Greenpeace

Bright and early this morning I got a text picture message from my friend. The message said—Greenpeace Strikes! And she included a quick snap of my fellow Greenpeacers hanging a banner across the street from the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC.

Greenpeace was hanging a banner to tell the Ministers from the 17 biggest global emitters that the planet is "too big to fail." The ministers are in DC to talk about the climate as part of the Major Economies Forum.

Greenpeace is calling on world leaders to take personal responsibility for guaranteeing a strong, legally binding and fair agreement at the UN Climate Summit in Copenhagen, in December.

My hope is that these world leaders will move quickly to act on global warming solutions. We need more action and less talking and meetings! Time is running out. The leaders need to use this meeting as an opportunity to fast-track discussions on avoiding catastrophic warming.  

A peak in global emissions by 2015 followed by a rapid decline to as close to zero as possible by 2050 is crucial to protect the climate. The industrialized world must commit to deeper cuts in emissions and provide financial and technical assistance to developing countries to enable them to switch to clean energy, stop deforestation and adapt to those climate impacts that are now unavoidable.

President Obama has said that the US is ready to lead on global warming. I’d like to see us start leading today by encouraging world leaders to get moving on strong global warming solutions in their home countries.

Check out the slideshow for more images from the banner hang >>

--Michelle

Yesterday was Earth Day. What did you do to celebrate? This year, I was feeling very nostalgic. I remembered my first introduction to Earth Day. Someone was giving out free tree seedlings in a store parking lot. I excitedly took the tree home, planted it and patiently watched it grow. Each Earth Day I found new tree seedlings to adopt and plant in my backyard. I gave each tree a name. My backyard soon became a tree nursery and now the trees are very big. When I was younger, my dad was eager for me to take the trees and plant them elsewhere. But, now I think he has become attached to them. I have offered to transplant them in my new backyard, but he likes them too much.

This year, I introduced my son to Earth Day. We got a bunch of pine seedlings and brought them to his school to share with his friends. I hope they will have as much fun planting the trees and watching them grow as I did when I was younger. I wrote up and attached a tree poem to each tree. Making the lines rhyme was harder than I thought.

Happy Earth Day!
You don’t have to celebrate alone.

Adopt a baby Loblolly Pine
This one needs a good home.

Keep it cool and moist
Until you plant it outside.

With enough water—it will thrive,
Loblolly pines love lots of sunshine.

X marks the spot, so
find a nice place for your tree to stay.

Now it’s time to start digging.
A 5-inch hole is key, so please don’t stray.

Place the roots in the hole
and lightly pack with dirt.

Make sure the tree is nice and straight
Adjusting it a bit really won’t hurt.
 
Care for your Loblolly Pine
And it will grow and grow.

Give it enough time and this little seedling
may grow taller than you could ever know?

Have fun!

I hope you had a fun celebrating Earth Day and bringing new generations into the celebrations along with you!

--Michelle
 

I can imagine a clean energy future, can you?? Send a Happy Earth Day ecard to your friends and family. Get them thinking about the environment today and everyday.

Send your ecards today...

 

Have you ever wondered what goes into your can of tuna fish? Turtles, smaller fish, marine mammals and even some species of tuna are at risk from pirate fishing and irresponsible fishery management. As more and more people get an appetite for tuna, less and less can be found in the seas. Watch the Greenpeace video and open up a can of truth.

Do you know how many chemical facilities are in YOUR state? I didn't and was surprised to find out how many are in my tiny state of Maryland.

Check out how many are in your state — and then write your member of Congress asking for their help in making our communities safer from these dangerous plants.

Congress has the power to save lives and prevent tragedy. It's up to YOU to make sure they do.

 

 

--Michelle

Another heart warming blog from the Tokyo Two. Thanks to Toru for this wonderful blog! So great to see photos of you back "home."


The so-called “scientific” whaling fleet has now returned to port from the Southern Ocean whale sanctuary for what we hope will be the last time, and it is almost one year since Junichi Sato and Toru Suzuki exposed the embezzlement of whale meat by the fleet’s crew.

Junichi and Toru are still on trial for their efforts to expose this crime, however, recently their bail conditions were relaxed slightly, enabling them to come back to work – just not with each other.

Here’s Toru’s reflections on his first few weeks back at work... Junichi posted a few days ago, on his return...

I'm so glad to finally be able to come back home to the office.

Well, I did feel little strange for the first five minutes, as it was my first time here in nine months. But it wasn’t long until it felt like the home it used to be.

Since I was released under bail restrictions, the most disappointing thing for me was that I was unable to see my Greenpeace colleagues. When I was in custody, I was looking forward to having a BBQ with my colleagues as soon as I was free. But this simple wish was shattered. You can imagine my disappointment, particularly after 26 days with really bad food (It was not the main reason for my hunger strike, but I have to say that I'm glad I did it, as it brought the least amount of awful meals to me in my box of a room).

Before our arrests, we - that is everyone at Greenpeace in Japan - already went through much hardship. So my wish before release was to see everyone and pat each other's shoulders.

This is now a reality. I didn't expect it would take so long...

There is still a long way to go with the trial, but now I'm really happy to see and touch the great hearts of these wonderful people again. When you have your spirit up and are with your colleagues, there is not much to worry about. Now my spirit is reinforced, I am stronger than ever!

I would like to thank everyone who helped us to get here. And please keep your eyes on us, as much as possible.

The fact that everyone is watching us, and them, is our best insurance for the trial.

The next pre-trial hearing for the Tokyo Two will be held on the 15th of May this year.

Heart-pounding suspense and fast-paced action surround the popular television show 24. The fictional character, Jack Bauer, heroically conquers espionage, terrorism and chemical attacks. His exploits only last one hour, once a week. After we watch the show, we are sufficiently entertained, turn off the television and go on with our busy lives. But, there is some truth behind the stories on 24. In particular-–the dangers posed to us by chemicals such as chlorine. We use these chemicals for disinfecting water. These chemicals are stored in large quantities all over the country–posing a serious risk to you and your family in the event of an accident or terrorist attack.  

Check out the new 24-style video that Greenpeace just launched. It will show you exactly what I am talking about.

I don't want to dwell on the grim and the dark. It has been a pretty dismal few months and it seems no news has been good news lately. I want to end my blog on a more positive note–real change is possible! There are safer alternatives to some of these chemicals. And, we can increase security and regulations so the chemical plants and the transportation of these chemicals are done in a safer manner–protecting both you and I.  

Congress has legislation in the works that would address these issues–they just need to hear from their constituents (that's you and I, again). If they know it is important to us–they are more likely to pass the legislation. We know they are hearing from the chemical lobbyists. They are pouring millions of dollars into making sure these hazardous chemicals continue to be used are safer regulations continue to be ignored.

Let's turn this story into a happy ending–we want safer alternatives where we can and safer regulations so we can all be spared a catastrophic event. Take action today, check out our video and tell all your friends and family!

--Michelle