ATG Wins Green Apple Award

Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) - the world's number one live-theatre company - has won a Green Apple Environment Award in the national campaign to find Britain's greenest companies, councils and communities.

ATG competed against more than 500 other nominations in the Green Apple Awards for Environmental Best Practice, and they will be presented with their trophy and certificate at a glittering presentation ceremony in The Houses of Parliament, on 10 November.

Their trophy and certificate will be presented by Miss UK Green Queen.

ATG has won the prize for its Project Blackout initiative. Under an internal ATG campaign - Always Think Green - launched in 2012, Project Blackout was born out of the need to reduce the Group's carbon emissions, relating to the Group's 39 UK theatre/entertainment venues' fuel consumption and associated energy use.

Following initial torchlight surveys, the ongoing project identifies overnight energy waste issues between midnight and 7am, the associated costs involved and engages with senior management, venue managers, ATG's green ambassadors and venue technical teams to help solve energy wastage issues and input simple switch off solutions.

ATG works with LSI Independent Utility Brokers Ltd on the delivery of Project Blackout.

Juliet Hayes, ATG's Safety & Environmental Advisor, said, "Our main aim was to support a culture and behavioural change for ATG with regard to energy management and efficiency so we're absolutely delighted that our Project Blackout scheme has been selected for a Green Apple Environment Award."

Rosemary Squire OBE, ATG's Joint CEO, said, "This award is wonderful national recognition for our Safety, Environmental and Technical (SET) team, their Always Think Green initiative and Project Blackout. The scheme is proving to be a real success across the Group and we've already seen a reduction in overnight energy use by 15%. Congratulations to all of our green ambassadors on their achievements."

As a result of this Green Apple Award success, ATG have been invited to have their winning paper published in The Green Book, the leading international work of reference on environmental best practice, so that others around the world can follow their example and learn from their achievement.

ATG could also progress to represent the UK in the European Business Awards for the Environment.

The Green Apple Awards began in 1994 and have become established as the country's major recognition for environmental endeavour among companies, councils, communities and countries.

The awards are organised by The Green Organisation, an independent, non-political, non-activist, non-profit environment group dedicated to recognising, rewarding and promoting environmental best practice around the world.

The Green Apple Awards are supported by the Environment Agency, the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, the Chartered Institution for Wastes Management and other independent bodies.