We are living in a world that is being destroyed by throwaway plastic. Plastic pollution has flooded our planet, harming people’s health, accelerating social injustice, destroying biodiversity and fueling the climate crisis.

Science is only beginning to understand the long-term effects of plastic on human health, yet microplastics have been found in the air we breathe and the food we eat, and even in our organs and our blood. And communities on the frontlines of plastic production and waste are disproportionately affected by plastic pollution, social injustice,  and the climate crisis.

The fact is that 99% of plastic is made from oil and gas —  and big oil are making more and more each year. The full lifecycle of plastic harms livelihoods and the climate. Despite all of this, big oil, in league with big brands like Unilever, Nestlé and Coca-Cola, continue to promote false solutions and a throwaway single-use model where ‘convenience’ and corporate profits outweigh the cost to our communities.

But now, we have the opportunity to end the plastic crisis by pushing for a strong and ambitious Global Plastics Treaty that will end runaway plastic production and use. 

Governments around the world are now negotiating a Global Plastics Treaty – an agreement that could solve the planetary crisis brought by runaway plastic production.

A treaty that fails to deliver major reductions in plastic production and use will not solve the plastic crisis. Greenpeace, with our allies and supporters, demand an ambitious, legally-binding global plastics treaty that will cap and phase down plastic production and use, and ultimately end single-use plastic.

We demand a treaty that will keep oil and gas used to produce plastic in the ground and puts an end to big polluters’ relentless plastic production. The Global Plastics Treaty must be firmly rooted in a human rights-based approach that reduces inequalities between people, priorities on human health, protects the environment and ensures a just transition to a low-carbon, zero-waste, reuse-based economy that centres justice and the interests of communities most affected. A strong plastics treaty delivers a cleaner, safer planet for us and for future generations.

We know that the petrochemical industry, corporations and some governments will try to weaken the ambition of the Global Plastics Treaty, and here is where the battle truly begins. The Global Plastics Treaty is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to solve the plastics crisis. For the sake of our collective future, we must not waste this moment.

At the upcoming negotiations in coming years, we will show how an unstoppable global movement can achieve an ambitious Global Plastics Treaty that will turn off the plastics tap and finally, end the age of plastic – for our health, our communities, climate, and the planet.

But while whale sharks are the biggest drawcard, they’re far from the only extraordinary thing about Ningaloo. This place, where the arid desert meets the Indian Ocean, is a cradle for a wealth of marine life, from turtles to vast oceanic manta rays to lush underwater coral gardens.

Ningaloo also hosts one of the world’s most spectacular annual coral spawning events, clouding the reef with plumes of pink and red spawn. The spawn and the upswell of nutrients in the water are what draws the whale sharks here over winter.

It’s almost unbelievable that this special place is threatened by the oil and gas industry. Oil and gas drilling sites circle the Ningaloo area. Flaring is visible from the shore at Exmouth on a clear night, far out at sea. Gas company Woodside even recently proposed to dump a toxic oil tower from its Nganhurra oil field close to the reef system, full of toxic foam that could devastate marine life – and Greenpeace recently uncovered that this tower is now sinking.

A concerted campaign by locals put Ningaloo’s incredible natural beauty and environmental value on the map, and earned it a reprieve from exploitation. The economic value of Ningaloo contributes an estimated $110 million annually to the WA economy, more than 90% of which comes from reef tourism.

It’s Ningaloo’s economic value that has protected it so far. As writer Tim Winton, an Exmouth local, puts it in an ABC interview ahead of the release of his documentary on Ningaloo:

“…if you don’t tell people about a place and it stays secret, then — and anyone who’s in Western Australia in particular knows this — bad things happen in the dark. Bad things happen to places over the horizon. And if we hadn’t made Ningaloo famous 20 years ago, it would be gone already, so you have to elevate a place’s social value, it’s sadly sometimes its financial value, as an intact system in order to get the kind of status required to protect it.”

We’ve come here as the final stop on our biodiversity documentation leg of the Rainbow Warrior Whales Not Woodside ship tour. For the past few weeks we’ve been working with our onboard marine scientists Dr Olaf Meynecke and Franzi Saalmann to record the rich marine life and wild landscapes along the coast from Fremantle to Exmouth, to bring these extraordinary places to the public attention. It seems fitting to end this leg of our documentation trip here, in a place that has achieved a fragile safety – but still faces existential threats.

