Festivals are an important part of the music event industry especially for young adults. But
compared to the beginnings their meanings have changed: Attendees want to celebrate without
any compromises. However today mankind is confronted with the greatest sustainability
challenges which are not satisfactorily tackled. Still with a rising awareness of these
issues companies' interest in including sustainability issues in their communications strategy
has increased. This study attempts to explore how a Sustainability Communication (SC) concept
needs to be designed to reach fans of music festivals and influence them towards a more
sustainable behaviour. For that purpose it deals with sustainability management background
information about SC and the attendees' needs. Moreover it shows rays of hope for this issue
in the festival landscape. Afterwards the results of a survey conducted among festival fans
(more than 750 participants) examining their attitude regarding sustainability issues were
assessed. This study aims to equip the reader with a thorough knowledge of the potential of
Sustainability Communication within and through festivals as well as give an insight into how
a SC strategy must consider the needs of fans to realize a more sustainable event.
