Greenpeace active supporters on their way to the BP HQ in London. Greenpeace/Buus
Campaign Review: BP & Tar Sands
Back at the beginning of May, we launched the high street phase of our tar sands campaign. Active supporters went out across the country to talk to the public, inviting them to make 'No Tar Sands' messages on large posters and sign postcards to BP urging them not to go ahead with their planned investments in the tar sands of Canada.
So far 8000 of these cards have been sent to various staff in different departments within BP. You have signed up 2500 new people who want to stay in touch and help the campaign. The 'No Tar Sands' posters have been displayed at events at BP garage forecourts throughout the country and we have just concluded a rolling programme of events at the BP HQ involving 39 networks and approximately 100 volunteers over three weeks. This protest has been a brilliant example of bearing witness, one of our core values. Many thanks to everyone who took part.
Now we want to transform the Behind The Logo work into a broader campaign to 'Go Beyond Oil' that looks at how we can move away from oil dependency and look deeper into things like electric vehicles and new, cleaner technologies. The closure of 46 BP petrol stations in central London by Greenpeace activists last week was the first step of this campaign. More to come on this campaign soon!
BP logo competition winner announced
We asked Greenpeace members worldwide to help rebrand BP and design them a logo better suited to a company responsible for a string of environmental disasters, including the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. After more than 2,000 submissions, over 2,000,000 hits to the Flickr group and more than 25,000 votes, we have a new logo for BP.
Hot on the heels of our success with HSBC, comes the fantastic news that the European parliament has voted overwhelmingly in favour of a law banning illegal timber from entering the European Union. Greenpeace has been campaigning on this for 10 years and active supporters have been involved in many aspects of it, from campaigning outside garden centres to branding timber at Tilbury docks and many other public events and direct actions besides. Thank you for helping to make this happen.
Introductory training for new activists
Greenpeace organises regular introductory training sessions in street campaigning. Dates are being planned for Brighton and York and they will be advertised here once details are finalised.
A chance for active supporters, new and old, to come together to learn and share skills, to hear campaign updates, and to find out more about how Greenpeace works.
Bournemouth Saturday 11th September - Please email Naveed by Friday 27th August to book your place.
Scotland Saturday 6th November - Please email Jo to book your place.
Non-violent Direct Action (NVDA) training
If you are interested in taking direct action with Greenpeace you need to attend a one day NVDA training course. To attend one of these training events you need to get in contact with and be recommended by your local network coordinator. Confirmed training days will run in Canterbury on 7th August, Manchester and Birmingham on 18th September and Bristol on 16th October.
Greenpeace is developing a new lobbying network and even if you're not involved with a local network you can get involved. Training events are planned for Birmingham on 21st August, London on 25th September and Edinburgh and Bristol later in the year. If lobbying your MP is something you would like to do on a regular basis, then please email us.
Stop Climate Chaos mobilisation
As part of the Stop Climate Chaos coalition we'd like to invite you to join us in Parliament on the 5th or 6th November to meet your MP and demand strong UK climate policies in the run up to the UN climate change talks in Mexico. Please get involved now, become a trained lobbyist and help ensure a fair, ambitious and binding global climate deal.
The next step in our tar sands work is to push for the strongest possible European law that restricts imports of highly-polluting fuels. BP and other oil lobbyists are hard at work trying to water down the new law that has the potential to exclude fuels from tar sands and oil shales from being imported here and put in our tanks. This is a fantastic opportunity to stop these climate-changing fuels entering the UK and the EU.
Help us take the first step to go beyond oil. Please write to transport secretary Theresa Villiers and ask her to support the strongest possible European law that would restrict imports of the most damaging fuels including as tar sands. Click here to find out more and to email her.
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