Cate Blanchett -- Celebrity Green Report
Written By Katherine Sansom
May 14, 2007
Cate Blanchett is an actress and holder of an Academy Award and Golden Globe, and she is now using her celebrity to gain exposure for her favorite environmental causes. The actress has described global warming and global poverty as, “the two most pressing issues of our time,” and vowed to use her wealth and profile to take action on both.
Earlier this year, Cate was announced as patron of the organization SolarAid, a charity set up to promote the use of solar energy in the poorest parts of the world, providing cheap energy and income-raising projects in the production and sale of solar devices. She will be appearing at the Hay Literary Festival later in the year to promote the charity's work.
Cate and her husband, Andrew Upton, became co-Artistic Directors of The Sydney Theater Company, one of Australia’s most highly noted theater companies, at the end of 2006, and made it clear in their initial press conference that they intended to make the STC “green”. The long-term plan is to make the company's building the first theater in the world to be powered entirely off the electricity grid, using solar panels and recycled rainwater.
The actress’s own home is entirely solar-powered, she promoted Earth Hour in Sydney, took part in the Walk Against Warming protest with her children, and also donated a substantial sum to the charity Forest Guardians.
