Greenpeace

This article is about the international environmental organization. For other uses, see Greenpeace (disambiguation).

Greenpeace
Formation1969; 55 years ago (1969) – 1972 (1972) (see article)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
TypeInternational NGO
PurposeEnvironmentalism, peace
HeadquartersAmsterdam, Netherlands
Region served
Worldwide
Executive Director
Mads Christensen
Main organ
Board of directors, elected by the Annual General Meeting
Budget
€ 103.735 million (2022)
Staff
3,476 (2022)
Volunteers
34,365+ (2022)
Websitegreenpeace.org
Formerly called
Don't Make a Wave Committee (1969–1972)
[1][2]
Part of a series on
Green politics
Sunflower symbol
Core topics
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Perspectives
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Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its diversity"[3] and focuses its campaigning on worldwide issues such as climate change, deforestation, overfishing, commercial whaling, genetic engineering, anti-war[4] and anti-nuclear issues.[5] It uses direct action, advocacy, research, and ecotage[6] to achieve its goals.

The network comprises 26 independent national/regional organisations in over 55 countries across Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia and the Pacific, as well as a coordinating body, Greenpeace International, based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.[7]

The global network does not accept funding from governments, corporations, or political parties, relying on three million individual supporters and foundation grants.[8][9] Greenpeace has a general consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council[10] and is a founding member[11] of the INGO Accountability Charter, an international non-governmental organization that intends to foster accountability and transparency of non-governmental organizations.

Greenpeace is known for its nonviolent direct actions and has been described as one of the most visible environmental organizations in the world.[12] It has raised environmental issues to public knowledge,[13][14][15] and influenced both the private and the public sector.[16][17] The organization has received criticism; it was the subject of an open letter from more than 100 Nobel laureates urging Greenpeace to end its campaign against genetically modified organisms (GMOs).[18] The organization's direct actions have sparked legal actions against Greenpeace activists,[19] such as fines and suspended sentences for destroying a test plot of genetically modified wheat[20][21][22] and, according to the Peruvian Government, damaging the Nazca Lines, a UN World Heritage site.[23]

  1. ^ "Greenpeace International home page, Get involved". Greenpeace.org. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  2. ^ Liddick, Don (2006). Eco-terrorism: Radical Environmental and Animal Liberation Movements. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 16–. ISBN 978-0-275-98535-6. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
  3. ^ "Greenpeace International FAQ: Questions about Greenpeace in general". Greenpeace.org. 8 January 2009. Archived from the original on 11 April 2010. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  4. ^ "Israel-Hamas war: Greenpeace hangs Gaza ceasefire artwork from Madrid museum".
  5. ^ Santese, Angela (2020). "Between Pacifism and Environmentalism: The History of Greenpeace". USAbroad – Journal of American History and Politics. 3 (1S): 107–115. doi:10.6092/issn.2611-2752/11648.
  6. ^ "Greenpeace Protesters Paint Field of Genetically Altered Soybeans". Associated Press News. 10 October 1996. Archived from the original on 24 March 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
  7. ^ "Greenpeace International: Greenpeace worldwide". Greenpeace.org. 7 January 2010. Archived from the original on 23 June 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  8. ^ Gilbert, Sarah Jane (8 September 2008). "Harvard Business School, HBS Cases: The Value of Environmental Activists". Hbswk.hbs.edu. Archived from the original on 10 October 2009. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  9. ^ Greenpeace, Annual Report 2011 Archived 19 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  10. ^ "List of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council as of 1 September 2011" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 April 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  11. ^ "International Non-Governmental Organisations Accountability Charter: Charter Background". Ingoaccountabilitycharter.org. Archived from the original on 13 May 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  12. ^ Henry Mintzberg & Frances Westley – Sustaining the Institutional Environment. BNET.com
  13. ^ EU commissioner hails blockade on waste ship.[permanent dead link] EUbusiness, 28 September 2006.
  14. ^ Marc Mormont & Christine Dasnoy; Source strategies and the mediatization of climate change. Media, Culture & Society, Vol. 17, No. 1, 49–64 (1995).
  15. ^ Milmo, Cahal (18 February 2009). "The Independent Wednesday, 18 February 2009: Dumped in Africa: Britain's toxic waste". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 15 October 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  16. ^ "UNEP: Our Planet: Celebrating 20 Years of Montreal Protocol" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  17. ^ Adidas, Clarks, Nike and Timberland agree moratorium on illegal Amazon leather Archived 6 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Telegraph, 4 August 2009.
  18. ^ "Laureates Letter Supporting Precision Agriculture (GMOs) | Support Precision Agriculture". supportprecisionagriculture.org. Archived from the original on 7 July 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  19. ^ "Greenpeace members charged in Mount Rushmore G-8 protest". CNN.com. 7 January 2010. Archived from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2009.
  20. ^ GMO crops vandalized in Oregon Archived 24 February 2021 at the Wayback Machine, Karl Haro von Mogel, Biology Fortified, 24 June 2013.
  21. ^ "Greenpeace activists in costly GM protest". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 August 2012. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  22. ^ "GM crop destroyers given suspended sentences". The Canberra Times. 19 November 2012. Archived from the original on 5 February 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  23. ^ Kozak, Robert (14 December 2014). "Peru Says Greenpeace Permanently Damaged Nazca Lines". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 21 December 2014. Retrieved 3 February 2015.