Responsible Serlachius?

Pauli Sivonen, Director of Serlachius MuseumsIn recent years, environmental activists have wanted to talk about climate change by smearing art treasures hanging on the walls of museums with paint. Is the target justified? This raises questions about the legitimacy of their targets and the role of museums themselves in climate issues – are they allies or adversaries?

Firstly, it affects our planet. Global temperatures are rising, extreme weather events and subsequent disasters are becoming more frequent, and rising sea levels threaten to submerge vast regions. Animal species face endangerment, and the rate of extinction is accelerating.

Our current discourse is nearing a critical point. Some anticipate an impending catastrophe, while others entirely disregard the phenomenon. The majority express concern in principle but remain uncertain about how to respond or reduce their individual carbon footprint.

Museums, in fact, have a significant carbon footprint. A few years ago, I decided to study the amount of energy used by Serlachius annually. A quick calculation revealed that our museums’ properties consume the same amount of energy as 250 Finnish houses ran as households of four people. In terms of climate impact, Serlachius is comparable to a small town.

The preservation of cultural heritage, alongside the substantial real estate required for Serlachius’ operations, requires particular environmental regulations. The consistent temperature and controlled humidity essential for our collection result in considerable energy consumption.

It does feel bad to admit it, but this is how things are: museums, despite their inherent cultural significance, can be seen as “bad guys”. They contribute to climate change through their environmental impact.

Due to our location and historical context, we at Serlachius also acknowledge our own environmental impact.

The Gösta Serlachius Fine Arts Foundation was established through endowments from the forest industry. Historical studies reveal that by the 1970s, Mänttä was among the most heavily polluted areas in Finland, largely due to emissions from this industry.

A majority of our visitors are art tourists, often traveling long distances to Mänttä. Furthermore, we transport artworks, both from our permanent collection and for our temporary exhibitions.

To put it bluntly: art tourists from Helsinki sometimes drive to Mänttä to experience exhibitions featuring Helsinki-based artists and curators.

A few years ago, Serlachius defined its strategy to focus on developing its operations in sustainability. We set our goal to become the most responsible museum in Finland. We initiated a comprehensive environmental program and identified concrete steps we could implement.

We pinpointed two fundamental approaches for our museums to combat climate change: firstly, by acting as influencers through programming, i.e. to enhance visitors’ environmental awareness; secondly, by directly minimizing our own environmental footprint.

Influencing public thought is an accessible and cost-effective approach. Museums, viewed as trustworthy sources of information and learning, are frequented by individuals seeking knowledge.

Coincidentally, many contemporary artists are already exploring environmental themes in their work. Our current program already integrates environmental and sustainability topics into both exhibitions and wider activities.

Best of all, we have excellent means to make a difference. Art and culture are powerful tools for change. They directly engage emotions and inspire action.

Therefore, we must always remember that we must not compromise on the quality of art when programming and planning exhibitions. Museums should not simply be “information agencies.” Instead, they should address environmental issues through high-quality art.

Compromising artistic quality would diminish the most effective way museums can exert influence.

We also understood that artistic influence necessitates utmost transparency regarding Serlachius’ history and involvement in the forest industry. For this reason, our exhibitions regularly explore the environmental effects of Serlachius company’s industrial operations in Mänttä.

Sometimes I wonder if this would be possible if the Serlachius company was still active today.

Another way to make an impact – reducing our individual carbon footprint – is a challenging and costly endeavor. This involves implementing measures that genuinely decrease our emissions and influence behaviors, such as how visitors travel to our museums.

It also necessitates a fundamental shift in our mindset and actions: are we consistent in our approach to recycling and considering the environment in our daily choices? When we initiated our environmental program, we recognized that nearly every facet of our daily operations would undergo some transformation.

Fortunately, external assistance is available for developing sustainability practices. There are many certification systems available for companies, communities, foundations, and other entities seeking to reduce their carbon footprint.

For our own standard, we selected the most rigorous and demanding: ISO 14001. This environmental management system is a significant standard, adopted by large corporations and many public organizations. It offers a comprehensive framework for an organization to adjust its operations and achieve environmental objectives.

