The Danish creative industries are moving in a sustainable direction, taking a human-centred approach to create irresistible solutions.
Creativity has the power to spark conversations and drive change. As we face unprecedented environmental challenges, we need innovative solutions that can drive sustainable development. Danish companies and organisations have a long tradition of using creativity to solve complex problems and responding to societal challenges. With a human-centred approach, they create products and solutions where the planetary boundaries are seen as a positive creative constraint that elevates the ambition for the final product.
Designing for a circular society
An important step towards a more sustainable world is applying a circular mindset to consumption and business models. At its core, circularity is about refusing the linear take-make-waste model and replacing it with one that is regenerative by design. This means reducing, reusing, redesigning, and recapturing the planet's scarce resources.
80% of a product's environmental footprint is locked in at the design phase and therefore designers and businesses must have a circular mindset in everything they do. This has resulted in innovative solutions like reusable alternatives to disposable everyday products, aesthetically pleasing waste sorting systems, and fashion and furniture recycled from plastic or fishing nets.
When it comes to sustainability, there is no denying that the fashion industry takes a significant toll on the environment and will never achieve complete circularity, still, fortunately, important initiatives are being launched to create a greener and more responsible fashion and textile sector. One of them is the EU’s textile strategy which looks at the entire lifecycle of textile products and proposes coordinated actions to change how textiles are produced and consumed. In Denmark, there is also a continuous commitment to make the industry more responsible and sustainable. Danish Fashion and Textile (DM&T), the industry and employer’s association for Danish textile and clothing companies, conduct a yearly sustainability survey that takes a deep dive into the Danish industry’s sustainability efforts.
In their 2023 sustainability survey*, DM&T highlights a positive development in the fashion industry that showcases the Danish clothing brands’ circular consciousness and their focus on creating a product range that provides pieces with more longevity. Here, 50% of the respondents replied that they reuse products and materials from other companies, such as plastic bottles and waste from food production, in new products, and 63% have made changes to production processes to incorporate more sustainable practices.
The survey also showcases a big shift in leadership perspective, where the share that sees lack of management focus and support as a barrier has dropped from 39 to 13%. This clearly indicates that leadership increasingly understands the importance of the sustainability agenda and is supportive of it. “Prioritization from management is crucial if the industry is to succeed in the transition we are amid,” says Marie Busck, Head of CSR and Sustainability at DM&T, and elaborates further "In the survey, we see progress on several parameters, and here I am particularly pleased that the industry's awareness of the EU Textile Strategy has increased to 82% compared to 64 % the previous year, although in an ideal world, we would like to be at 100%. The Textile Strategy and its underlying initiatives will help define how fashion and textile companies will operate in the future".
Sustainability across the creative industries
Fashion is not the only creative industry moving in a more responsible and sustainable direction. Within Danish interior design, there’s a key focus on high-quality craftsmanship, using long-lasting materials, and designing pieces that can be passed on from generation to generation. We see lamps created with ‘design for disassembly’ as a key principle, furniture made from recycled plastic waste such as old fishing nets, trawls, and boxes, and furniture brands that introduce rent and reselling concepts, prolonging the lifetime of a piece of furniture.
The Danish film- and television industry is also becoming more responsible. An increasing amount of production companies aim to make sustainable choices when it comes to energy supply, transportation, catering, waste sorting, props, costumes, and more. Creating climate reports that give insights into the emissions used during production is also becoming common practice in the industry. These reports help producers and other film workers gain knowledge about how to efficiently lower CO2 emissions without compromising the quality of the production.
In the architecture industry and built environment in Denmark, there is also a focus on lowering the negative impact the industry currently has on the environment. Building with more sustainable materials like wood or reusing materials on site when renovating old buildings are examples of some of the circular initiatives we see from Danish architects. Another initiative is Reduction Roadmap** – a CO2 reduction plan and tool that was launched in 2022. The purpose of the Reduction Roadmap is to shed light on how much CO2 the built industry currently emits in new construction, as well as how much and how quickly it’s necessary to reduce for the industry to comply with the 1.5-degree goal from the Paris Agreement. The tool gathers the Danish built industry around a common mission and goal to commit to and strive for.
On top of that, we also see how creative and strategic storytelling can help shift attitudes, behaviours, and preferences on both a consumer and societal level. Effective communication becomes a powerful tool in changing opinions and behaviours, nudging people, businesses, and decision-makers to make sustainable choices.
There is no shortage of innovative solutions and potential within the Danish creative industries. However, to truly succeed with the sustainable transformation we must maximize the utilization of this creative potential. This entails fostering new business models and forging partnerships across industries, sectors, and borders that prioritize circularity, making it possible to effectively scale solutions to achieve significant impact.
"As an industry, we need to look at how we can embrace circularity to a greater extent and create new business models, e.g. in the form of resale, rental, or a greater focus on repurposed materials, because it is crucial to reduce global overproduction and because it is central to the EU's textile strategy.”
It’s all about irresistibility
Closing the gap between awareness of climate change and the motivation to act requires shaping a desire for it. The Danish creative industries exemplify this bridging process by integrating a human-centred and aesthetic approach to innovation, showcasing how sustainable solutions can become the desirable choice.
Across the creative industries, we see products and initiatives that increase people’s quality of life, while also having respect for the planetary boundaries.
In Danish cities, numerous examples abound of architectural and urban planning solutions that make it easier and more attractive to commute by bicycle rather than taking the car. Houses are designed with sustainable materials that lower the CO2 footprint while also improving the indoor climate, and notably, Copenhagen boasts a waste plant that ingeniously doubles as a ski slope. By infusing sustainability with greater meaning, beauty, and playfulness, it is possible to turn the sustainable option into the irresistible choice.
Read more on how creativity drives sustainability here or explore our cases to uncover creative and irresistible sustainable solutions.
