APE’s approach is informed by a set of operating principles that we feel passionately about.
Raising Awareness
We believe that the majority of people continue to remain unaware of what climate change means for the world or how their own personal emissions contribute to the problem. We believe that people will respond positively to the problem once they become aware of what friends, colleagues and neighbors are doing. Few go it alone unless they have peer support or a good example to follow.
Overcoming Obstacles
We believe that there are major obstacles for people wishing to adopt low carbon lifestyles. Much of the information is not accessible, overly technical or hard to translate into the actual circumstances of people’s lives. Time is in short supply and few people can afford the time and effort to do the necessary research and follow-up. The biggest obstacle that people face is that they are often very isolated, lacking encouragement or contact with others taking similar steps.
Achieving Goals
We believe that people are most successful in achieving change when they have support for their decisions. This comes best when people work together – connecting with others, doing similar things and sharing experience.
Education
We believe that the most important knowledge held by people is the personal experience gained from trying something. This generates the learning that is most useful to others. APE activities all aim to have an action-learning component building on personal experience and a diversity of viewpoints.
Support
People require that the government provides a clear framework to guide their actions along with policies and incentives that reward personal initiative. At present government support is inadequate, incoherent, and rarely relevant to people’s actual needs. Change is also required in the corporate sector. Companies need to provide adequate market information, tools for consumers to assess alternative products, and greater transparency on availability of new products. Improved services are needed to deliver an integrated package of household greenhouse gas reduction measures.
Our Mission
We identify both the opportunities that enable people, especially in the world’s richest countries, to reduce their emissions and the obstacles that hold people back. We devise innovative and effective ways of communication that encourage people to share this experience.
We recognise that individuals cannot make the required changes on their own. We aim to create a powerful and vocal community of people working together to move technology, government and business forward to reduce emissions and make real and lasting changes to the way we live. All our projects will demonstrate that our vision of stabilizing greenhouse gas emissions is practically attainable. APE believes that the many of the solutions are within reach, if only we have the will.
Our Vision
Through music and the arts, APE aims to achieve permanent reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to levels that minimise further degradation of ecological systems and human livelihood. APE recruits internationally known musicians and artists through albums, concerts, art exhibitions and art related projects to raise awareness of climate change and funds for campaigns and disaster relief.