Serlachius embarked on a two-year journey to achieve ISO 14001 certification, a process that underscored the importance of inclusivity and resulted in the establishment of the organization’s environmental goals.

Inclusivity and inclusion were essential: this comprehensive endeavor involved every level of the organization, from board members to all employees. The certification encompassed numerous meetings, internal and external audits, and various investigations, ultimately culminating in the issuance of the ISO 14001 certificate.

Many things have changed. A strategic decision has been made to cease the expansion of our real estate holdings, marking a significant change for Serlachius.

For the past 25 years, Serlachius has seen considerable growth in its operations, including the construction, acquisition, and renovation of properties for galleries, collections, storage, and workshops. Notable recent undertakings include the extension of Serlachius Manor and the creation of the Serlachius Art Sauna.

While all construction projects have prioritized environmental consciousness, it is now crucial to recognize that further real estate is unnecessary. Heating and cooling even more buildings would only increase our carbon footprint.

Instead, our real estate projects are now integrated into our environmental program. A significant renovation at Serlachius Headquarters involved replacing the heating and cooling system with an environmentally friendly geothermal system, resulting in a 63% reduction in the building’s energy consumption. We also plan to extend geothermal heating and cooling to Serlachius Manor in the future.

We built a solar power plant at our warehouse, producing approximately 60 MWh of electricity annually. In the summer, this electricity is sold to the national grid. All electricity purchased from the grid in its turn is climate-friendly.

Furthermore, we implemented a system in the museum parks to source irrigation water from lakes, leading to a 60% decrease in our clean water consumption.

Reducing traffic emissions from our operations was a key priority. We’ve made it easier for visitors to reach our museums from Tampere using public transport, offering the Serlachius bus, Art Express, and shared taxi services. Additionally, we provide bicycles for visitors to use around Mänttä and participate in the city bike project, enabling convenient travel from Vilppula railway station to the museums.

Our Serlachius bus service alone has facilitated 1,500,000 passenger kilometers, significantly reducing private car usage. For those who do drive, we’ve installed electric vehicle charging points at both museums.

All our employees are committed to recycling. This is especially important when we build exhibitions – an area historically prone to significant waste generation.

Our dedication extends to the foundation’s investment strategies, which are guided by sustainable principles. In our museum shops, we prioritize offering sustainably produced goods, and our restaurant proudly serves locally sourced cuisine.

External and internal audits play a key role in enhancing the environmental awareness of our personnel. Our teams consistently engage in learning about environmental issues and sustainable practices, drawing knowledge from both external experts and their colleagues.

This commitment is also reflected in the dedication of our permanent staff of over fifty people, who have contributed 4,600 hours to environmental work, including planning, implementing, supervising and communicating our sustainability initiatives.

While these efforts represent a substantial and costly undertaking, they have also allowed us to save money. Our environmental investments have been leading to annual energy cost savings of approximately 25,000 euros.

Internal audits have fostered closer collaboration among teams and reduced organizational silos.

We have become proficient in various measurement and evaluation methods, gaining a thorough understanding of the environmental consequences of our actions. We have also significantly strengthened the crisis preparedness of our organisation.

One key insight is that sustainability goals can sometimes conflict with each other.

If we do not want to completely halt Serlachius museum activities, it will be challenging for us to address the main cause of our carbon footprint. The preservation and care of cultural heritage, while inherently valuable, will continue to generate emissions.

We have realised that responsibility for cultural heritage acts as a compensation to our environmental impact. At the same time, this sustainability network will continue to expand. For example, exhibitions related to the themes of social responsibility are part of this complex network of negative and positive impacts.

The ISO 14001 system we use is based on the principle of continuous development of organisations and improvement of measures.

In practice, this means that Serlachius’ environmental work is an ongoing process. Our commitment didn’t conclude with certification; instead, it is essential to continuously improve the operations, as long as they continue.

Through these efforts, we aim to ensure Serlachius’ sustainability, now and in the future.