Sevilla, Spain – Spain,  Brazil and South Africa today launched a coalition to advance work on taxing the super-rich at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development in Sevilla. The coalition reaffirmed political commitments to pursue effective taxation of the super-rich. They also signalled growing support for international tax negotiations at the UN that are gaining momentum.

In response, Fred Njehu, Global Political Lead for Greenpeace’s Fair Share campaign, said[1]: “Financing is urgently needed for climate action and public services, not for polluting space travel and luxury weddings. This new coalition of governments working to tax the super-rich adds to the growing global momentum to make the world’s wealthiest pay their fair share. People are fed up with billionaires’ greed eroding the environment and communities we depend on. It’s time for world leaders to listen and act.”

Last week Greenpeace Italy together with UK Action group Everyone hates Elon unfolded a banner reading ‘If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax’ on Piazza San Marco, ahead of Jeff Bezos’s reportedly multi-million dollar wedding in Venice.

In a survey commissioned by Greenpeace International and Oxfam International across 13 countries, 86% of respondents want governments to close tax loopholes that benefit the super-rich and international corporations, and to use the increased revenue for public services.[2] 

“Ultimately, we urge world leaders to support the on-going UN Tax Convention process as a global multilateral platform that will shape and determine the future of taxation, one rooted in equity and justice,” added Njehu.

ENDS

Notes:

[1] Fred Njehu is with Greenpeace Africa, based in Nairobi, Kenya.

[2] The research was conducted by first-party data company Dynata in May-June, 2025, in Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Kenya, Italy, India, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, Spain, the UK and the US, with approximately 1200 respondents in each country and a theoretical margin of error of approximately 2.83%. Together, these countries represent close to half the world’s population. Greenpeace / Oxfam – PPP survey results. 

Contacts:

Tal Harris, Global Media Lead – Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign, Greenpeace International. +41-782530550, tharris@greenpeace.org  

Lee Kuen, Global Comms Lead – Fair Share campaign, Greenpeace International. +601112527489, lkuen@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Introduction by Mads Christensen, Executive Director of Greenpeace International:

2024 challenged me deeply, as a leader, an activist, and a human being. There were days when hope felt hard to hold on to. But what carried me – and what carries Greenpeace – is the strength of our global community and the courage of collective action.

It was a year of relentless turmoil with escalating conflicts, rising authoritarianism, climate catastrophes, and deepening human rights violations from Ukraine to Gaza. The re-election of Donald Trump only sharpened a sense of anxiety and uncertainty. It’s a moment that felt heavy – geopolitically, morally, and existentially.

And, yet, it is also a moment that reminded me exactly why Greenpeace exists.

I have never believed hope to be a passive thing. Hope is action. Hope is resistance. Hope is a decision, one that we make over and over again, especially when the odds are against us. Hope is renewal. So even as the storms intensified, our movement chose hope. We stood firm, organised harder, and achieved victories that show what’s possible when people come together with shared values and cause.

Among the highlights of the year was our contribution to the European Court of Human Rights ruling in favour of the KlimaSeniorinnen, a courageous group of elderly Swiss women who successfully sued their government for failing to take sufficient action on climate change, arguing that it endangered their health and lives. This ruling marked a turning point in climate litigation and sent a powerful message about the deep connection between human rights and environmental protection.

Our Oceans Are Life campaign built a broad coalition of governments and civil society to stop deep sea mining, a new extractive industry poised to cause irreversible harm to ocean ecosystems. We pushed Norway to reverse its plans to open its waters to mining, and convinced multilateral negotiations to put the brakes on this dangerous new frontier.

Wins like these don’t come without a cost. In 2024, corporations increasingly used legal tactics – known as Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation suits, or SLAPP suits – to try to intimidate and silence us. These lawsuits are designed to drain our time, energy, spirit and bank accounts.

