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Liftshare social enterprise encourages Fringe-goers to think green this Festival

By | Published on Wednesday 12 August 2015

Liftshare

Social enterprise Liftshare – which, says the customary company blurb, encourages and enables people to travel in a more environmentally friendly way by sharing their journeys – is encouraging Fringe-goers to think green as they navigate the Festival this year. And to help with that process it has launched a new competition to find the Fringe performer that makes the best green-themed video.

“The new award”, says Liftshare’s Community Outreach Manager Lex Barber, “is about creating a platform to get both Festival performers and their audiences thinking about their green impact on Edinburgh this August”.

Explaining the gist of the promotion, she goes on: “We’re inviting comedians to send us a short video clip of themselves sharing their green views, telling a joke and encouraging their fans to think twice before taking their car out to a show; or, if they have to drive, to make sure they share their vehicle to lower their CO2 footprint”.

Although performers can be as silly as they want in the videos they submit, Liftshare does have a serious agenda here. “Our aim is underline the fact that air quality, gridlock and CO2 are real concerns during the Festival. But we also want to make clear that by making simple changes to how we travel – such as organising car shares so we’re not all taking individual cars out on the roads – anyone can help do their bit to keep Edinburgh a beautiful and gridlock free place during this wonderful celebration of culture”.

As for other ways Fringe-goers can be green, obviously the mountain of paper handed out each day is one concern. Performers may we wary of the suggestion they go without the customary flyer this year, but “we advise audience members to think twice before simply binning their fliers or throwing them on the ground, always try to recycle” Barber adds. “And we’ve heard of one performer who has gone for small business cards rather than the usual A6 or A5 flyers this year. It sounds like a small thing, but things like that can really help”.

Performers interested in submitting a green-themed video can find out more about how to participate in the Liftshare initiative and the competition element here. The closing date is 21 Aug.



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