The experience of Céline Caron, General Secretary, Oceanographic Museum of Monaco

Signing up to the National Pact for Energy Transition was the continuity of something that has always been one of the fundamental values of the Oceanographic Museum. Our mission in favour of the ocean and, more generally, the environment, also requires us to be exemplary in how we operate as a public venue. On a day-to-day basis, we try to translate this mission into concrete actions within our organisation and with regard to our visitors.

We have chosen three main lines of action which are currently key priorities for us: mobility, waste sorting and resource management. In terms of mobility, most of our vehicles are hybrids and our staff is trained in eco-driving to reduce our carbon footprint as much as possible. We have also joined forces with TER SNCF to encourage our visitors to come by train rather than car. In this respect, an all-in package is available including a return trip between any train station in Alpes-Maritimes and Monaco as well as access to the Museum. We also provide assistance to our employees by covering 50% of their public transport subscriptions. Visitors and staff members alike are therefore encouraged to adopt more responsible means of mobility. We sort our waste and we have reviewed our facilities to make access easier. Indeed, our staff is regularly trained in good practices in this area. Lastly, one of our biggest challenges is to manage our resources, since this affects our very functioning. Environmental and social responsibility criteria now weigh heavily in our purchasing decisions: we turn to suppliers capable of proposing products with a lower carbon impact (for example, ones that produce less plastic waste) but also who are more committed to responsible sourcing. For example, the Oceanographic Museum is run on green electricity, meaning that the equivalent of our consumption comes from renewable energy sources. LED lighting is also heavily prioritized in our premises. We apply these same principles to our major projects – such as the construction of our new interactive area “Monaco and the Ocean” for which we have used 20 tonnes of PEFC* certified wood – and to the choice of food and drinks in our vending machines which we are currently working on, as well as the souvenirs sold in our shop, which is one of the first shops in the Principality to be awarded the “Commerce engagé” label.

This approach is much more than a commitment to us, we consider it our duty to society. We are in a period of transition, there is considerable scope for progress but we are committed to always going further in our initiatives, which we intend to improve further in the coming years.