Spill mapping based on Woodside’s own data shows that a worst-case scenario spill from the gas company’s monstrous Burrup Hub would impact the Ningaloo Marine Park. An accident would release millions of litres of gas and condensate, a substance similar to crude oil, spreading hundreds of kilometres along the West Australian coast, hurting local communities and crucial industries such as the tourism economy that sustains Exmouth.

But while we’ve come to document the whale sharks, bureaucracy stands in our way. A mix-up means that we are unable to obtain the correct permit for filming whale sharks. A frantic last minute application leaves our science and documentation team cruising on a choppy and windswept sea, anxiously checking phones for the all-important permit.

And then, as we’re filming a graceful oceanic manta ray, a small miracle occurs. A whale shark unexpectedly swims serenely right through the middle of our group, close enough to touch. It’s untroubled by our presence, as we flail to capture it on film while it glides away into the deep.

It feels like a gift from Ningaloo, a reminder that the ocean is a place that defies expectations and plans. Nature doesn’t stick to the script.

Join the campaign to protect Ningaloo, and all the wild and beautiful places along the WA coast, from Woodside’s Burrup Hub.

Tell your MP that you want to protect these amazing places by getting us off fossil fuels and onto clean, renewable energy.

By Fiona Ivits

How did you get on with your Plastic Free July challenge? Each year I look forward to reducing my use of single-use plastic as much as possible. Wouldn’t it be nice if Coca-Cola and Pepsi did the same (wink wink)?

Individual actions matter. But the entire system needs changing.

There are actions we all can take to reduce our personal plastic footprint — bringing our reusable coffee cup to the cafe, taking tote bags to the supermarket, carrying a refillable water bottle and even buying products like sunscreen and shampoo in bulk.

But while these lifestyle changes are important, to create large-scale sustainable change we must reduce and eliminate single-use plastic production at its source. Even the most conscientious shopper among us will struggle to be 100 percent plastic free as single-use plastic packaging alternatives can be hard to find. Throwaway plastic is almost synonymous with consumer goods and is often still the most common option found for straws, takeout containers, bottles, bags and food wrappers. We need to change the system. 

Plastic-free bulk food stores and package-free options are popping up around the country. But many people in Australia and around the world do not have access to affordable package-free options. It can be nearly impossible to find essentials like shampoo, dish soap, and toothpaste that aren’t packaged in single-use plastic.

Access to refillable, plastic-free options in our communities should be more than a “nice to have” and for those that can afford the often higher price point. 

That’s why Greenpeace is asking supporters to demand corporations that produce goods packaged in single-use plastic switch to a reuse and refill system.

Sign our petition to tell Coca-Cola and Pepsi to move away from polluting single use plastics.

PETITION

Corporations like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Nestlé, and Unilever have been among the worst plastic polluters – as reported in Greenpeace’s Break Free from Plastic global brand audits four years in a row.

After a beach cleanup held in 45 countries, nearly 20,000 Coca-Cola branded products were collected from polluted sites. Only 9% of plastic waste products are actually recycled according to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (1). Which is why pushing for reuse and refill products from big corporations is vital to reducing plastic waste. 

Coca-Cola became the first big brand to announce a commitment to make at least 25% of their packaging reusable or refillable by 2030, according to the 2021 brand audit report (2). While this announcement was a step in the right direction, as one of the top polluting brands in the world, we need Coca-Cola to set more ambitious targets for reducing plastic waste. 

Another key player in the plastic pollution game, PepsiCo has indicated their intention, not a confirmed commitment, to set a refill and reuse goal by the end of 2022. 

Recycling alone can’t this huge plastic pollution problem.

Will Pepsi seize this moment to beat Coca-Cola to a refill and reuse system that can reduce new throwaway plastics from entering our oceans and food systems that are impacting billions of people and wildlife around the world?

Join Greenpeace in turning up the heat on big brands. Sign our petition today calling on Coca-Cola and Pepsi to move to a reuse and refill model and away from polluting single use plastics.

Lisa Ramsden is a Senior Oceans Campaigner at Greenpeace. 

Sign the our global petition today!
Tell Coca-Cola and Pepsi to move away from polluting single use plastics.

PETITION

Sources:

(1)  Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 2022

(2) Greenpeace Breakfree from Plastic Report 2021

The world’s ancient forests are in crisis. Mainly because of deforestation, a staggering 80 percent have already been destroyed or degraded. It is crucial we fight against forest destruction as much of what remains is under threat from illegal logging or land clearing.

