dutch ministry of foreign affairs
We are grateful to the dutch ministry of foreign affairs for supporting the following projects in 2007:
ghana and togo: tackling the threat posed by gmos in west africa
The influx of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into the West Africa subregion poses a grave and growing threat. Yet Ghana’s domestic national policy is very receptive to US influence, which is strongly pro-GMO. Furthermore, the close and growing political and diplomatic ties between Ghana and Togo extend this pro-GMO influence into Togo.
africa: monitoring the introduction of gmos
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) entering African countries pose a growing risk to human health, the environment and poor farmers’ food security. Their governments are under major pressure to introduce GMOs from multinational corporations, which argue (despite lacking evidence) this will improve food security. Africans are also vulnerable to introduction of GMOs through food aid, from donor agencies such as USAID.
oil refineries emit smoke, not flowers!
Shell is infamous for environmentally destructive and highly polluting oil operations around the world. So when Friends of the Earth campaigners saw a Shell advertisment depicting a refinery smokestack emitting only flowers, instead of smoke, they recognised it for what it was: blatant greenwash. And they took action, by filing simultaneous complaints to three European national advertising standards authorities in the Netherlands, England and Belgium.
world bank-funded pipeline project under investigation
Friends of the Earth International has been working with FoE groups in West Africa to support a stronger network and more solidarity among communities affected by the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP). This pipeline, which is now operational, runs from Nigeria through Benin, Togo and Ghana. In 2007 FoEI saw a major campaign goal achieved: the World Bank approved a July 2007 inspection of the controversial pipeline project.
no ebrd money for sakhalin!
In 2007, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) announced that it would no longer consider funding the Sakhalin II project, which will produce offshore gas and oil from Russia’s far eastern coast. In 2001, the shareholders of Sakhalin Energy – Shell, Mitsui and Mitsubishi – asked the EBRD to partially finance the project. This prompted many, including Friends of the Earth groups, to pressure the Bank not to do so.
corporate lobby victory in brussels: a step forward
In March 2007, Friends of the Earth Europe and other groups campaigning for lobbying transparency and ethics regulation cautiously welcomed a European Commission communication on transparency.
shell, use your profits to clean up your mess!
In February 2007, Shell announced that its profits were sky-high for 2006, following on from record-breaking 2005 profits. With such wealth, one would expect Shell to adhere to its much touted commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility. Yet around the world, people living on the “fenceline” of Shell’s operations are paying dearly for its profits through severe environmental pollution and degradation.
european parliament resolves to end public financing of fossil fuels
In November 2007, Friends of the Earth International, FoE Europe, and other groups campaigning to end public funding for extractive industries achieved a key victory as an overwhelming majority of 540 Members of the European Parliament approved an important resolution. Despite some (expected) watering down of an original Green Group draft report for the resolution, crucial aspects still passed the plenary vote – a major success.
“non-flying” politicians declare support for airplane fuel tax
Already responsible for about 10 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe, aviation emissions are growing fast. Yet a September 2007 expert report commissioned by Friends of the Earth Europe confirmed that the European Union must do more if these emissions are to be curbed. An important step in the right direction is to ensure that the cost of flying reflects its environmental impact, by putting a tax on aviation fuel and a value-added tax on airline tickets.
friends of the earth international shifts gears in tackling free trade agreements
The Doha Development Agenda (DDA) talks moved into a “deep freeze” in 2006, putting the World Trade Organisation’s quest for a multilateral free trade deal on hold. With that global trade agenda stalled, Friends of the Earth International shifted its campaign focus to regional and bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs).
el salvador & honduras: communities share experiences of resistance against mining and dams
Increasingly, the governments of Honduras and El Salvador are giving up their natural resources to exploitation by mining and hydroelectric megaprojects. Local people are left with the resulting severe and persistent pollution, such as contamination of waterways vital for drinking and bathing. Such megaprojects also compete with farmlands upon which communities depend for subsistence.
cameroon: economic alternatives for small producers
One of the main objectives of Friends of the Earth Cameroon / Centre for Environment and Development is a program to promote economic alternatives. Specifically, this program aims to provide small producers with a reliable source of income which gives them the chance to develop while using resources sustainably.
cameroon: confronting congo forest destruction
Central Africa’s Congo Basin is one of the world’s largest reservoirs of biodiversity. Yet unsustainable logging, intensive mining, and large construction projects implemented by foreign transnational corporations are threatening Cameroon’s rich biodiversity. The biggest threat of all is logging, some of it legal, much of it illegal.
ghana: raising awareness among children on mining’s negative impacts
Over the past two decades, ten large-scale, foreign multinational mining companies have caused considerable environmental destruction and human suffering in Ghana. Largely focussed on mining gold through the use of cyanide leaching, their operations have led to water pollution, reduced air quality, land and soil degradation, and destruction of biodiversity. Human rights abuses are also known, including the eviction of Indigenous peoples from their homes and farmlands. Furthermore, mining company publicity programmes brainwash young people, and there is little information available for schools and youth groups to convey the true consequences of these activities.
report: voices from the front lines of climate change
A 2007 report from Friends of the Earth International provides nine case studies of climate change impacts from countries around the globe. Looking at impacts and adaptations, the case studies also feature testimonies which provide insight into dramatic first-hand experience of the devastation of climate change.
world social forum in nairobi
The Friends of the Earth International delegation to the World Social Forum 2007 in Nairobi, Kenya included some 30 people, including community representatives from Nigeria and South Africa.
foe groups converge on massive social summit in bolivia
In December 2006, FoE members joined more than four thousand other people from social movements and civil society organizations across Latin America and the Caribbean in the beautiful mountain valley city of Cochabamba, Bolivia.
nigeria & south africa: african “people power” exchange
Nigeria and South Africa are both resource-rich countries, especially when it comes to minerals, oil and gas. Yet when multinational corporations exploit this wealth, local communities are too often burdened with the major social and environmental costs.
togo, ghana & nigeria: inspiring west africans’ resistance to controversial pipeline
The newly-operational 680-kilometer West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) from Nigeria through Benin, Togo and Ghana is unlikely to fulfil its promise to reduce gas flaring in the conflict-ridden Niger Delta. Local communities on the pipeline’s path along the Gulf of Guinea have confronted issues including inadequate compensation, insufficient safety measures, pollution and damage to fisheries. Yet there is little recourse to hold the Bermuda-registered West African Pipeline Company (WAPCo) consortium responsible for its actions.
netherlands & cameroon: linking up to tackle cameroon’s illegal logging
Cameroon has more than 20 million hectares of humid tropical forest: however, illegal and destructive logging threatens this precious natural heritage and the people who depend on it. Europe is a major buyer of Cameroon’s timber, with the Netherlands being one of the biggest markets.
