The Theatres Trust has announced the first twelve venues participating in its European Regional Development Fund backed environmental sustainability project, Ecovenue.
Ecovenue aims to make a real difference to the environmental performance of 48 London theatres, leading the way in promoting the reduction of carbon emissions.
Successful venues in the first round are The Albany Theatre (Deptford), the Bush Theatre (Shepherd’s Bush) Chisenhale Dance Space (Bow), the Compass Theatre (Ickenham), Drill Hall (Bloomsbury), the Duchess Theatre (Westminster), the Finborough Theatre (West Brompton), the Kenneth More Theatre (Ilford), the Little Angel Theatre (Islington), the Polka Theatre (Wimbledon), Southwark Playhouse (Southwark) and Tara Studio (Wandsworth).
These 12 venues are the first of four groups of theatres to receive free theatre-specific, environmental business support from The Theatres Trust through its specially designed Ecovenue project.
Tim Atkinson, The Theatres Trust’s Theatre Building Services Adviser delivering the project said, “These first twelve venues represent the unique diversity of London’s performing arts venues. They are all enthusiastically committed to the challenge of improving their environmental sustainability and sharing their results with the public and the theatre sector.”
Venues will each receive a free energy assessment and a Display Energy Certificate which will tell the public how much energy they use. They will be helped to create and develop environmental policies, and receive specialist assistance in monitoring energy, water use, waste diversion and procurement.
Their reductions in carbon emissions will help to deliver the Mayor of London’s Green Theatre Plan. This aims to help theatres achieve reductions in emissions by 60% from 1990 levels by 2025.
Mhora Samuel, Director of The Theatres Trust said, “Through Ecovenue we now have a real opportunity to help theatres manage their resources more sustainably. It’s fantastic that we have the first twelve venues signed up and I look forward to working with many more throughout the project.”
Ecovenue is delivered by The Theatres Trust, the national advisory public body for theatres and will run until 2012.
Ecovenue continues to be open to applications from all venues/venue managements not currently in receipt of more than €500,000 in aid from public bodies, with no more than €43m on their balance sheets, and less than 250 full-time employees.
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