The price of gas: imports, repression and fuel poverty
Feb 21, 2013
In a deplorable attack on the right to protest energy giant EDF is attempting to sue 21 activists for £5mn in a civil action. The No Dash for Gas campaigners occupied West Burton gas power station for 7 days by scaling two of the three 91m high cooling towers, brave people. They are going to...
Oil company mega-profits and the dwindling public purse
Feb 18, 2013
Yesterday, The Observer ran a story about George Osborne promising to crack down on multinationals avoiding tax in some of the world’s poorest countries. Anger over corporate tax avoidance at a time of massive cuts
to public spending has placed the issue on the political agenda, especially since widespread popular protest sparked by UK Uncut. The money...
The Flooding of Fares – are oil companies destroying an Egyptian village?
Feb 13, 2013
In the village of Fares in southern Egypt, seventy homes have collapsed. School corridors are underwater, the cemetery has become a swamp and acres of mango orchards ruined. Their river didn’t flood and there was no torrential downpour. Instead, the water rose out of the ground. Starting as a trickle, it worked its way into...
Has RBS stopped financing the tar sands? (Spoiler: No)
Feb 12, 2013
Last week RBS chairman Philip Hampton took part in a live Q&A session on the Guardian in response to the Libor-rigging scandal. One of the questions that was put to Hampton by a reader was How do you continue to justify continued your role in financing the Canadian tar sands, arguably a greater crime than...
MAKE8ELIEVE – online art magazine issue dedicated to oil
Feb 11, 2013
As an organisation that combines arts, activism and research with a pretty hefty focus on the damage caused by UK oil companies, we were super-excited to have a flick through the third issue of an online arts magazine MAKE8ELIEVE, that aims to “build international connections by publishing creative interpretations of one topic per issue.” It’s...
Top 12 journeys on The Oil Road – Travel writing around the Mediterranean & the Caspian
Feb 6, 2013
A heavily shortened version of this list by James Marriott and Mika Minio-Paluello first appeared in the Guardian in January 2012. In researching The Oil Road – Journeys from the Caspian Sea to the City of London, we feasted on others’ descriptions of the mountains and plains, villages and cities, open seas and jagged coastlines...
Celebrating women’s leadership in anti-oil activism as part of #SilverAction
Feb 2, 2013
If you go down to Tate’s oil tanks this Sunday, you’re sure for a pretty amazing piece of participatory performance art. Hundreds of women over the age of sixty will convene in The Tanks at Tate Modern as participants in Suzanne Lacy’s new performance artwork Silver Action. Women from across the UK who took part in significant activist...
Skewing debate on oil sponsorship of the arts on The Today Programme
Jan 30, 2013
BBC Radio 4’s The Today Programme hosted a five minute discussion on corporate sponsorship this morning (at 0854). I promise I’m not just bitter that they never called me in, but I think it was fairly poor journalism to pick a handful of one-sided voices for the so-called debate. The panel included Rita Clifton, who was once named ‘The...
Shell guilty: Court in the Hague orders Shell to pay compensation over oil spill in Nigeria
Jan 30, 2013
It’s big news. For the first time, Shell has been found guilty in a court outside of the country in which it inflicted damage; in this case, in a court in the Hague for an oil spill in Nigeria. Shell will be forced to pay compensation to a farmer whose land and livelihood was ruined...
BP in Algeria – following the hydrocarbons, regardless of the dangers
Jan 30, 2013
The recent attack on a gas plant in Algeria is a horrible reminder of the costs involved when companies relentlessly pursue oil and gas extraction in conflict regions. 38 workers were killed during the violence. Since the crisis there has been a lot of speculation about what it means for security spending in the region....
Shell on trial – landmark ruling on oil spills due this Wednesday
Jan 28, 2013
This Wednesday a Dutch court will rule on whether Shell should clean up oil damage that destroyed a group of Nigerian farmers’ land in a landmark case that could lead the way for a spate of similar actions in the future. The farmers, whose land has been destroyed by oil from Shell pipelines, have travelled...
Who shook the Shakers? The influences behind the upcoming arts, race, media and power course
Jan 28, 2013
This February sees a new session start for the Shake! course on arts, media, race and power. Over five days young people will have space to imagine what justice looks like, experiment with new ideas, learn new tools, such as practical hands-on techniques in spoken word, online media, film/video and music technology. There will also...
