News stories
Our activists at the Climate Defenders Camp in Indonesia have had an tough time lately. Many of them have been arrested, interrogated and deported - along with independent journalists. At one point police even tried to shut down the entire camp. Yet thanks to local support, our camp continues, in the heart of the rainforest, with the spirit and resolve of those remaining now stronger than ever as we celebrate a first positive step resulting from our work.
A few days ago the cargo ship The Happy Ranger left France carrying steam generators intended for the nuclear European Pressurised Reactor under construction in Olkiluoto, Finland. As the ship made its way from France to Finland, activists from the Arctic Sunrise boarded the cargo ship and are currently occupying the deck.
We've been watching the horizon for this one for a very long time, but our colleagues up in the crow's nest report that a new blip on the horizon could mean an end to Japanese whaling in Antarctica.
While politicians continue to talk, we're taking action at the frontline of forest and climate destruction in Indonesia. Barack Obama is about to arrive in Asia for his first official visit while the US continues to block progress ahead of the critical UN climate summit.
The government of Japan has decided to look into wasteful spending. We can't think of a greater waste than the Japanese whaling programme. So we sent a delegation to the place where the review committee is meeting.
You know the story. The clever tailors that convince a kingdom that only intelligent people can see the clothes they make. Everyone talks about how fine the emperor's outfit is, until one audacious voice pipes up to say there's nothing there, the king is naked. When the reality of climate change politics is stripped of rhetoric, most of the industrialised world's leaders are seriously underdressed, and Obama isn't wearing a stitch.
If we told you that there was one single way to cut a fifth of global greenhouse emissions - that simply involved hugging trees - would you believe us? Probably not - but that's exactly what's required. And we've got 50 activists in the Indonesian rainforest together with Inglourious Basterds star Mélanie Laurent - doing just that - and calling on world leaders to do the same.
The Pearl River is China's third longest river, and second largest by volume. But when it comes to pollution, it may well be on its way to being second to none.
People could some day recall that it was the Information Technology (IT) industry's advocacy for strong action which tipped the balance at the Copenhagen climate summit. But that's not going to happen unless all of us press them to become climate champions. As our updated Cool IT Challenge leaderboard reveals, IT heavyweights such as Google, Microsoft and IBM are still hesitating to speak up on the urgent need for emissions reductions.
From the paddy fields of Thailand, 62-year old rice farmer Samnieng Huadlim joined Spanish and Swedish farmers in Brussels to present the EU Commissioner for Health Androulla Vassiliou with our 180,000-signature-strong petition against potential legislation authorising the introduction of GE rice; along with a selection of delicious organic tapas.
