I started volunteering for my local Greenpeace group a couple of years ago. At the time, I had no idea what volunteering locally would mean – all I knew was that I wanted to be involved in trying to do something about the looming environmental problems we were facing. I was already a Greenpeace fan. I liked and respected the way Greenpeace took direct action. Their communications spoke to me and I was a financial supporter – but I wanted to be able to do something too.
An Inspiring Start
My involvement in Greenpeace was inspiring from the start. The first meeting I attended was a talk given by the first mate of the Rainbow Warrior who, it turned out, just happened to be from my sleepy town. The local group had put the talk on to help raise funds for the construction of the Rainbow Warrior 3. Listening to the talk, being given by someone who had gone to the same Sixth Form as me, was exciting. I suppose I realised that one of those people who I had once admired from a distance was actually no different from me – and that I really could be involved with something special.
Winning Campaigns
The next thing I did with my local group involved hiding Barbie Dolls around the town for part of the Forests campaign targeting the toy company Matel. It seemed there was no such thing as a ‘normal’ Greenpeace event. I started getting involved in running stalls, helping with campaigns and talking to members of the public. We went to local festivals, dressed up in amazing costumes, went on a ‘research mission’ which involved sending KFC packaging to the Exeter research laboratory so that Greenpeace scientists could discover whether protected Indonesian hardwoods were being used in KFC’s containers (they were – and a year later I was wearing an Orang-utan suit at a protest outside a KFC – two years later the campaign had been won), and visited the brand new Rainbow Warrior 3 when it came to London on its maiden voyage.
You Get What You Give: The Rewards
Since getting involved I’ve done a lot for Greenpeace, but I’ve also received a lot back in return. I’ve attended training courses and gained new skills – from learning more about street campaigning, becoming a ‘Greenspeaker’, to becoming a trained activist. I’ve taken action against things I believe are truly wrong, and have had the opportunity to stand up for what I believe in. I've also met some amazing people and made friends I will have for life. Most importantly though, I’ve become empowered and been continually inspired. I truly believe that individuals can make a difference and that we can change the world, the people I have met by being involved in Greenpeace have left me in no doubt of this – and that’s an emotion and a state of mind I can’t put a price on.
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