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The controversial Stuart Shale Oil Project in Queensland has been mothballed indefinitely.
Enlarge imageOur methods
Methods Greenpeace uses to pressure corporations to change include:
- taking action at company headquarters or the site of the environmental damage
- exposing the company's wrongdoing to the public
- asking thousands of people to email a complaint to the company CEO
- asking people to boycott the company's products
- attending annual general meetings
- publishing reports and consumer guides outlining the company policy
Our successes
We have had great success pressuring corporations to care for the environment. For example, we forced Coco-Cola to change their greenhouse polluting refrigeration worldwide. Following on from our anti shale oil campaign, in 2004 Queensland Energy Resources announced an end to the climate polluting Stuart Shale Oil Project.
More recently, we have targeted corporations to end their association with Japanese whaling, sell certified timber products, stop ancient forest logging and produce GE-free food.
Why we target business
Business is an effective target for environmental activism. Corporations can be the worst environmental offenders and a source of large scale destruction, whether logging an ancient rainforest, creating genetically engineered food or planning a polluting new coalmine.
Businesses aim to maximise returns to shareholders, sometimes at the expense of the environment and without concern for social impacts. Globalisation and the rush to be internationally competitive compound the problem.
Progressive laws are required to set standards and push the laggards but we are also out there talking to companies, persuading them to take a best practice approach and adopt truly sustainable measures.Thankfully, many businesses now respond positively to pressure from activists. They enjoy the competitive advantages that come with developing a green, sustainable corporate reputation.