Let’s be honest: being hit with multi-million dollar legal assaults is not for the faint of heart. But we are not faint of heart. Our spirit, backed by public support, is inexhaustible. Our response has been resolute, with robust legal defences mounted against these attacks. Greenpeace has never been – and never will be – a movement that backs down from a big fight. They are what we were made for.

And even as we face increasing pressure and assault from autocrats and oligarchs, we have taken the time to do the vital work of strengthening our movement from within. We’ve made real strides embedding justice, equity, diversity, inclusion and safety (JEDIS) principles across our campaigns, culture, and everyday operations. This is essential to building a movement that is global, resilient, and truly transformative.

Looking ahead, I know the challenges will not ease. But as the storm is still gathering, I also know this: Greenpeace is still here. Still fighting. Still building power, coalition, and momentum. Still choosing hope, not as an abstract ideal,
but as a bold and deliberate act.

We are powered by millions of people who know a green and peaceful future is still possible. And with that power, we will continue to adapt, evolve, and act with courage.

Progress is never easy, but it is always possible – with hope, courage and community.

In solidarity,

Mads Christensen
Greenpeace International
Executive Director

Download the reports:

• Greenpeace International Annual Report 2024
• Standaardformulier publicatieplicht ANBI algemeen (Dutch)

Sevilla, Spain – Barbados, France, Kenya, Spain, Benin, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Antigua & Barbuda supported by the European Commission, have announced they will form a ‘solidarity coalition on premium flyers’ to raise funds for climate action and sustainable development. Campaigners reacted to the announcement, which was made on the first day of the UN Financing for Development conference in Sevilla (FFD4).[1]

Rebecca Newsom, Global Political Lead of Greenpeace International’s Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign said: “Flying is the most elite and polluting form of travel, so this is an important step towards ensuring that the binge users of this undertaxed sector are made to pay their fair share. With the cost of climate impacts surging in countries least responsible for the crisis, bold, cooperative action that makes polluters pay is not just fair – it’s essential.”

“The obvious next step is to hold oil and gas corporations to account. As fossil fuel barons rake in obscene profits, and people are battered with increasingly violent floods, storms and wildfires, it’s no surprise that 8 out of 10 people support making them pay. Members of the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force and rich countries around the world should act upon this enormous public mandate: commit to higher taxes on fossil fuel profits and extraction by COP30, while ensuring that those being hit hardest by the climate crisis around the world benefit most from the revenues.”  

Greenpeace International maintains it is critical that the revenues raised from solidarity levies in Global North countries go towards the countries and communities most affected by the climate crisis, for example through helping to fill the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage. 

With demand for a climate damages tax on big polluters fast gaining momentum globally, Greenpeace urges all countries to join and implement the commitments of the new solidarity coalition on premium flyers by COP30. It also calls on all governments to adopt bold taxes and fines on greedy oil and gas corporations for the damages they have caused, without delay.[2][3][4][5][6] 

ENDS

Notes:

[1] The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD) takes place from June 30 to 3 July 2025 in Sevilla, Spain, with participation of Heads of State and Government, relevant ministers, and other special representatives. Official website

[2] Popularity of climate damages taxes on fossil fuel consumption and production. A global survey, commissioned by Greenpeace International and Oxfam International, found that 3 out of 4 people agree that wealthier airline passengers (i.e. those who fly more often, use business and first-class and or/private jets) should pay additional tax due to their outsized individual impact on climate change. The same survey found that taxing oil, gas and coal corporations for their climate damages is even more popular. 81% of people support this, while 86% support channeling the revenues from higher taxes on oil and gas corporations towards communities most impacted by the climate crisis.

[3] A call to action. The Polluters Pay Pact is a global alliance of more than 160,000 people on the frontlines of climate disasters, concerned citizens, first responders like firefighters, humanitarian groups and political leaders. It demands that governments around the world make oil, coal and gas corporations pay their fair share for the damages they cause. 

