VOLUNTEERS at this year's Urdd Eisteddfod are felling the energy thanks to a sponsorship boost.
RWE, Wales’ largest electricity generator, is a sponsor of the Eisteddfod, being held in Denbigh this week.
The company is sponsoring the event’s volunteers and stewards, who are on-hand to guide attendees around the festival site in Denbigh.
The Clocaenog Forest Wind Farm Fund, that will contribute £19m over the lifetime of RWE’s nearby Clocaenog Wind Farm, is sponsoring a sensory garden within the event.
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With a long history in Wales, many of the company’s staff have personal connections to the Urdd Eisteddfod – Europe’s largest touring youth festival.
Eleri Davies, head of onshore development at RWE Renewables in Wales, said: “I have very fond memories of attending the Urdd Eisteddfod as a youngster.
“RWE has a long history in Wales - from our hydroelectric plant at Dolgarrog, through to the wind farms we operate both onshore and offshore, and our gas-fired power station at Pembroke.
"Equally, we have a long-term ambition for Wales in the future, through driving innovation at our Pembroke Net Zero Centre to building floating wind capacity in the Celtic Sea.
"We understand the importance of the Welsh language and culture, and the vital role the Urdd plays in celebrating these.”
The Urdd Eisteddfod is expecting to attract around 100,000 visitors over the course of the week, with around 15,000 children and young people from Wales and beyond taking part in singing, instrumental, dance, recitation, drama and many other competitions.
A central part of the event is the Peace and Goodwill Message which this year focuses on the climate emergency.
This is a call for action from the children and young people of Wales to urge governments and large corporations to take urgent action to save our planet.
RWE is already committed to this, with a strategy in place for its energy generation to be climate neutral by 2040 by focusing on renewable and storage technologies.
Director of the Urdd Eisteddfod and the arts Siân Eirian said: “The support we’ve had from local volunteers, communities and businesses has been fantastic.
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"We are very grateful to the RWE for sponsoring elements of the Urdd Eisteddfod this year, and in doing so, helping us to provide the best possible experiences not only for the festival’s visitors, but to the local community as well.
“The sensory garden, for example, is an exciting eco-friendly, environmental project that will engage young people’s interest in nature and the arts and will be transferred back to the community once the Eisteddfod has come to an end in order to ensure legacy and community activity in the area.”
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