View source for Greenpeace/Signed Articles/Eduzendium

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{{Infobox Legal Person
| name             = '''Greenpeace Organization'''  
| parent           = 
| logo             = 
| website          = www.greenpeace.org 
| ownership_type   = Not for profit, non-governmental organization 
| stock_symbol     = 
| foundation_date  = 1971
| founded_by       = &nbsp;Environmental activists
| location_street  = 702 H Street, NW
| location_city    = Washington
| location_state   = D.C.
| location_country = United States
| industry         = Campaigning for environmental protection
| product          = 
}}

'''Greenpeace International''' is an activist [[environmentalism|environmental]] [[interest group]]<ref>[http://www.un.org/dpi/ngosection/dpingo-directory.asp?RegID=--&CnID=all&AcID=0&kw=greenpeace&NGOID=550 United Nations, Department of Public Information, Non-Governmental Organizations]</ref> with offices in over 40 countries and headquarters in [[Amsterdam]], [[Netherlands]].<ref name="GPI world">[http://www.greenpeace.org/international/about/worldwide Greenpeace International: Greenpeace worldwide]</ref> 

==History==
<!--One of the biggest historical moments in Greenpeace, and many other environmental organizations, is the [[Chernobyl disaster]].  2009 marks the 23rd anniversary of the largest civil nuclear disaster ever!  Serious contamination spread over 150,000 square kilometers in Byelorussia, Ukraine and Russia.  Radioactive clouds deposited radiation thousands of kilometers away.  Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated and millions more were left to live in these contaminated areas, which were dangerous to their health and lives.  Many years after an historical moment that mark the lives  of many, we as a nation are still careless to the health of our environment.  Pollution, toxic waste, and nuclear waste continue to contaminate our atmosphere daily.  Now as a nation, we strive to preserve what is left of our ecosystem.-->

There is no one founder to the Greenpeace organization.  A small group of activists came together in 1971 to help create Greenpeace.  Not knowing that they would become known as the founders of the Greenpeace organization, these activists set out on a mission to protest U.S. nuclear testing on [[Amchitka Island]], off the coast of Alaska, including the largest underground test in U.S. history, the [[W71 (nuclear weapon)|W71 warhead]] for [[ballistic missile defense]]. 
<!-- Probably is possible to describe this neutrally------Amchitka was the last refuge for 3000 endangered sea otters, and the home to bald eagles, peregrine falcons and other wildlife. Their mission was to "bear witness" to U.S. underground nuclear testing at Amchitka, a tiny island off the West Coast of Alaska, which is the world most earthquake prone regions.  Although the sail to Amchitka was intercepted, it spiked a worldwide interest.   People wanted to know more about what was going on in the world, and became more and more interested in the safety of wildlife. Although the U.S. carried out their mission and detonated the bomb on the coast, the message was loud and clear, because nuclear testing ended that same year and the island was later declared a bird sanctuary. --> 

==Current objectives and activities==

The Greenpeace organization is one that prides itself on a healthy and safe environment.  From a political aspect, there is a lack of recognition, which enables this organization to have the resources needed to get the message out.  Since it is not a threat that the government feels is priority, people tend not to pay as much attention to the real threats of our planet and the past, present and future effects it will have in our lives.  Although the government is not as involved as they should be, there have been recent efforts to bring awareness to global destuction.  
===Carbon emissions===
The House has recently passed a bill called the "Cap and Trade" bill, which is set in place to cut carbon emissions and also increase the use of renewable energies. Greenpeace is a involved and supports this bill.  

"Cap and Trade" brings awareness to one of the greatest challenges of our time, climate control.  The threat of climate disruption stems from a simple fact, which is that we treat our atmosphere as a free dumping ground for pollutants, and nuclear waste.  And as a result,there has been increasing concentrations of climate warming gases, an overloading of carbon in the atmosphere, along with other maladies of our energy system such as oil addition and the volatile prices that come with it. 

A 'cap' is a legal limit on the quantity of greenhouse gases our economy can emit each year.

A 'trade' means that, by law, companies may swap among themselves the permission to emit greenhouse gases.

The cap-and-trade system is a test and proven system, that worked cheaply and efficiently to reduce acid rain pollution in the United States in the 1990s.  It is cost effective, economically sound and it is a prudent, long-term investment that will not only benefit the earth now, but in the future as well as we cap and trade slowly and responsibly.

===Other U.S. legislation===
Along with the "Cap and Trade" bill, Greenpeace also supports U.S. legislation such as the  the Kerry, Boxer ''Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act'', which senator John Kerry, Chairman for the Foreign Relations Committee, and Barbara Boxer, Chairman of the Environment and Public Works, introduced to create clean energy jobs, reduce pollution, and protect American security by enhancing domestic energy production and combating global climate change.