[4] 80% of the world’s population have never flown. A single transatlantic flight on a private jet can produce emissions equivalent to those generated by an average person over several years. Private jets are 10 times more carbon-intensive than commercial flights and 50 times more polluting than trains. Greenpeace is calling on governments to introduce frequent flyer levies so that those who fly the most, pay the most, while preventing the expansion of the aviation industry. Private jets are an extravagant luxury which should be banned altogether. 

[5] Recent Oxfam International research found that a polluter profits tax on 590 oil, gas and coal companies could raise up to US $400 billion in its first year. This compares to estimated loss and damage costs of $290-1045 trillion in the Global South annually by 2030. Further, Oxfam analysis found that the emissions of just 340 fossil fuel companies each year make up half of all global emissions – emissions of just one year are enough to cause 2.7 million heat-related deaths over the next century. 

[6] Over 100 climate groups are backing a ‘Climate Damages Tax’ on fossil fuels extraction. This could be imposed by OECD countries, which if introduced at low initial rate of US$5 per tonne of CO2e increasing by US$5 per tonne each year could raise a total of US$ 900 billion by 2030 to help the world’s poorest and most vulnerable with climate damages, and pay for damages caused by some of the worst extreme weather events last year.

Contacts:

Tal Harris, Global Media Lead – Greenpeace International’s Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign, +41-782530550, tharris@greenpeace.org 

Greenpeace International Press Desk: +31 (0) 20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Sevilla, Spain – BREAKING: Activists from Greenpeace Spain today covered the iconic Setas de Sevilla monument with a massive banner, displaying the message: “They are destroying the planet. And you are paying for it.” The action marked the first day of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development Conference (FfD4).

Eva Saldaña, Executive Director of Greenpeace Spain and Portugal, said “Global activism is the essence of our democracy and climate justice. If we want to build a green and fair world, the people have to unite against the takeover by billionaires and polluters, and call for a redistribution of wealth and power in the multilateral arena and international financial institutions. Global justice must prevail over greed!”

ENDS

Yesterday’s release: Giant baby Musk float in march for tax justice at UN summit in Sevilla: ‘Make rich polluters pay’

Members of the Greenpeace delegation in Seville are available for interviews in Spanish, English, German, and Swahili.

Photos and Videos can be downloaded via Greenpeace Media Library and will be updated throughout the conference. 

Contacts in Seville:

Tal Harris, Global Media Lead – Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign, Greenpeace International. +41-782530550, tharris@greenpeace.org  

Begoña Rodríguez, Media Lead – Climate Responsibility Team, Greenpeace Spain & Portugal. +34 605248097, begona.rodriguez@greenpeace.org

Additional contacts: 

Christine Gebeneter, EU Communication lead, Greenpeace CEE based in Austria, +43 664 8403807, christine.gebeneter@greenpeace.org 

Lee Kuen, Global Comms Lead – Fair Share campaign, Greenpeace International. +601112527489, lkuen@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Sevilla, Spain – Greenpeace activists joined a civil society march today for Global Economic Justice, with a giant float of a baby Elon Musk holding a chainsaw threatening planet Earth. As the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) starts tomorrow in Sevilla, campaigners are calling on world leaders to advance commitments for new and fair global tax and debt rules, and to hold fossil fuel polluters accountable for climate and nature damages.[1] [2]

The conference opens against a backdrop of intensifying conflicts, geopolitical tensions, rising inequality, and accelerating climate and environmental breakdown. The outcome document, the Compromiso de Sevilla, released ahead of the conference, does not go far enough. It delivers on some promises on international tax cooperation and encouraging taxes on environmental contamination and pollution. However, bold language on sovereign debt architecture reform was weakened by Global North governments during the negotiations, and the agreement falls short on responding to the urgency of the climate, nature and social crises.[3]

Fred Njehu, Greenpeace Africa’s Global Political Lead for the Fair Share campaign,[4] said: “Sevilla is a rare opportunity for global economic justice and for urgent conversations on how billionaires and corporate polluters should pay their fair share of taxes to fund climate action, nature protection and social programmes. World leaders need to listen to what the public wants and deliver a tax system that works for all.”

