Greenpeace

The earth is God’s creation and my home, so I firmly believe we have a responsibility to take care of it and all the life that lives in it. 

It is on that ground that applied to do the Greenpeace Organizing Term (GOT) for this summer in Washington, DC. The environment is something I’m passionate about, and I want to know how best to convert that passion into practical action with an impact. I want to have the ability to help lead this movement of young activists into a more sustainable and healthy future.   

I first heard about the GOT at school from a couple program alumni. 

Hearing their stories and the reflection they had on the experience made me realize the GOT was essential for me to do. 

Finally... some good news! Nestle, the world's biggest food and drinks company, announced that it will cease using products that drive the tropical rainforest destruction.

This is great news for our environment in what has otherwise been a bleak few weeks. President Obama continues to dig in (or drill in) and stand firm behind his plans to increase offshore oil drilling despite the BP Deepwater oil disaster and continues to work to lift the ban on commercial whaling.

In the midst of it all, Nestle's recent act is a refreshing act of leadership.

Here is why this matters: 17 percent of global-warming pollution comes from deforestation. Brazil and Indonesia are among the four most polluting countries (with China and the U.S.) because cutting trees releases carbon pollution.

To address the main driver of deforestation in Brazil -- cattle ranching -- Greenpeace worked with Nike, Wal-Mart, Timberland, and other companies to pressure their suppliers to stop grazing cattle on recently deforested land.

In Indonesia, palm oil and pulp plantations are both driving deforestation and pushing orangutans to the brink of extinction. After being caught red-handed, Nestle has committed to identify and exclude companies from its supply chain that own or manage "high-risk plantations or farms linked to deforestation." This exclusion would apply to companies such as Sinar Mas, Indonesia's most notorious palm-oil and pulp-and-paper supplier, if it fails to meet the criteria set out in the policy. It also has implications for palm oil traders, such as Cargill, which continue to buy from Sinar Mas.

Read more at Grist.com >>

 

On April 20, 2010, a BP offshore oil rig exploded, killing workers on the rig and spilling tens of thousands of barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. BP's Deepwater Horizon oil well, located 5,000 feet below the ocean's surface, is now leaking between 5,000 – 60,000 barrels (210, 000 – 2,520,000 gallons) of crude oil into Gulf Coast waters each day, with devastating consequences for Gulf Coast communities and the fragile wetlands, bayous, and coastal waters on which they depend.

We've put together a timeline dating back to July 2007 when the Department of Interior released a report finding that there is a history of accidents, fires and even deaths at offshore oil drilling projects.

It's time for history to stop repeating itself. Let's put an end to this sort of diaster so that our future will be safer. Take action and tell Congress that the time for action is now. Congress must put a ban on new offshore drilling that prevents this threat from spreading to other areas of the country.

--Michelle

The Deepwater Horizon accident continues to spill millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Echoing the sentiment of concernced people all across America, Greenpeace activists delivered a strong message to Congress, "Choose a clean energy future now."

The disaster in the Gulf is a tragic reminder of the impacts of America's addiction to dirty and dangerous sources of energy like oil, and it must serve as a wake up call to Congress of the urgent need to immediately stop plans for any new offshore oil drilling. 

The oil industry's stranglehold on our energy policy has protected oil company profits while sacrificing our health, local economies, and our environment.  It's past time for Congress to shut out the polluter lobbyists and urgently move us toward clean, renewable energy.

 

How much oil is flowing into the Gulf of Mexico from this disastrous oil spill? Our new counter will keep tabs as the oil continues to flow...

Put this on your site. Grab the code:

<iframe src="http://go.greenpeaceusa.org/spill-widget/vertical.php" height="325" width="150" border="0" scrolling="no" style="overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border: 0px;"></iframe></iframe>

I could only see the pitchfork scene through the tiny space between my fingers. When it comes to horror movies, I’m more than a bit squeamish. On Friday, February 26th, The Crazies hits theaters and I was lucky enough to snag an early viewing to witness all the slashing, hacking and suspense.

I think moviegoers will really enjoy the film, I know I did. I won’t spoil the movie for you, but the story’s about a small town of innocent people who are mysteriously infected with a fictitious bio-warfare agent. Unfortunately, for these people, the infection makes them go crazy and the ensuing horror is enough to make you jump out of your seat. I can attest jumping out of my seat at least a dozen times.

Luckily, for me, this movie is fiction and I’m not going to go crazy (at least I hope I won’t). If you’re scratching your head and wondering why we’re talking about this crazy movie (pun intended) here at Greenpeace, I’ll explain. The movie gives us an eye opener into the real toxic dangers that exist in our every day life.

One important danger that we should all be reminded of is the disastrous risks posed by poison gases used in chemical plants. Some of them started out as chemical warfare agents.

Did you know that the Department of Homeland Security has identified over 6,000 “high-risk” chemical plants in the United States? An accident or attack at just 300 of them would put 110 million Americans at risk. That’s not only crazy, but also down right terrifying.

But, a happy ending is really possible! Since 9/11 more than 200 chemical facilities have converted to safer chemical processes, eliminating poison gas risks to more than 30 million Americans. That's the good news. The bad news is that not all plants have adopted safer technologies – and they won't until laws are passed that require them to.

November 2009 the House of Representatives approved the "Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Act of 2009," (H.R. 2868) by a vote of 230 to 193. This is the first time either house of Congress has approved comprehensive chemical security legislation.

Now it’s up to the Senate, they will take up chemical security legislation.

Please take action today. Use our online advocacy tools to tell your Senators to prevent a real horror.

Oh, and you’d be crazy not to check out The Crazies (it’s a good date movie).

-- Michelle