Volunteer Resources

Toolkit: Take Action: Oil in the Cloud

Intro

This toolkit will provide everything you need to learn and take action around Greenpeace’s campaign addressing climate and tech companies. 

 

What we learned

KNOW: The ins and outs of  Oil in the Cloud report.  

DO: Put pressure on Amazon through instagram stories and signing a virtual petition.  

FEEL: The feeling of taking collective action on a strategic target. 

Oil in the Cloud

Greenpeace US delivers its message demanding Jeff Bezos and Amazon board members protect workers and the planet on the eve of the company’s annual shareholder meeting. Tens of thousands of people have joined Greenpeace’s #NoTech4Oil campaign, urging Amazon to end its artificial intelligence contracts with Oil and Gas companies. Greenpeace supporters have also called on Amazon to do more to protect its workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Oil in the Cloud

Right now, while our planet speeds toward the brink of the climate crisis, Amazon is putting its foot on the accelerator. As oil and gas profits continue to fall, giant oil corporations have turned to cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) to answer their problems. Amazon’s cloud services and AI technologies are helping fossil fuel companies to transport, refine, and sell even more oil at a lower cost.

By supporting Big Oil with these AI contracts, Amazon is helping them lock us into burning fossil fuels and further jeopardizing the future of the planet.

If enough of us speak out, we can make these contracts a lightning rod for Amazon shareholders and force the company to choose whose future they’re investing in: the people and the planet, or the fossil fuel industry. Add your name to tell Amazon’s CEO and board to stop fueling the climate crisis — and drop AI contracts with Big Oil!

Greenpeace examined 14 contracts between Amazon, Google, and Microsoft with major oil and gas companies:

  • Microsoft appears to have the most contracts with oil and gas companies, offering AI capabilities in all phases of oil production. We estimate a single contract with ExxonMobil in the Permian Basin to result in additional annual emissions of 3.4 million metric tons CO2e, the equivalent of more than 20% of Microsoft’s total annual carbon footprint [3]. Microsoft can never truly achieve its recently announced “Carbon Negative” goal while continuing to aid the oil and gas sector with exploration and production.
  • Amazon continues to market its cloud services to help oil and gas firms boost production despite rebranding its website to target the more palatable “Energy Sector” [4]. These contracts showcase Amazon’s ongoing duplicity: on the one hand announcing its Climate Pledge to be carbon neutral by 2040, while on the other offering an ongoing lifeline to oil and gas companies. In addition to ending these contracts, Amazon must do more to protect warehouse and distribution workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and stop retaliating against employees for speaking out about these problems.
  • Google has undergone personnel and structural changes that show it is deprioritizing contracts, stating recently it will no longer “develop custom AI/ML solutions to facilitate upstream extraction” for the oil and gas industry [5]. While this is a good first step, Google still needs to account for its existing involvement with oil and gas companies and publicly commit to end these contracts.

Putting pressure on Amazon

STEP 1: Sign the petition 

STEP 2: Share the petition on your social media. Graphics to share. 

STEP 3: Send the petition to 5 strategic friends 

STEP 4: Comment on Jeff Bezos’ instagram

Key Takeaways & Resources

Key Takeaway

  • Though tech companies are massive, they care about their image and listen to the public — pressure is important.  
  • Intentional and relational outreach to your networks makes a difference in changing mindsets. 
  • The best place to keep oil and gas is in the ground.

Resources

Stay in the loop & Join future calls

  1. We had a call about climate and tech companies too – check out the slides. Watch the recording. 
  2. Join our Greenpeace slack to talk with other Greenpeace volunteers, ask questions and be the first to hear about new opportunities to take action.
  3. Check out all our volunteer resources.

Thank you for taking action & staying positive,

Supporter Mobilization (SupMob) Team at Greenpeace USA

Got any questions?

Supporter Mobilization Team in a recent Zoom Meeting

If you have any questions or run into any issues, reach out to the Supporter Mobilization Team at [email protected]