Eva Saldaña, Executive Director of Greenpeace Spain and Portugal, said: “Multilateral cooperation is key to addressing global threats and resource gaps for global climate and economic justice. It must not become an excuse for more powerful governments, in the Global North or elsewhere, to water down ambition. We must put people over greed and listen to the voices rising from the streets – in Seville and all over the world. All governments must actively support the UN Tax Convention process and pursue real solutions to the debt crisis, so that we can finally begin to transfer resources away from polluters and the super-rich for the wellbeing of all people and especially for those who are suffering the most from the climate emergency.”

Greenpeace demands reforms in international tax cooperation and public financing for sustainable development. Specifically: 

• Endorsement of the UN Tax Convention process for just and equitable global tax rules, that make the super-rich pay their fair share and make corporate polluters, such as the fossil fuel industry, pay for their climate damages.
• Explicit commitments from governments – via the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force, and beyond – to remove fossil fuel production subsidies and introduce progressive taxes and fines on fossil fuel corporations, and other high emitting sectors. This builds on the FfD4 outcomes document’s endorsement of “taxes on environmental contamination and pollution.” The revenues should be used to pay for domestic climate action and international climate finance support  – in particular action to support communities to respond and recover from climate disasters.

Rebecca Newsom, Global Political Lead for Greenpeace International’s Stop Drilling, Start Paying campaign, said: “While fossil fuel-driven floods, storms, wildfires and droughts increasingly hit communities around the world, people are crying out for their governments to tax oil, gas and coal corporations to pay for climate-related loss and damage. So what are political leaders waiting for? They must seize the opportunity of Sevilla to make polluters pay – or face growing public anger for continuing to let dirty industries off the hook.”

Hanen Keskes, Campaigns Lead at Greenpeace Middle East North Africa, said: “This is not the time to lack ambition as civil society is calling for urgent debt relief and structural reform. The burden of debt is undermining the most vulnerable countries’ ability to respond to climate, nature and social crises. Governments must show that they are ready to build a fairer and more sustainable future – one rooted in justice, not extraction.”

ENDS

Members of the Greenpeace delegation in Seville are available for interviews in Spanish, English, German, and Swahili.

Photos and Videos can be downloaded via Greenpeace Media Library and will be updated throughout the conference. 

Notes:

[1] Greenpeace Spain’s float of Elon Musk measures 2 metres wide by 3.5 –  4 metres high.

[2] The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) is a once-in-a-decade opportunity to reform financing at all levels, including to support reform of the international financial architecture. FFD4 Conference will be held in FIBES Sevilla Exhibition and Conference Centre (30 June – 3 July 2025)

[3] The Compromiso de Sevilla: Outcome | FFD4

Contacts in Seville:

Tal Harris, Global Media Lead – Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign, Greenpeace International. +41-782530550, tharris@greenpeace.org  

Begoña Rodríguez, Media Lead – Climate Responsibility Team, Greenpeace Spain & Portugal. +34 605248097, begona.rodriguez@greenpeace.org

Additional contacts: 

Christine Gebeneter, EU Communication lead, Greenpeace CEE based in Austria, +43 664 8403807, christine.gebeneter@greenpeace.org 

Lee Kuen, Global Comms Lead – Fair Share campaign, Greenpeace International. +601112527489, lkuen@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

From a giant banner in Venice, to confronting bottom trawling in New Zealand waters to celebrating the oceans in Mexico, here are a few of our favourite images from Greenpeace’s work around the world this week.

Italy – Activists from the UK action group Everyone hates Elon and Greenpeace Italy unfolded a giant 20x20m banner reading “If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax” on Piazza San Marco, as Jeff Bezos is due to celebrate his reportedly multi-million wedding in the lagoon city this week.

