SAY NO TO SHELL’S SPONSORSHIP OF THE WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR COMPETITION

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 05/05/2007 - 17:00
SAY NO TO SHELL’S SPONSORSHIP OF THE WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR COMPETITION

Shell is the third largest oil company in the world. It is also the
new sponsor of the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of
the Year Competition. Contradiction, or what?

It’s our view that oil is a curse that fuels wars for resources like
that now being waged at such a high cost in Iraq. It is also the
greatest cause of climate change, which is a worldwide emergency and
could result in the death of 400 million people, mostly in the
poorest countries of the world (according to the government’s Chief
Scientist). This emergency is certain to result in the extinction of
millions of plant and animal species. Oil spills are also major
causes of death and destruction for many varieties of marine life,
including some that are already endangered.

Shell’s core - and growing - business is rooted in oil and gas
production. It seems to have decided that pumping a tiny percentage
of its profits into sponsoring places like the Natural History Museum
(NHM) will divert your attention from this globally suicidal fact…

…which is hopefully where we come in, pointing a spotlight at the
growing gulf between what they say (a language known as ‘greenwash’)
and what they do. We run a campaign/exhibition called ‘Art Not Oil’.
As part of it, we are working with Friends of the Earth to persuade
the NHM and its visitors that Shell is an inappropriate partner for
the Wildlife Photographer Competition. The campaign will include our
own travelling photography exhibition in October 2006 and beyond,
accompanied by speakers from Shell-affected communities. We will keep
at it until Shell is no longer welcome in the NHM.

Things you can do:
* help get the word out, either with more copies of our postcard (see image), or
by contacting people – particularly photographers – who might be up
for helping out or contributing images. That work could be images of
wildlife affected by oil or threatened by climate change, or it could
be of communities directly affected by Big Oil.
* Tell NHM boss Michael Dixon what you think of Shell (not to mention
BP, which is a Museum ‘partner’): m.dixon@nhm.ac.uk, 020 7942 5000.
* keep reducing your emissions, and keep challenging the powers-that-be…

We believe there can be a greener and fairer future for the planet
and its people, a future that will require in part the consigning of
the oil industry to the history books. Our campaign hopes to be one
small step in that direction.

Thanks for reading, and for anything you’re able to do.

Art Not Oil/London Rising Tide, c/o 62 Fieldgate Street, London E1 1ES.
Tel: 07708 794665 info@artnotoil.org.uk
www.shelloiledwildlife.org.uk www.artnotoil.org.uk
www.londonrisingtide.org.uk
See also: www.remembersarowiwa.com

SHELL’S WILD LIE: THE TRUTH WILL OUT...

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