seeds of Change
The Association for Cultural Enterprises has also developed the annual Seeds of Change prize fund. This funding opportunity fosters innovative sustainable initiatives in the cultural sector and provides support to projects that make a measurable impact on how the sector approaches income generation.
The £10,000 prize enables a cultural organisation to develop and deliver a project that promotes community engagement, encourages the adoption of sustainable practices, and creates a new revenue stream by exploring new materials and technologies.
Launched in 2024, the first Seeds of Change prize fund was awarded to Fruitmarket in Edinburgh for its Future Makers mentoring programme. With this funding, the gallery is helping local artists, designers and makers to create custom ethical and sustainable retail products, in addition to scaling up their wholesale businesses.
Gordon Morrison, Cultural Enterprises CEO, says: “The Association for Cultural Enterprises’ primary mission is to embed sustainable economic best practice across the cultural sector.
“Our members have long expressed a strong desire for us to provide yet more practical and actionable tools to support cultural organisations to become more environmentally responsible, and we have responded emphatically to this with our new resources, support tools that will make a significant impact across the sector for many years to come.”
The Association for Cultural Enterprises is now accepting submissions to Seeds of Change 2025. For more details please see the Association’s website.
Earlier this month, the Association for Cultural Enterprises announced the finalists in this year’s Cultural Enterprises Awards.