New Zealand – Greenpeace Aotearoa activists confront the Talley’s bottom trawler Amatal Atlantis on the Chatham Rise, painting “ocean killer” on its hull to protest destructive bottom trawling.

The Rainbow Warrior is off the coast of Aotearoa campaigning for an end to New Zealand’s destructive bottom trawling in New Zealand waters and the Tasman Sea.

Mexico – For more than two decades, Greenpeace and other civil society organizations have been seeking a Global Oceans Treaty to protect marine ecosystems from harmful industries, and on June 25, Mexico joined the countries that have ratified this global agreement.

Mexico’s ratification was approved by the Mexican Senate. Now the Treaty will be sent back to the Presidency for its publication in the Official Journal of the Federation and once this is done, Mexico will have to deposit its ratification at the United Nations, thus joining the 60 countries necessary for the entry into force of this international instrument.

Germany – Greenpeace Germany activists disguise the Edeka meat plant in Lüttow-Valluhn as a crime scene. Five long banners in barrier tape look hang from the roof of the Edeka plant with the warning: “Tierleid und Klimazerstörung” (“Animal suffering and climate destruction”).

Other activists demonstrate with barrier tape at the entrance to the meat plant. A truck in Edeka design bears the modified marketing slogan “Wir lieben Tierleid, deshalb produzieren wir es selbst.” (“We love animal suffering, so we produce it ourselves.”).

Brazil – During the Parintins Festival, Amazonian culture and resistance come to life in the Bumbódromo arena, echoing the knowledge of the forest to the world. In 2025, at the 58th edition of the festival, the contagious energy of the Caprichoso and Garantido bulls joined a new and urgent call: for an Amazon free of mining.

This year, the Marujada Movement and the Friends of Garantido Movement joined forces with Greenpeace Brazil to transform the crossing to Parintins into a true act of mobilization to defend the forest and its people.

Italy – Activists from seven countries are taking action with Greenpeace Italy against climate-wrecking fossil gas at the new liquefied gas import terminal of Ravenna. At sea, activists reached the infrastructure and attached large banners on it reading “Burn, baby, burn” referencing President Trump’s mantra “Drill, baby, drill” alongside an image of a burning Earth flanked by the faces of US President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Spain – In the framework of the presentation of the Sustainable Food Model presented by Greenpeace, the organisation brings empty boxes of farmers, livestock farmers and fishermen to the Ministry of Agriculture in Spain to demand a change in the unsustainable Spanish agri-food system.

Greenpeace has been a pioneer of photo activism for more than 50 years, and remains committed to bearing witness and exposing environmental injustice through the images we capture.

To see more Greenpeace photos and videos, please visit our Media Library.

It all began with a shared vision: to empower Greenpeace’s Innovation Hub to spark meaningful, lasting change. But how did this shared journey of creativity, challenge and transformation come to life?

Greenpeace, looking for fresh perspectives and external support, joined the Master Challenge platform and became part of a university consulting program in partnership with the Utrecht University in the Netherlands. That’s where we came in – four students from diverse backgrounds, cultures and experiences brought together through our intrapreneurship course and united by a common purpose: to work on a project that truly mattered.

Over the course of eight weeks, our team dove into the world of environmental innovation, offering strategic insights and collaborating closely with the team behind Innovation Hub. But this wasn’t just a class project – it was a journey filled with inspiration, unexpected challenges and powerful moments that reminded us just how vital innovation is to the future of environmental activism.

Four students joined Greenpeace to bring innovation into environmental activism

When we first connected with Greenpeace, we were immediately drawn to the Innovation Hub’s mission. It was something that bridged our 2 areas of interest – technology innovation and care for the planet. The idea of working on a framework for selecting and assessing projects within a global campaigning network was thrilling. On the first meeting, we got introduced to the Hub and how it serves Greenpeace’s Technology Vision.

