معرفی
Dr Tanja Beer is a Senior Lecturer at Queensland College of Art and Design, Griffith University, Australia, where she is also a member of the Creative Arts Research Institute, Cities Research Institute, and the Griffith Institute for Human and Environmental Resilience. She is the Co-Director of the Performance + Ecology Research Lab (P+ERL) and serves as the Lead Investigator on the Australian Research Council Linkage Project "Culture for Climate: Harnessing Eco-Creativity to Transition Australia's Performing Arts to Environmental Sustainability" (2023-2027).
Dr Beer's educational background includes:
- PhD in Sustainable Design from the University of Melbourne (2011-2016)
- Master of Arts in Stage Design from the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz, Austria (1995-2000)
- Graduate Diploma in Animateuring (cross-modal performance making) from the University of Melbourne (2001-2002)
Dr Beer is globally recognized for advancing sustainability in the performing arts, particularly through establishing the field of "ecoscenography" (ecological design for performance). Her research intersects with performance design, public art, event space, arts-science communication, co-design, exhibition design, installation, temporary architecture, landscape architecture, place-making, and sustainability. She has developed the "3 Cs" framework (Co-creation, Celebration and Circulation) for sustainable scenography and is the author of "Ecoscenography: An Introduction to Ecological Design for Performance" (2021), which was shortlisted for the Prague Quadrennial Publication Award 2023.
Her recent creative research outputs reveal trends across ecological performance design, sustainable pedagogy, and community engagement. The publications demonstrate growing integration of ecoscenography into mainstream performance practice, with increasing focus on climate action within the performing arts sector, interdisciplinary approaches to sustainability, and the development of practical frameworks for implementing ecological principles in theatre production.
Dr Beer has received several notable awards:
- PAC Australia IMPACT Award (2024) for "When the World Turns"
- Shortlisted for the Prague Quadrennial Publication Award 2023
- Shortlisted for the Space and Object Design category for World Stage Design 2025
- Institute of Advanced Studies Fellowship Award 2025/2026
- Glasgow City Council Environmental Initiative Award for the Uprooted production
As an educator and supervisor, Dr Beer has mentored numerous doctoral and masters students in areas related to ecoscenography, sustainable design, and ecological performance. Her current research projects include the "Culture for Climate" national survey to understand sustainability practices in the Australian performing arts sector and the development of teaching resources for the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) to "green" their curriculum.
Dr Beer's creative practice is exemplified by "The Living Stage," a global initiative that combines stage design, horticulture, and community engagement to create recyclable, biodegradable, biodiverse, and edible performance spaces. This project has been realized in multiple locations internationally and has been featured in exhibitions at the V&A Museum and the Prague Quadrennial.