Illegal logging is having a devastating impact on the world’s forests. Its effects include deforestation, the loss of biodiversity and fuelling climate change. This creates social conflict with Indigenous and local populations and leads to violence, crime and human rights abuses.

Ancient forests have evolved over thousands of years into unique and vital habitats for millions of plant and animal species. They are also home to millions of people who depend on them for their livelihoods and survival.

It is estimated that some 1.6 billion people worldwide depend on forests for their livelihood and 60 million Indigenous peoples depend on forests for their subsistence.

The Scale of Illegal Logging

Between August 2003 and 2004, the deforestation rate for the Amazon, the world’s largest tropical forest, was the second highest ever recorded. An area of 26,130 square kilometers – around the size of Belgium – was destroyed, most of it illegally.

Examples of Illegal Logging Rates in Timber Producing Countries

• In Indonesia it is estimated that up to 90 percent of logging is illegal.
• In the Brazilian Amazon it is estimated that 60-80 percent of logging is illegal.
• In Cameroon 50 percent of logging between 1999-2004 is estimated to have been illegal.

Illegal logging is funding crime and distorting markets

Revenue from illegal logging activities has been used to fund civil wars, organised crime and money laundering, all of which threatens international security. Illegal logging undermines the trade in legal and well-managed timber by responsible companies by under cutting its price and making it less competitive.

The World Bank estimates that illegal logging costs timber producing countries between US$10-15 billion per year in lost revenue, accounting for over a tenth of the total timber trade world-wide, estimated to be more than US $150 billion a year. This lost revenue is desperately required for much needed public services such as building schools and hospitals.

“Expecting or asking one country to combat illegal logging while at the same time, receiving or importing illegal logs does not support the efforts to combat these forest crimes….In fact, allowing the import and trade of illegal timber products could be considered as an act to assist or even to conduct forest crime.”

Muhammed Prakosa, Indonesian Forest Minister, January 2003.

Causes of the Problem

Weak governance and corruption in timber producing countries and the failure of governments in consumer countries like the EU, US and Japan to ban the import of illegally and destructively logged timber, allows unscrupulous logging companies and timber traders worldwide to exploit ancient forests.

The worldwide increase in demand for timber products, regardless of their legality, is fuelling forest destruction. For example the European Union is a significant importer of timber from regions where illegal and destructive logging is rampant.

Finding Solutions

Political action: not enough to prevent forest destruction

Astonishingly the EU has no law to stop the import of illegal timber into Europe. An EU Action Plan on Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade, known as FLEGT recommends the development of laws, which could include banning illegal timber imports. Until now the European Commission is only promoting voluntary action, which is widely regarded as not enough to protect the forests or the people that depend on them for their livelihoods. This will not be enough to save the forests.

Alternatives to forest destruction include sourcing timber from well-managed forests and The Forest Stewardship Council(FSC®).

Legality Verification Systems

The market for legality verification of wood products has grown. Numerous systems and services have been developed to check, license or certify timber as legal. The need to assess and monitor the credibility of these schemes is critical and Greenpeace has taken this task on. This assessment, based on desktop analysis and direct correspondence with the world’s primary verifiers, grades seven legality verification systems against criteria providing the essential minimum requirements to ensure credibility.

The waters of the Verde Island Passage are home to many threatened species, including sea turtles, hawksbills, green turtles and olive ridleys, as well as hosting thousands of endemic species. Now, the beautiful animals that call this passage home are fighting for survival against a wave of plastic pollution.

A three-day underwater exploration found single-use plastic pollution like sachets, some showing visible signs of being among the corals for a very long time. Among the branded single-use plastic pictured in the area were products from massive multinational brands Nestlé, Unilever, and Colgate Palmolive, as well as some local brands such as Zagu milktea, Nutri-Asia, and Monde Nissin.

An old sachet of Maggi Magic Sinigang Mix, manufactured by food giant Nestle, was found in Verde Island Passage, the epicenter of global marine biodiversity, in Batangas City, the Philippines. Daily, Filipinos discard 163 million sachets produced by the biggest FMCG companies.

The scale of this problem is HUGE. About 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic has been produced since the 1950’s and only 9% of that has ever been recycled. A whopping 79% of plastic produced ends up in either landfill or as pollution in the environment.

A Del Monte spaghetti sauce packaging was floating in Verde Island Passage.

Part of the reason plastic is so harmful is the length of time it exists. Once disposed, plastics don’t naturally degrade. They absorb more toxic chemicals and break down into tiny particles that end up in our oceans, digested by wildlife, and even humans. Plastic particles have even been found in sea salt, drinking water, beer and human faeces. Ew!

