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LONDON, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Britain's National Theatre has
decided to end its partnership with energy group Royal Dutch
Shell as part of a broader "climate emergency"
initiative to reduce its carbon impact.
The move came in the week that the Royal Shakespeare Company
said it would drop BP Plc as its sponsor after young
people told the theatre group its association with the energy
company turned them off going to its plays.
"The National Theatre has declared a climate emergency today
... Shell have been valued and longstanding supporters of the
National Theatre ... This membership will come to an end in June
2020," a National Theatre spokeswoman said.
Shell, which had been giving the theatre around 15,000
pounds a year as a corporate member, said "heightened awareness
of climate change... is a good thing".
"As a company, we agree that urgent action is needed. What
will really accelerate change is effective policy, investment in
technology innovation and deployment, and changing customer
behaviour," a Shell spokesman added.
(Reporting by Shadia Nasralla; Editing by Giles Elgood)