<!--This section says nothing about organization
==Organizational structure==

Global warming is the planets' most important environmental crisis of this time.  The planet is reeling from record-smashing temperatures and violent storms to long term droughts and unstoppable fires.  Super powerful hurricanes now hitting the United States are the "smoking gun" of global warming.  Global warming is becoming more and more obvious and dangerous every year.  People dying of heat stokes and being hospitalized because of burns from the severe heat waves.  

There are 3/4 of the worlds original forests that have been cut, most of that in the past century.  95% of the original forests of the United States are gone.  Only 5% of native forest still stands in the continental United States because of national and international deforestation and logging.  If you go on a plane and look down at the United States geographical configuration you will see that our most prominent areas of forestry is gone.  Not only does it eliminate the trees but it leave thousands of wildlife homeless.  
Our oceans are being polluted with nuclear waste, toxics, oil spills and personal dumping grounds for corporate businesses.   

Greenpeace's mission is to bring awareness to such issues by trying to become more active in the political process and with political leaders on the world stage, by exposing corporate polluters and conduction protest about these issues.
-->

==Achievements==
There have been many accomplishment made by Greenpeace since its founding 1971.  Some of their most recent achievements include:
''Not as unreferenced news releases!''
===Congress announces ban on toxic chemicals===
July 30, 2008

In this article, Greenpeace is excited about their victory for the children of the United States when Congress bans certain chemicals from being used when producing toys.  Now this was a major accomplishment that did not only effect Greenpeace, but mothers like myself that have small children and who are always concerned about their safety. Over 8,000 Greenpeace activists took action and wrote their members of Congress on this issue in ensuring a victorious achievement to the organization.  President Bush signed into law national product-safety legislation that will ban toxic chemicals like [[phthalate]]s from major toy producers in the U.S. Because children suck and chew on these toys, phthalates are easily released from vinyl products like water form a sponge, causing a variety of health hazards ranging from deformation of reproductive organs to damage to kidneys.
These victories are the less of many victories of Greenpeace.  This organization has progressed and accomplished many goals since there founding in 1971.

===Major supermarkets pull unsustainable seafood===
July 30, 2008

Victory for oceans!  Stop and Shop and Giant Food are going to stop selling [[shark]], [[orange roughy]] and [[Chilean sea bass]] until their populations bounce back from overfishing.  Just a few months before this decision, Greenpeace released a supermarket ranking reports on 20 of the top U.S. supermarket retailers to improve their seafood purchasing practices and stop selling destructively and overfished seafood.  A lot of times.

===Reports:  Japanese government gives in, slashes whale quotas===
November 2008

In this article, Greenpeace challenges whaling in the Southern Ocean.  In victory, Japan's biggest newspaper report there will be a 20% reduction in the number of whales targeted in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary hunt this year.  This is the first reduction since 1987, more that 21 years ago.  In the report, it speaks about the lack of demand for whale meat.  Later in the article it speaks on the 4,629 tons of unsold whale meat.  Taxpayers money are going toward whale hunting.  It cost to kill whale, and many of these taxpayers are unaware of this.  In the reports, it shows that fewer and fewer Japanese are eating whale.  So many whale are caught in overfishing for petty competition.

===New Kimberly-Clark policy is a victory for ancient forest===
August 05, 2009

Greenpeace was among countless activists that asked Kimberly-Clark to help save the Boreal forest since 2004, when the Kleenex, Scott, and Cottonelle announced a new policy that places it among the industy leaders in sustainability, bringing the Kleercut campaign to a successful completion.  The target is to use responsible sources such as recycled fibers or Forest Stewardship Council--the policy ensures that they will eliminate any fiber that is not (FSC) certified.  Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

==Public perception and controversies==

Greenpeace is a very well respected organization.  But, just like any other environmental organizations, they have those who support many of there viewpoints and those who oppose them.  Along with any issue that will affect other people, someone will always find a way to justify there actions to make themselves look better.  Some of these people include corporate businesses that Greenpeace activist expose and controversial issues such as global warming, in which most people have an opposing viewpoint about. 

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

Works Cited:

Ausubel, Kenny. “What is the Extent of Environmental Problems?” Conserving the Environment. Ed. Douglas Dupler. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven Press, 2006. 21-35. Print.

Brown, Lester. “Is There an Environmental Crisis.” The Environment. Ed. Laura K. Egendorf. New Haven: Greenhaven Press, 2005. 18-53. Print.

“Greenpeace Organization.” Greenpeace. N.p., Oct. 2009. Web. 4 Dec. 2009. <http://www.greenpeace.org>.

Kaufman, Leslie. “Disillusioned Environmentalists Turn on Obama as Compromiser.” New York Times [New York] 11 July 2009: 1-2. PDF file.

US EPA. “Cap and Trade.” Environmental Protection Agency. N.p., Nov. 2009. Web. 3 Dec. 2009.