A small wrasse swims in Verde Island Passage. A plastic bottle is seen among the corals.

If we don’t stop plastic production at the source, this problem is going to get much much worse. In the minute you’ve spent reading this piece, a whole truckload of plastic has entered the ocean. That’s on top of the five trillion pieces of plastic already in our oceans – enough to circle the earth 400 times over.

You might be sitting there thinking about the last plastic item you used, or what you can do to reduce your own plastic waste. Whilst that helps, it’s important to remember who’s really responsible. It’s the massive corporations that create billions of tonnes of single-use plastics, making it near impossible for us consumers to completely avoid. These corporations need to be leading the charge and taking responsibility, which means a significant reduction in plastic production.

A small wrasse swims by a sachet of Colgate toothpaste in Verde Island Passage.

“If your bathtub was overflowing you wouldn’t reach for a mop – you’d first turn off the tap. That’s what we need to do with single-use plastic.” – Via Story of Stuff

We need to hold big corporations accountable for the waste problem they created. If they don’t make a change and reduce single-use plastic production, our ocean paradises will be lost.

In Australia that means calling on our two biggest supermarkets, Coles and Woolworths, to stop using excessive, ridiculous plastic on fresh produce. We simply can’t afford to keep creating products that we use for a few seconds and pollute our planet forever.

Coles and Woolworths have committed to minimal reductions in plastic, but we need to see way more action. Sign our petition and help us put an end to pointless plastic for good.

Plastic packaging was seen floating in in Verde Island Passage, the epicenter of global marine biodiversity, in Batangas City, the Philippines.

© Ulet Ifansasti / Greenpeace

It was a terrifying experience, which is just how it should be. These creatures are wild animals and our lives were never supposed to become so closely entwined with theirs. As I stood, rooted to the spot, he came lower to get a better look. His expression was so human-like I felt he could have begun talking at any moment. If he had, I’m quite sure he would have said, “Well done. No really, the mess you’ve created is quite incredible… and you guys are supposed to be the intelligent ones.”

We met – this orange-haired, long-armed, character and me – in a sanctuary in Kalimantan. So our encounter wasn’t how it should have been at all. Sanctuaries are where the lucky ones end up. It’s far from ideal. They’re limited to an area of forest too small for their range, reduced to relying on humans to survive. But it’s a thousand times better than the treeless wasteland they’re most often rescued from.

Orangutans on the brink of extinction

Natural rainforest, the primary habitat of orangutans, is being destroyed throughout Indonesia and replaced with oil palms by greedy plantation companies. Their fruits are harvested to make cheap vegetable oil that ends up in over half the products on supermarket shelves.  

Rescued orangutans, robbed of their home, their independence, and frequently their family, are cared for by the most remarkably dedicated of people but resources are slim. Sanctuaries are overcrowded and rescues are stressful and upsetting for all concerned.

For each animal that survives, many more die. Rescue work is vital but it’s a last resort and a losing battle unless the problem is tackled at source. There are no two ways about it – if we want to save orangutans from extinction we need to save their home.

Palm oil can be made without destroying rainforests

Greenpeace is working hard to force brands to clean up their palm oil supply chains. By forcing big brands to buy palm oil only from companies that can prove they’ve no links to deforestation, we can finally create lasting change within the industry.

© Greenpeace / Steve Morgan

Brands must take responsibility

Nearly a decade ago, some of the biggest brands on the planet, including Unilever, Nestle and Mondelez (now parent company of Cadbury’s), among others, promised to end their part in tropical deforestation by 2020.  Now, they have less than 500 days left to make that promise a reality.

Despite now having ‘no deforestation’ policies, which is a huge step forward from a decade ago, no large company has managed to reject suppliers still guilty of producing ‘dirty’ palm oil (by which we mean oil grown on newly deforested land).

What they’ve done instead, is to rely on the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), an industry body responsible for certifying the ‘clean’ stuff. But time and time again the RSPO has been exposed for turning a blind eye to producers and traders breaking the rules.

In June, the world’s largest palm oil trader, Wilmar, an RSPO board member and supplier to all the brands named above, was linked by Greenpeace to the destruction of rainforest totalling twice the size of Paris. This can’t go on.

Forests are the lungs of the planet

In the last 16 years, 100,000 orangutans have died mainly due to deforestation. Some are shot dead by frightened farmers after straying out of the drastically diminished forest on to agricultural land. Others starve due to loss of habitat, fall as the tree they’re clinging to is bulldozed to the ground, or suffocate and burn in forest fires deliberately started to clear land for planting.

