Sod the Olympics, what about the Arctic?
by Richard George, climate campaigner
Shell’s summer of risky oil drilling got off to an inauspicious start this month, when their launch party in Seattle went horribly wrong. Within hours, footage of the PR disaster – in which a drill rig-shaped drinks dispenser leaked all over the guest of honour – had gathered half a million views on Youtube and a dubstep remix. That’s when we stepped in to reveal that the party – and the leaky rig – was a hoax organised by Greenpeace, the Yes Men and Occupy.
Jokes aside, what Shell is planning is simply madness – and we’re not going to take it lying down. We’re days away from launching what will be one of the biggest campaigns Greenpeace has ever run, and what will be the defining environmental battle of our age - the campaign to Stop Shell and #SaveTheArctic.
So please keep your eyes peeled for the launch events on the Greenpeace website. This is going to be the big and we're going to need your help. And while you wait - why not spend a few minutes designing a #shellfail poster to share with your friends via Facebook?
Get Active - Forget the Jubilee, the Euros, the Olympics and join a protest at your local Shell petrol station.
Contact your nearest network coordinator, make friends with other Greenpeace supporters and help kick start the international campaign.
Get Active - Write a letter to the local paper, about protests in your area, posters you may have seen locally, or simply the campaign news online.
Behind the Scenes - what happened to your undercover research?
by Sarah Shoraka, forests campaigner
It was a chance encounter on the stairwell, a hurriedly pulled together website, a missing piece of the forests puzzle and your last minute help that ultimately led to a campaign success featured in the Telegraph, the Independent and the Guardian.
Greenpeace often asks volunteers and active supporters to do a bit of discreet research in the local area. In February I took a bit of a risk, and also invited some of our online supporters, perhaps including you, to help me track which supermarkets were stocking beef from a particular slaughterhouse in Brazil linked to rainforest destruction and belonging to JBS the biggest beef company in the world.
Your response was phenomenal with 1372 reports being submitted within 7 days, helping expose two other UK supermarket chains, with links to rainforest destruction. Four months on your research, alongside other Greenpeace investigations, helped me persuade Tesco’s to cut contracts with JBS over deforestation, following moves from Asda, Sainsbury’s, Princes and other companies.
Greenpeace’s strength remains the passion and enthusiasm of the people who support us. From a hurried email in February to Tesco’s announcement last week, there is a clear link between what you did, the behaviour of a major supermarket chain and the impact on the Amazonian rainforest.
We’re going to continue our work in Brazil, and internationally to persuade JBS to end its role in deforestation. Supermarkets like Tesco’s cancelling contracts continues to add to the pressure.
Thank you
Spotlight on Adrian,
from Bethnal Green Greenpeace
.... I think the first challenge for me, before I got in touch with my local Greenpeace coordinator, was to forgive myself for not being a good green citizen already. I can’t think of any other way to put it, but to elaborate, I accepted that while I didn’t have immaculate green credentials I did have the will to give up a few hours every month and to set about discovering what the next level of involvement would be .... read more
Political lobbying training
Trained Greenpeace supporters are lobbying MPs on the Energy and Climate Change committee to talk about renewable energy (amongst other issues), and MEPs across the UK to talk about the Common Fisheries Policy campaign. If you would like to attend a free, one day training course, or simply to find out more, then please complete this form.
There are training events planned in London (Sat 7th July) and Edinburgh (Sat 14th July)
Thank you for all your hard work campaigning with Greenpeace - it's going to be a busy summer.
Tim, Rachael and Malcolm
Outreach team
P.S. The new #SaveTheArctic materials have just arrived, for mailing out to volunteer groups/networks next week. The set of six stickers of iconic Arctic animals including the Walrus, are simply the best.
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