As technology develops and the world gets more digitised by the day, Greenpeace is laying the foundations to still remain impactful by implementing its Technology Vision within the organisation. Built around a 3-horizons framework, Greenpeace’s Tech Vision sets the guiding star to digitally transform the entire network, from running campaigns and collecting donations, to collaborating effectively and operating ships. The purpose of the Innovation Hub within this strategic program is simple – to allow for innovative ideas to come to life, help reach more people and raise awareness and funds to fight for a sustainable future.

How do we define success?

No meaningful work is ever without its hurdles. Early on, we realised that defining success for Greenpeace’s new projects was complex. Unlike the corporate world, where key performance indicators (KPIs) are often tied to market share, Greenpeace operates in a dynamic landscape where impact is measured in influence, awareness, and mindset shifts. Our challenge was; how do we ensure that groundbreaking ideas get the support they need?

To answer these questions, we followed this structure: first, we decided on the methodology of how we will go about this. Knowing that there were many different parts that needed to be addressed. After careful examination, we decided that a thorough literature research will bring the most advantages, combined with interviews with the people behind the Innovation Hub. We explored key academic frameworks on non-profit innovation, project evaluation, and knowledge-sharing to ensure our approach was grounded in research. Further, innovation thrives on iteration. We researched how to learn from both successes and failures, ensuring that knowledge is captured and applied to future projects.

To better understand the role and impact of the Innovation Hub, we designed a set of interview questions aimed at exploring its purpose, strengths, challenges, and overall contribution to broader goals. These questions also sought to uncover individual perspectives on how the hub operates, what success looks like, and how its learnings can be applied. The goal was to gather insights that could help evaluate the hub’s effectiveness and shape its future direction. By capturing diverse viewpoints, we aimed to create a well-rounded understanding that supports continuous improvement and strategic alignment.

The challenge along the way – expectation vs reality

One of the challenges we found was the one of internal alignment. Greenpeace is a global network of independent organisations with passionate individuals who bring diverse perspectives. The expectations of every person differed a little bit, and we needed to make sure that while innovation should not be slowed down with bureaucracy, we still needed to provide and establish some general frameworks. We also quickly figured that the time that each person can spend on this project is also highly limited from Greenpeace’s side, so we had to keep in mind this while also assessing the adjustments and recommendations.

Influencing change with the outcome

After 8 weeks of almost daily work, we were able to present our results both at the university and to the leaders of the Innovation Hub project. We managed to influence change along two main areas. We worked on quantitative evaluations – this meant adjusting the scoring assessment (as displayed above) and adding subcategories based on academic research for a more accurate evaluation of ideas. Further, as innovation comes with big challenges in terms of human capital, we worked a lot on learning about innovation change within the organisation. This means learning about how to introduce change, psychological safety and other factors, things that are to be implemented in the long term.

We were awarded first place in terms of most innovative and applicable project out of our class, which was amazing after the many hours of hard work. We hope that our work brought practical improvements and that Greenpeace will continue to develop its Innovation Hub and make it a great success!

We wonder – what do you think of this project? Which parts of your organisation do you think could benefit from this? Let us know in the comments below!

Jonas Wernstedt, Tímea Szipková, Sara Verhoef and Sepehrdad Jam are students in Business Development & Entrepreneurship at Utrecht University in the Netherlands.

Guest authors work with Greenpeace International to share their personal experiences and perspectives and are responsible for their own content.

Aotearoa – Greenpeace Aotearoa activists have confronted a bottom trawler off the East Coast of New Zealand, writing “ocean  killer” on the side of the ship, after bearing witness to it hauling in a net straining with marine life.

Launching from the Greenpeace vessel the Rainbow Warrior, activists came alongside the New Zealand-flagged vessel, Talley’s Amaltal Atlantis, on the Chatham Rise[1], an area of ocean floor to the east of New Zealand, and painted the message on its side using non-toxic paint. The vessel is owned by seafood group Talley’s.

