WOMAD

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  I'm with you PD - and as you say, hopefully Womad have listened to our views, and will choose their sponsors with more thought and mindfulness in the future. I was only aware of the Shell sponsorship recently, and if it should continue in New Zealand, it will make me think extremely seriously about attending any future Womads - which would be sooooo sad
  The end doesn't justify the means!

  Posted on 22-Mar-2012 9:34am by WaterDragon

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  I can't help feeling that Shell have got us all exactly where they want us trying to clean up their dirty name by affiliating themselves with a festival like Womad. x

  Posted on 22-Mar-2012 8:25pm by Yummy Mummy

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  WOMAD note at the bottom of thewebsite that a 'small' number have objected to the SHELL sponsorship in NewZealand so Google this and watch that number grow lucy lawless greenpeace
  Should i say Dhow chemicals/Olympics ? As for Trebor (see below)
  I think we should call you Polo as their are so many holes in your defence of Shell...and we have a gas disaster emerging as we speak.

  Posted on 27-Mar-2012 3:44pm by Bobski

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  There are absolutely no holes in what I posted. I argued neither for or against Shell or their operations, and I certainly wasn't defending them. I just posted some observations from personal experience and tried to show how just because an organisation claims to have environmental credentials doesn't means it aways tells the truth, just as just because a company produces hydrocarbons doesn't mean it doesn't care about the environment. So many people started slagging Shell off with out even trying to find out anything about that company or their operations for themselves.

  Your last statement is typical of the sensationalism that some use against companies or industries they don't like. For a start it has nothing to do with Shell (assuming you are talking of the North Sea incident). The incident is without doubt a very large gas leak which has the potential to become a disaster. I work in that industry and I don't have the full facts about this incident, so I doubt very much that you do, and I'm certain the press don't!

  Posted on 29-Mar-2012 10:14pm by Trebor

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  Just visited the Lucy Lawless Greenpeace site, it is a real eye opener! Shell are about to start drilling for oil in our last great wilderness, they know that if a deep water horizon type disaster happened in the Arctic clean up would be impossible yet three years more oil and a a few million more dollars are apparently worth it!!

  Have been going to WOMAD for years and am shocked that they would be naive enough to accept sponsorship from them at a time like this, obviously missed Frozen Planet....bad move!
  

  Posted on 30-Mar-2012 2:32pm by Welshie69

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  The dates and sponsors for womad nz 2013 have been announced and yes, Shell are going.

  Womad uk 2013? Count me out.

  Posted on 29-May-2012 7:35am by SkyBlueSaddler

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  Very sad to here the news from NZ plus that you won't be at Womad 2013. It is sad that Womad NZ has chosen to "take the money", but when reading what Womad is about there are no mention of ethical correctness or morallity, just sharing, Music, Dance and against racism. So they havn't broken any promises, I just guess we assumed they had higher standards. I do not honestly know what I will do. In Womad NZ defense at least they have a link to "Sponsors" Womad UK does not, so at least NZ is being open and transparant. Don't know what I'll do, as I havn't found a festival as good as Womad. What would be good is if Womad could say why rather than Shell are a local employer and we needed the money. Very sad day and I guess I'll get a barrage of abuse for these thoughts

  Posted on 29-May-2012 1:32pm by S.C.

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  your are entitled to your opinion and no one should be abused for airing there views

  A few months ago Del read a book about an Australian man who decides repatriate a aboriginal skull his father had found. At one point he went to a story telling festival and saw shocked to see the event was sponsored by a mining company. Later on he was speaking with one of the aboriginal story teller and asked her about the mining company sponsoring the event. She told him that the mining company had done a lot to help her tribe and were very respectful of any sacred sights.

  Del is a great believer in working with and not against so may be Shell sponsorship is a chance for us to influence Shell.

  Posted on 29-May-2012 2:58pm by Cal N Del

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  The Charlton Park page does have a link to the Guardian at the bottom on the right. Aren't they the only major sponsor? I think others such as Riverside Foods & BBC3 only sponsor their respective stages. I don't keep my programmes so can't be sure.

  While mankind continues to be so dependent on oil and the products derived from it, there will always be problems with pollution, human displacement, local fighting over land ownership etc.. There's just too much money involved in the whole business and that will always bring out the worst in human nature. As the population of the planet grows things will only get worse as all our resources are finite. I've been watching the BBC series on the Indian Ocean and there have been things in that which scare the hell out of me.

  I find it hard to criticise the local promoters in New Zealand as we're all complicit in one way or another, a view that I realise is often viewed as a cop-out, but if they’ve continued to have them as a sponsor for 9 years then I can only assume that they are providing some local benefit and who am I to pass judgement when I don't have all the facts.

  Posted on 29-May-2012 3:17pm by Chas

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  I think it's a basic error to associate a music festival with the ethics of global transport. . . Perhaps womad (and other festivals) has projected a certain image in the past, as if it could all be done by low carbon flying carpets. . . but I would guess that's all it is in the most part, an image. How do you all get to womad? How do all the performers get there? What do they do and how do they when not at womad? The world is probably fucked whoever sponsors womad.

  Posted on 29-May-2012 7:10pm by Mr Beef

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