Greenpeace

Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its diversity",^[3] and focuses its campaigning on worldwide issues such as climate change, deforestation, overfishing, commercial whaling, genetic engineering, anti-war,^[4] and anti-nuclear issues.^[5] It uses direct action, advocacy, research, and ecotage^[6] to achieve its goals. The network comprises 26 independent national/regional organisations in over 55 countries across Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia and the Pacific, as well as a coordinating body, Greenpeace International, based in Amsterdam, Netherlands.^[7]

The global network does not accept funding from governments, corporations, or political parties, relying on three million individual supporters and foundation grants.^[8][9] Greenpeace has a general consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council^[10] and is a founding member^[11] of the INGO Accountability Charter, an international non-governmental organization that intends to foster accountability and transparency of non-governmental organizations.

Greenpeace is known for its nonviolent direct actions and has been described as one of the most visible environmental organizations in the world.^[12] It has raised environmental issues to public awareness and knowledge,^[13][14][15] and influenced both the private and the public sector.^[16][17] The organization has received criticism; it was the subject of an open letter from more than 100 Nobel laureates urging Greenpeace to end its campaign against genetically modified organisms (GMOs).^[18]

The organization's direct actions have sparked legal actions against Greenpeace itself and activists. In March 2025, a nine-person North Dakota jury found Greenpeace liable for more than $660 million in damages and defamation for the 2016 to 2017 Standing Rock Protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline.^[19][20] Additionally, activists received fines and suspended sentences for destroying a test plot of genetically modified wheat,^[21][22][23] and according to the Peruvian Government prosecutors and the court's decision for damaging the Nazca Lines, a UN World Heritage site.^[24]