Speaking from onboard the Rainbow Warrior, Greenpeace Aotearoa oceans campaigner Juan Parada says:

“Activists rebranded this Talley’s vessel today to expose the bottom trawling industry for what they are: ocean killers. When Talley’s drag their heavy trawl nets across the seafloor and over seamounts, they bulldoze everything in their path, including killing precious coral.

“Faced with a fishing industry that profits from trashing the ocean, and a government that condones bottom trawling, ocean defenders have taken peaceful action today to call out this destruction and demand that bottom trawling stop.

“The Amaltal Atlantis trawls extensively in the waters of Aotearoa and has previously received permits to trawl in the High Seas of the South Pacific. Their trail of destruction is wide and long-lasting,” says Parada.

Talley’s has a long history of carrying out bottom trawling destruction.  In 2018, the Amaltal Apollo trawled in a protected area on the Lord Howe Rise, in the international waters of the Tasman Sea. The Amaltal Mariner was convicted of trawling in a marine reserve off Kaikōura in 2019. 

The at-sea action comes just months after a deep sea expedition led by Greenpeace Aotearoa documented whole swathes of destroyed coral in areas of the Tasman Sea that have been intensively trawled by New Zealand bottom trawlers. This area has been earmarked for one of the first high seas ocean sanctuaries, using the Global Ocean Treaty.

New Zealand is the only country still bottom trawling in the High Seas of Tasman. 

Parada says, “As the rest of the world moves towards more comprehensive ocean protection for international waters, New Zealand is standing in the way of progress by continuing to advocate for the bottom trawling industry.” 

“From depleted fish numbers to smashed coral, dead sharks and seabirds, the cost of bottom trawling is too high. To protect the ocean for the future and safeguard the ocean we all love, bottom trawling must stop.”

In response to the activist’s painting activity, Talley’s responded saying they would seek legal action which “may include the arrest of the Rainbow Warrior.”

ENDS

Photos and videos from the at-sea action are available in the Greenpeace Media Library.

Notes:

[1] The action took place in the Chatham Rise area, where it was recently revealed a New Zealand vessel dragged up six tonnes of coral in a single trawl.

Contacts:

Nick Young, Greenpace Aoteaora, Head of Communications, +64-21-707727, nick.young@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Bonn, Germany – A lack of urgency to address the escalating climate crisis has marred the Bonn Climate Change Conference, leaving much work to be done to deliver real progress on climate and biodiversity action at COP30 in Brazil.   

Ambition to accelerate mitigation, including transitioning away from fossil fuels in upcoming 2035 climate action plans was lacking and talks stalled on climate finance and the Baku to Belém roadmap to mobilise up to US$1.3 trillion for developing countries became polarised. Efforts to secure an end to deforestation by 2030 also struggled to find a landing ground.

An Lambrechts, Biodiversity Policy Expert, Greenpeace International, said: “As temperatures escalate, efforts to end deforestation and protect critical ecosystems are an essential part of the 1.5°C solution. But if an action plan to end forest destruction is to be agreed in Belém, parties must grasp the urgency and deliver a transformative COP30 forest outcome.

“While there were some positive signs for potential progress on synergies between climate and biodiversity action in Belém, there’s been far too much procrastination in Bonn and too little decision-making. We believe in multilateralism, but that spirit needs to be reinvigorated ahead of COP30 to accelerate the protection and restoration of critical ecosystems.”

Lorelei Limousin, Climate and Fossil Fuels Campaigner, Greenpeace France said: “The 1.5°C goal is getting harder every day and ambition to deliver the Paris Agreement must be ramped up in 2035 climate action plans. As custodian of the Paris Agreement, France must drive ambition and needs to support EU targets for both 2035 and 2040 that are aligned with 1.5°C.

“Macron’s attempts to weaken EU ambition is sabotaging the Paris Agreement in its 10th anniversary year, putting at risk EU climate leadership. Instead of backtracking, France – and the EU – need to signal they’ll move ahead and accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels.

