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The Workers’ Museum is working to contribute to the green transition by creating changes in the institution’s work. Therefore, ambitious solutions to reduce the climate footprint through museum operations are being pursued.
The desire to promote the green transition
At the Workers’ Museum, we want to strengthen our green initiatives and work to make our museum, library and archive an institution that takes care of the environment and climate – and each other. Therefore, we are a co-signatory of ODM’s Green Charter, which is part of the Museums’ Green Academy. In addition, the museum has been Green Attraction certified in 2025. Although the museum is located in a listed building and therefore has special challenges in relation to implementing a green transition, we maintain that it is necessary.
Our green foundation
The green transition is part of the Workers’ Museum’s strategy 2030 and is part of the museum’s work, which is why an environmental policy and action plan have been drawn up, supplier recommendations and internal purchasing requirements have been tightened, and waste arrangements have been changed. A focus on sustainability plays into the museum’s vision of “strengthening the will for an equal and just society through engaged encounters with history“, through which the museum works with social sustainability. But in order to take care of our cultural heritage in the future, we need to take care of the climate of our time. Reducing food waste, reusing and repairing rather than buying new is a central part of the Workers’ Museum’s focus on the living conditions and everyday life of urban workers from the 1870s onwards.
Areas of work
The Workers’ Museum wants to lay a good foundation for further work on green transition and social sustainability, and we have therefore prepared our first ESG report. The report provides a comprehensive overview of where we are today and forms the basis for integrating sustainable initiatives into all parts of the museum’s operations – from energy consumption and procurement to communication and collaborations. We see ESG as a holistic framework where the environment, social conditions and responsible management go hand in hand. The ESG report is based on current voluntary standards and frameworks. See the latest ESG report here.
In connection with the report, the museum has set some objectives within each of the three E-S-G areas, with reference to the Workers’ Museum Strategy 2030.
Objectives for Energy and Climate
Increase commercial products with a focus on green transition and social sustainability.
- Offer our guests, catering and shop products based on ecology, local sourcing, Fair Trade or social sustainability.
- Write explanatory texts for the products that meet the green objectives.
- Follow a strategy for the museum shop where all logo items comply with our purchasing policy.
Reduce printing and use suppliers who also work for a green transition.
- Ensure that employees are aware of printing companies with collective agreements and that are actively working with green transition.
- Reduce printing by 10% and encourage two-sided printing.
Continue to reuse exhibition materials from exhibition to exhibition.
- Include green initiatives in renovation planning for the 3rd floor.
- Account for green and accessibility initiatives in project agreements, intro material for new employees and exhibition concepts.
Reduce consumption of electricity, water and heating through internal initiatives and in public areas.
- Add front windows where possible.
- Continuously replace lamps with greener versions in Rømersgade and Taastrup, e.g. 150 lamps replaced in special exhibition area in 2025.
Objectives for Social Sustainability
Ensure that the Workers’ Museum is accessible and inclusive, where everyone can feel welcome and participate on equal terms.
- Explore possible Full House membership, special opening hours for adults and children with disabilities or special needs.
- Develop a free ticket scheme with organizations working with socially vulnerable people.
- Investigate the possibility of organizing events for children and adults with special needs (e.g. residential homes) and opening during off-hours with a focus on fewer guests and a quieter environment.
- Carry out four citizen engagement projects towards 2030.
- Develop a separate action plan for social sustainability initiatives with measurable activities that can be tested in 2026.
Work with responsible tourism.
- Prepare UNESCO World Heritage nomination, including management plans.
- Maintain close dialog with Wonderful Copenhagen on their sustainability work and use their tools where possible.
Work with social sustainability in collaborations and partnerships for exhibitions, education and events.
- Explore more opportunities for collaboration under the auspices of the Park Museums, like the Sunflower String. Continue working with Autism GoTo.
Objectives for Green Leadership
Make the green agenda visible in the museum’s strategy, action plans, budgets, exhibition design and activities.
- Ensure good internal communication about the museum’s initiatives and promote knowledge sharing.
- Ensure use of an annual cycle for green initiatives.
- Prepare climate accounts and ESG report annually.
- Continuously train employees working with the area so that it can be implemented in operations.
Maintain Green Attraction certification and develop further green initiatives.
- Continue the good cooperation with ODM and our colleagues on the Green Charter.
- Revisit objectives annually.
- Continuously collect comments and observations for front staff on guests’ wishes.
- Dedicate resources to researching green transition and social sustainability in practice.
Communicate internally and externally about the green and accessibility initiatives.
- Test very small initiatives. This can be with a link to an ESG report as an auto-signature.
- Avoid Green Washing and Green Hushing by informing museum and education hosts, trainers and tour guides about green transition and accessibility measures.
- Inform guests in Danish and English about waste sorting.
- Create intro material for new employees about the museum’s green initiatives and social sustainability.
- Create a manual for annual refresher courses on the subject.
