Dundee has designs on hosting one of the world's most sustainable festivals at former Michelin plant

Now a former Michelin plant in Scotland is set to become home to one of the world's most sustainable design festivals. The Dundee Design Festival, which will be repurpose exhibition materials from the recent Tartan show at the city’s V&A museum, as part of a drive to ensure no more than 30 per cent of new materials are used in the creation of the festival.

Its team will be borrowing or re-using breeze-blocks, fencing, timber and bricks to transform a 100,000sqft former industrial building.

Electric bus company Ember will be providing services from Dundee city centre to the seven-day festival, which will feature a free programme of exhibitions, activities and installations.

The fifth edition of the event is expected to bring the work of more than 100 local, national and international designers together at the Michelin Scotland Innovation Park, a joint venture created by Michelin, Dundee City Council and Scottish Enterprise to breathe new life into the 80-acre site after the tyre factory closed in 2020.

The festival, first staged in 2016 in a former print works, will return from September 23-29 to coincide with the tenth anniversary of Dundee being named an official Unesco City of Design.

Dr Stacey Hunter, the festival’s creative director, said: "Any kind of waste is something most people working in design are always keen to eliminate and the partnerships we’re developing are symbolic of that urge to be efficient. I’ve been mapping potential materials and manufacturers in Dundee to determine the most viable materials, in terms of availability, infrastructure, and the lowest carbon options for constructing our festival infrastructure.

"Material choices and production will be as sustainable and non-polluting as possible, including designing for deconstruction and onward reuse. That means we’ll be designing in a way that maximises the possibility for us to reuse our displays at future festivals.

“Festivals are the ideal platform to experiment with more sustainable approaches. I feel confident our visitors will fully support the decisions we are making as a team and will hopefully feel empowered to make more sustainable choices for themselves, whether it's DIY at home or a gardening project.”

Annie Marrs, lead officer at Unesco City of Design Dundee, said: “One of the reasons Dundee was designated as a Unesco City of Design was the city’s commitment to design and innovation driving our commitment to sustainable development.

"It’s natural for us to want to create one of the world’s most sustainable design festivals and ensure that the best in design is showcased to as many people as possible.

“The impact of temporary festivals can be significantly negative on our environment. I believe Dundee Design Festival can be a case study in how cultural organisations and businesses can collaborate to lower their collective carbon footprint.”

V&A Dundee programme director Caroline Grewar said: “It was extremely important to us from the outset that the Tartan exhibition infrastructure was designed and built to have a life beyond its initial nine-month run at V&A Dundee. We’re delighted the exhibition materials will now have a second home at this year’s Dundee Design Festival less than five miles away.”