Best of 2007

Feature story - January 11, 2008
2007 is being hailed as the year in which the environmental movement turned a corner and climate change leapt to the top of the agenda. Al Gore and the IPCC won the Nobel Peace Prize; we got up close and personal with the Bering Sea; and an unsuspecting humpback whale named Mister Splashy Pants became a global phenomenon.

So what were you most interested in? This list of our ten most-read web features, unsurprisingly, that for most of our readers, it was global warming, Exxon Secrets, whale defenders… Oh, and Mister Splashy Pants.

1. Global Warming

As global warming heated up the world, so did our Project Hot Seat campaign. As environmentalists, you wanted to know what more you could do in your communities to help combat global warming. And, citizens all over the United States joined in Project Hot Seat - encouraging Congress to step up our country's efforts to halt the most important environmental challenge of our time.

2. Exxon Secrets

You have shown us that people really do enjoy a good scandal. ExxonSecrets is our research project highlighting the more than a decade-long campaign by Exxon-funded front groups - and the scientists they work with - to deny the urgency of the scientific consensus on global warming and delay action to fix the problem.

3. Green My Apple

With overwhelming public support, we cooked up a greener Apple in just 9 months by successfully pressuring computer company Apple to remove hazardous materials from its products.

4. Deadliest Catch

While our campaigners and scientists were exploring the Bering Sea - you wanted to join in on the fun as well. You got your feet wet and tried to survive the dangers lurking in the Bering Sea. We've created a game for you to test your skills and see just what you'd be up against if you were a fish. And, what fun we had playing the game (even if we didn't do so well).

5. Baring it all for Global Warming

Six hundred people bared it all for global warming by shedding their clothes on a glacier in the Swiss Alps. The nude activists posed for us and renowned installation artist Spencer Tunick to bodily cry out for help against a planetary emergency: global warming.

6. iPhones

As iPhones grew in popularity, so did the knowledge of their toxic composure. Greenpeace exposed iPhones toxic makeup -- scientific tests have revealed that Apple's iPhone contains toxic brominated compounds and hazardous PVC.

7. Mr. Splashy Pants

As a Greenpeace web editor, it was a joy to watch this story unfold. Our international office held a whale naming competition. "Mister Splashy Pants" made it to the final list. The story was BoingBoing-ed and Reddit-ed. There's now a humpback whale called Mr Splashy Pants swimming around the Southern Ocean.  

8. Whale Defenders

You continue to support our yearly trip to the Southern Ocean to call attention to the Japanese who continue to slaughter whales despite the worldwide moratorium. Our ship, the Esperanza will continue steaming ahead in the Southern Ocean en route to defend the whales from the Japanese whaling fleet that are conducting commercial whaling under the guise of scientific research.

9. Going Deep

Using compact submarines, we were one of the first people to ever see the world's largest underwater canyons in the Bering Sea - and probably the first ever to see the wildlife inside them. And, you were excited to come along with us on the expedition - checking out our staff blogs, slideshows and awesome videos.

10. Blogging from the Southern Ocean

Heath Hanson, our RHIB driver, updated us from aboard the Esperanza in pursuit of whalers in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.