© Alejo Sabugo / International Animal Rescue Indonesia

As well as orangutans, Sumatran tigers, rhinos and elephants have all dramatically declined. And people are suffering too. Conflict over land is causing violence, human rights abuses are rife and Indigenous peoples are losing their homes. In the last 25 years a forest area the size of the UK has been lost in Indonesia. This undermines efforts made to tackle climate change and affects us all.

For too long big brands and the palm oil companies they buy from have been getting away with murder – you could say quite literally. And for too long our response to orangutans has been ‘ohhh, the poor thing’ as we’re shown photographs of them orphaned, thin and at death’s door. But change is possible – we can make it so.

Watch Rang-tan

When Greenpeace asked me to narrate a new short film, Rang-tan, an animation designed to underline the problem and highlight the power we all have to help our ginger-haired cousins, I didn’t hesitate. It’s just the start of a new global campaign to tackle this problem once and for all.

500 days may not seem long but my hope is that by collectively making a noise, demanding answers and forcing change, we can stop feeling sorry. Instead, we can feel that exhilarating mixture of fear and fascination as witnesses of these iconic beasts living truly wild once more. If we accomplish that, believe me, we will all be much better off.

For years Greenpeace has called out the palm oil industry for razing rainforests and carving up carbon-rich peatlands.

Thanks to supporters like you, the big companies like Nestle, Unilever and Procter & Gamble that use palm oil have pledged not to buy from palm oil companies that destroy forests or abuse workers or local communities.

Now you may be asking: are companies following through on their pledges? Greenpeace is focused on ensuring they do.

On March 31, 2017 Greenpeace released its first Palm Oil Alert to challenge consumer companies and leading palm oil traders to follow through on their ‘no deforestation’ commitments.

Every issue will profile a palm oil company we’ve caught destroying rainforests. We want to know whether big-brands and the traders that sell palm oil to them are doing business with these dodgy companies. And we’re not just exposing bad actors; we’re asking brands what they are going to do about them. We’ll let you know what we find out.

Our first target has a pleasant-sounding name — Goodhope — but a terrible track record. It’s a palm oil producer headquartered in Singapore, with 15 plantations in Indonesia and four in Malaysia. Our investigators found that Goodhope has been destroying forests in Papua, much of it illegally. Local communities have accused it of taking their land and bulldozing their farms. Yet some palm oil giants have been turning a blind eye to Goodhope’s destruction — which is why we’re exposing the company and demanding they act.

Words and promises can’t stop deforestation. Only action can save our rainforests. Stay tuned as we continue to hold corporations accountable.

Justice for People and Planet calls on governments to impose effective and binding rules on corporate behaviour, to make them accountable toward people and the planet. It shows how, rather than imposing these rules, governments have willingly or unwillingly become enablers of corporate impunity. The report’s analysis of 20 specific cases shows how corporations have exploited corporate law, tax and investment treaties, regulatory capture and a series of barriers to justice to profit at the expense of human rights and the environment.

“In Davos the global elite will discuss ‘creating a shared future in a fractured world’, but the real corporate agenda remains one of expanding corporate power and profiting at the expense of citizens and the environment. If we are to protect our fragile planet, we need justice at the heart of corporate governance” – Matthias Wüthrich, Corporate Accountability Campaigner, Greenpeace Switzerland.

The report documents, among others, how differences in legal standards saw VW fined billions in the US for the dieselgate scandal, but escape unpunished in Europe [3]; how Resolute Forest Products and Energy Transfer Partners have used SLAPP suits in an attempt to silence critics [4]; how Glencore pollutes the environment and climate and uses private arbitration courts to pressurise governments [5];  and how Spanish ACS group became an accomplice to an environmental and social catastrophe when it joined the construction of the Renace hydroelectric power project in Guatemala.[6]

The report’s 20 cases expose corporate wrongdoing relating to climate change, deforestation, pollution, violations of Indigenous rights, repression against NGOs and environmental / human rights defenders, tax avoidance, corruption, fraudulent manipulation of the public debate and more [7]. 20 of the companies named in the report are partners or participants in the World Economic Forum. [8]

The common sense Corporate Accountability Principles that Greenpeace is asking to be adopted include ‘Holding corporations and those individuals who direct them liable for environmental and human rights violations committed domestically or abroad by companies under their control.’ and ‘Promoting a race to the top by prohibiting corporations from carrying out activities abroad which are banned in their home state for reasons of risks to environmental or human rights.’