“But the EU and Global North as a whole, must also help unlock robust public climate finance to help stimulate climate action in developing countries. One clear solution is to give the bill to the fossil fuel producers and make them pay for the climate destruction their products cause.”

Camila Jardim, International Politics Specialist, Greenpeace Brazil said: “Amid challenging times, this is a great opportunity for Brazilian climate leadership to emerge. As COP30 host, Brazil can make the goal of halting global deforestation and forest degradation a reality, delivering a fruitful COP30 legacy to forests all over the world.

“2035 NDCs and bridging the 1.5°C ambition gap is the make-or-break for COP30. A strong COP outcome is needed to combat the expected shortfall in ambition alongside finance to enable greater action in developing countries. But in Bonn a stalemate on emission reductions and finance was exposed, as the Global Stocktake and NDCs became a new taboo in negotiation rooms and developed countries refused to step up on finance. This needs to change – it’s time to act.” 

ENDS

Contacts:

Aaron Gray-Block, Climate Politics Communications Manager, Greenpeace International, aaron.gray-block@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Join the Greenpeace UNFCCC WhatsApp Update Group

In a clear message to corporate bullies everywhere, Greenpeace International is heading back to court in July — this time in the Netherlands — to challenge a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) filed by oil pipeline company Energy Transfer. This is a landmark test of the European Union’s new anti-SLAPP Law, and the outcome could set a precedent that helps invalidate abusive lawsuits across Europe, and show that freedom of speech is strong and that corporate bullying will not stand.

Major oil companies and other polluters around the world are increasingly using SLAPP lawsuits intended to bury nonprofits and activists in legal fees, push them towards bankruptcy, and ultimately silence dissent.

This is exactly what has happened to several Greenpeace organisations. The fossil fuel pipeline company Energy Transfer brought a SLAPP lawsuit in the US against Greenpeace International and Greenpeace in the USA, related to the Standing Rock Indigenous-led resistance against the Dakota Access oil pipeline. In March of this year, a jury found the environmental organisations liable to pay a perverse US$667 million in damages to Energy Transfer. This is a textbook example of a SLAPP.

These suits, increasingly favored by billionaires and fossil fuel corporations, should alarm every single person, regardless of ideology or political affiliation. If corporations can sue environmental organisations into silence, they can do the same to journalists, whistleblowers, unions, and grassroots movements. Today, it’s protests for the right to clean water and a safe climate. Tomorrow, it could be reproductive rights, racial justice, labor rights or any cause that threatens those in power.

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The EU defends itself against SLAPPs

In Europe, CASE – the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe – identified more than a thousand SLAPP cases during 2010-2023, with 166 filed in 2023 alone

In order to better protect journalists, human rights activists, and their organisations from abusive lawsuits in the future, the European Union adopted the Anti-SLAPP Directive in April 2024. This is intended to prevent rich companies from abusing courts to silence those who express critical views and give victims of SLAPPs the opportunity to defend themselves.

The new EU Anti-SLAPP Directive is applied in Greenpeace International’s lawsuit against Energy Transfer, where the goal is to recover all damages and costs that Greenpeace International incurred in Energy Transfer’s abusive SLAPP lawsuits.

Although the deadline for EU member states to transpose the Directive into national law is 7 May 2026, the Dutch government has indicated that enforcement of the Anti-SLAPP Directive is already possible in the Netherlands through the application of existing Dutch law. Chapter V of the Directive in particular protects EU-based organizations from SLAPP lawsuits brought by non-EU entities, and grants them the right to compensation.

This court case is an important first test of the new EU Anti-SLAPP Directive, and could set a precedent to invalidate abusive lawsuits, clear the way for justice in other similar intimidating cases, and show that corporate bullying will not stand. Now or ever. It’s time to resist.

Amy Jacobsen, Legal counsel, Greenpeace International