Environmental sustainability

Hundreds of activists have staged another protest at the British Museum against the institution’s links to oil giant BP.

Activist theatre group BP or not BP, organisers of the "Make BP History" event said around 400 people took part in multiple protests across the British Museum on Saturday (23 April), culminating in a 10 metre BP logo being pulled apart in the Great Court. Protestors then went on to occupy four different rooms in the museum after closing time.

BP is one of the British Museum's longest standing corporate supporters, supporting the museum since 1996. The current five-year contract was signed in May 2016 and extended for a year due to Covid. It is understood the museum is in talks with the oil giants over extending the arrangement further. Several protests against the museum's corporate partnership with BP have been held in recent weeks.

Deborah Locke, a member of BP or not BP, said: "Renewing this sponsorship deal would send a terrible message, making an oil giant seem acceptable when we need to urgently shift away from this disastrous industry.”

The British Museum has previously defended its relationship with BP, stating that "without external support much programming and other major projects would not happen".

The British Museum's board of trustees have received a formal call to reject a new sponsorship deal with BP.

Sent following revelations that Museum Director Hartwig Fischer plans to renew the partnership, Culture Unstained's submission argues trustees must exercise “informed and ethical judgement” of its continued association with the energy company.

The demand is co-signed by eight leading professionals including former Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Chair Robert Watson, and Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of PCS Union, which represents many British Museum workers.

More than 300 people are planning to take part in a protest arranged by BP or not BP? on Saturday, the fourth held at the museum this month.

Culture Unstained Co-Director Chris Garrard says it is vital trustees "fulfil their legal duties".

"If the board does approve a new deal with BP, it would signal that they chose to sidestep their own sustainability policy and dismiss the reputational risks of partnering with a leading fossil fuel producer as the climate crisis worsens."

A science festival has ended its association with energy company BP after fielding years of criticism.

New Scientist Live, due to take place in Manchester this weekend, has shifted its approach after dropping BP as a sponsor and speaker at an online event in September.

Several scientists withdrew from the event in protest at the time, though the festival has faced pressure over the controversial alliance since 2019.

Activist group Culture Unstained welcomed the change of policy, while Dr Emma Garnett, who pulled out of the event last year, applauded the festival's courage.

"I understand it is difficult for organisations to turn away funding. However, it is vital organisations refuse fossil fuel sponsorship because these companies are polluting our discussions as well as our planet.

"I think the evidence is incredibly clear: how far we succeed in limiting climate change depends on dismantling fossil fuel industry influence in our politics and culture."

A 30 year sponsorship deal between BP and the National Gallery will end in December, the parties say.

In a press release on Tuesday (February 22), they confirmed that BP's support of the Portrait Award will not be renewed. It said the decision was made "together", offering no insight into whether pressure to end oil company sponsorship of the arts convinced either partner that time was up.

"The BP of today is a very different company from when we first started our partnership with the National Portrait Gallery," the company's UK boss Louise Kingham said, noting a need to find "new ways to best use our talent, experience, and resources".

Lobby groups Culture Unstained and BP or not BP? claim its clear the partnership had become too controversial.

"This is clearly a vote of no confidence in BP’s business. The company spent 30 years painting a picture of itself as a responsible philanthropist but it is rapidly running out of places to clean up its toxic image," Culture Unstained Co-Director Jess Worth said.

Nicholas Cullinan, Director of the National Portrait Gallery, expressed gratitude for the long-running support.

"Its funding for the award has fostered creativity, encouraged portrait painting for over 30 years and given a platform to artists from around the world, as well as providing inspiration and enjoyment for audiences across the UK."

It's estimated the sponsorship enabled six million free visits and contributed to the career development of more than 1,500 portrait artists.

The last Portrait Award was in 2020. It was not staged this year or last because the gallery is closed for redevelopment.

New targets for decarbonising Wales' screen sector are on their way.

Screen New Deal: Transformation Plan will see the BFI, BAFTA albert and Arup collaborate with Creative Wales, Fflim Cymru Wales and Clwstwr to create new sustainability recommendations for the industry.

The 18-month programme will begin with 12 months' data collection, followed by zero carbon, zero waste plan of action.

The initiative responds to the Screen New Deal report in 2020, which explored the film sector's carbon impact.

“Taking this work across a screen cluster’will develop practical and sustainable outcomes that can work for all productions and help reduce the sector's carbon footprint,” BFI Deputy CEO Harriet Finney said.

Glyndebourne will invest £25 per tonne of its direct and energy use emissions into sustainability measures.

The opera house will plant new trees on site, replace all plastic signage and continue converting to LED lighting.

All four new productions scheduled for this year’s Glyndebourne Festival will adopt the Theatre Green Book's baseline principles.

Glyndebourne is also marking 10 years of generating its own power through an on-site wind turbine, which has cut its energy emissions by 83% since 2009. 

“Our priority remains to continue to reduce gross carbon emissions,” Managing Director Sarah Hopwood said.

Leading scientists have boycotted the Science Museum until it announces a moratorium on fossil fuel funding.

An open letter signed by over 60 professionals, including former Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Chair Robert Watson, says they “can no longer be complicit" in the policies adopted by the museum.

“This means publicly committing not to renew any existing contracts when they expire, or to form any new ones until, at the very least, the company demonstrates a credible plan for phasing out fossil fuels in line with the Paris 1.5°C target,” it continues.

The letter follows criticism of the Science Museum’s sponsorship agreements with oil giants Shell and Adani, which led to the resignation of its former director and two trustees, and comes amid new claims the institution signed a similar 'gagging clause' with Adani as it it did Shell.

The contract prohibits the museum from making "any statement or issue any publicity or otherwise be involved in any conduct or matter that may reasonably be forsseen as discrediting or damaging the goodwill or reputation" of Adani Green Energy.

The Science Museum did not apply its own standards for ethical sponsorship to the Adani's parent group because the deal is with Adani Green Energy.

However, newly released documents suggest Adani Group negotiated the partnership.

"In the wake of COP26, there is no justification for providing positive PR to companies heavily involved in fossil fuel extraction," said Culture Unstained Co-Director Jess Worth.

"It’s time [the Science Museum] admitted their mistake and engaged with those who care so deeply about the museum’s future that they are willing to pass up paid work and prestigious opportunities to make their concerns heard."