“If corporations were held to the highest applicable standard, be that at home or abroad, it would go a long way to healing our fractured world. And if company directors risked fines or jail for the misdeeds of their subsidiaries and subcontractors corporate accountability could become a reality rather than a myth ” – Shira Stanton, Senior Political Strategist, Greenpeace International.

Greenpeace is supporting the launch with the release of the short, comedy film ‘It’s not Business, it’s personal’, produced by Don’t Panic! London, which imagines what would happen if a natural person were granted the privileges extended to corporations. [9]

Notes

[1] The activity was supported by activities in Switzerland, Mexico and Italy and is part of the Fight Inequality Alliance’s Messages from the other mountains campaign. #fightinequality

[2] Executive Summary: Justice for People and Planet : Ending the age of corporate capture, collusion and impunity

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Justice-Report-Exec-Summary.pdf

Full report: Justice for People and Planet : Ending the age of corporate capture, collusion and impunity

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Justice-for-people-and-planet.pdf

[3] VW case

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Cases/VW.pdf

[4] Energy Transfer Partners case:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Cases/ETP.pdf

Resolute Forest Products case:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Cases/Resolute-Forest-Products.pdf

[5] Glencore case:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Cases/Glencore.pdf

[6] ACS case: http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/other/2018/Cases/ACS-Group.pdf

[7] The corporations examined in the case studies are ACS Group (Grupo Cobra), The Carbon Majors (47 companies), Chevron, DowDuPont, Energy Transfer Partners, Exxon, Gabriel Resources, Glencore, Grupo Bimbo, Halcyon Agri (Sudcam), ICIG (Miteni), Keskinoğlu, Monsanto, Nestlé, Novartis (Sandoz), Resolute Forest Products, Rosatom, Schörghuber group (Ventisqueros), Total, Trafigura, and VW

[8] The following corporations are named in the report and are also official partners or participants in the WEF: Chevron, Dow Chemical Company (DowDuPont), Glencore, Monsanto, Nestlé, Novartis, Total, Trafigura, Volkswagen VW, BP, Eni, LUKOIL, Shell, Suncor, ArcelorMittal, Barclays, Citi, Facebook, Google, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

[9] It’s not business, it’s just personal, to see at www.greenpeace.org/justice

Photo and video:

Available at http://media.greenpeace.org/collection/27MZIFJX3QB3Y

Nicolas Fojtu – Visual Communication Producer

nfojtu@greenpeace.org

Contacts

Matthias Wuethric, Corporate Accountability Project Leader

Tel: +41 797 048 409

matthias.wuethrich@greenpeace.org

Shira Stanton, Senior Political Strategist, Greenpeace International

Tel:  +41 (0)78 708 5837

shira.stanton@greenpeace.org,

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

The lion may be the king of the jungle, but it’s the tiger that holds mystique and charisma. From the Chinese zodiac, to Buddhism, and even Rocky Balboa (cue trumpets), the largest of the cat species has been a symbol of strength and power throughout history and across cultures.

But unfortunately, the survival of these majestic beasts is in danger. Today, there are only 3,200 tigers living in the wild globally; and very recently it was announced that there are only 100 tigers left in Bangladesh’s largest mangrove forest. In Indonesia, there remain as few as 400 Sumatran tigers, while both Bali and Javan Tigers are already extinct. The main culprit for this rush towards extinction is forest clearing for palm oil and pulpwood plantations to be used to make many of the products we use every day.

But it’s not all doom and gloom! Here are ways you can help.

Look for forest-friendly products

Over the years, Greenpeace has successfully moved companies like Procter & Gamble, Mars, Unilever, Mattel and Nestle to commit to No Deforestation policies. In June, Indonesian paper giant APRIL finally agreed an immediate stop to pulping rainforests. Make sure to look for products with a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) logo and check out Greenpeace International’s friendly guide to buying sustainably.

Be aware of ‘dirty’ palm oil

Celebrities like Joaquin Phoenix, Kellan Lutz and Gillian Anderson have joined Greenpeace to call for an end to everyday products being manufactured through forest destruction. Check out our short animation to see how deforestation from palm oil is threatening the Sumatran Tiger in Indonesia.

Protect Paradise!

Already over 700,000 people have signed our petition to demand tiger and forest-friendly products. But we need more support! Help us reach our goal and put your name down to protect the forest home of tigers and many other wildlife and demand a forest-friendly future.