Dismantling Corporate Power


Global Week of Action against UPOV comes to an end

“Today, peasants and farmers are facing extreme threats from the privatisation of seeds by intellectual property laws. In addition, seed marketing laws ban local and indigenous varieties which don’t fit the industrial model, restricting access and circulation. One institution is at the heart of this: the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV).” Hence the call…

Progress and concerns following latest round of UN negotiations on transnational corporations and human rights

The United Nations (UN) negotiations for a Binding Treaty to regulate human rights violations perpetrated by transnational corporations and enable victims to access justice “have taken a qualitative leap forward,” declared the Global Campaign to Dismantle Corporate Power and Stop Impunity . Following the seventh round of negotiations hosted by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva from 25-29 October,…

“Agroecology is the only way in which we can produce food sustainably”

The new edition of the Meat Atlas, published on 7 September 2021 by Friends of the Earth Europe, Heinrich-Böll Stiftung and BUND/Friends of the Earth Germany, reveals the role of the meat industry in the health, biodiversity and climate crises and the impacts of meat production on people, particularly communities in the Global South. “The Meat Atlas is a publication…

AN ATTEMPT TO RETRACE THE INTRICATE PATH OF THE ARCHITECTURE OF IMPUNITY

“What we see at the international level and often at the national level is an imbalance between the rights of peoples and the rights of corporations,” warned environmental activist Sam Cossar-Gilbert, speaking about the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism in a recent webinar. ISDS is “a biased justice system, organised by private lawyers, not by judges, and it's a tool…

A complete shift away from dirty energy systems towards 100% renewable energy in Africa is possible

Three-quarters of those without access to electricity now live in Africa, a share that has risen over recent years. The economic effects of Covid-19 have only increased the number of people unable to access electricity and who were forced into energy poverty. In this context, Friends of the Earth Africa has launched a report that analyses this situation and outlines…

What is going on with plastic waste in the Asia Pacific region?

“Asia is drowning in plastic,” says a new report from the Centre for Environmental Justice/Friends of the Earth Sri Lanka, launched in the wake of the 15th UN COP to the Basel Convention, which was held online from 26 to 30 July. The report, entitled “Breaking the Plastic Cycle in Asia”, exposes the reality of plastic waste dumping for people…

Pressure mounts on the WTO for a people’s vaccine to combat Covid

“The US's recent decision to back the waiver of intellectual property rights of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) shows that people power works,” said Sam Cossar, Co-coordinator of the Economic Justice and Resisting Neoliberalism program of Friends of the Earth International (FOEI). “The pressure is really now on the European Union (EU) and Australia not to continue blocking it. It…

Pressure on the WTO for Intellectual Property waiver on COVID vaccine

“Today high income countries are vaccinating 25 times faster than the lowest income countries,” warned the Coordinator of the Development and Intellectual Property Programme at Third World Network (TWN), Sangeeta Shashikant, on Thursday. “Intellectual property waivers are a must in the context of a pandemic,” she added in an interview with Real World Radio. This Friday, the World Trade Organisation…

African Peoples Tribunal demands a radical shift in the way transnational corporations operate

The African Peoples Tribunal, organised in Lagos and online by Friends of the Earth Africa, saw testimonies on cases from 10 African countries. The 24-28 November event ended with a call on governments to urgently ensure that human rights are respected and protected. It also denounced the collusion between governments and transnational corporations as objectionable and unacceptable. “This was probably…