Are art and culture doing enough to help the planet?

Film, TV and books can resonate with us more vividly than a scientific study, writes Charlotte Cripps

Artwork from the Somerset House climate crisis show We Are History (Malala Andrialavidrazana via Somerset House)

Following the UN climate change report this week, dubbed “code red for humanity”, it’s a sure sign we all need to take action. The news is full of wildfires, extreme heatwaves and flooding hitting countries around the globe. The climate crisis is staring down the barrel at us, but is the arts doing enough to help the planet?

It’s good to see Somerset House putting on a climate crisis art exhibition this autumn. The group show, We Are History, will offer a new perspective on the climate crisis by looking back past the industrial revolution to the colonial era of plantation agriculture and forced labour, and its relationship to today’s crisis.

Nine artists with links to countries in the Caribbean, South America and Africa will exhibit photography, prints, textile, installation and video from “damming rivers, rising sea levels, to disposal of hazardous waste”.