New Year, New Wins

Happy New Year from all of us at Pacific Environment! Last year, we tackled everything from bubble tea sold in throw-away plastic containers to false, fossil-fueled promises in the shipping industry. We’re working across communities and oceans to build people power and protect our planet. And, we’re ready to do it all over again in … Read more

Our Top 7 of 2022

We had a great year with many important wins. But none of this would have been possible without our supporters. This support helps Pacific Environment collaborate with brave grassroots leaders to fight climate change, defend the oceans, protect wildlife, build just societies and move beyond fossil fuels toward a green economy.  Our teams coordinate ambitious … Read more

Our Top 5 of 2021

In 2021, Pacific Environment partnered with community leaders to fight climate change, protect the oceans, build just societies, and move beyond fossil fuels toward a green economy. I’m proud of the historical wins we and local activists achieved this year. And I hope you are, too, because we couldn’t do what we do without the … Read more

Inuit Partners Gain First-ever Seat at UN Shipping Body

What a week. Between the world’s premier UN Climate Conference “COP26” and the global shipping crisis, Team Pacific Environment has been hard at work. What’s more, Indigenous partners just won a first-ever seat at the United Nations’ shipping body! Earlier this week, the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) became the first Indigenous Organization to gain International … Read more

You Made a Difference in 2020

We support community leaders to fight climate change, protect the oceans, build just societies, and move away from fossil fuels toward a green economy. With your help, over the past year we supported local partners with more than $430,000 in grants, expert trainings and skill-building workshops, as well as travel stipends to advocate for change at international … Read more

Big Oil’s Plan B: More Plastic

Big Oil is racing to make more plastic as demand for fossil fuel energy is plummeting. Fossil fuels are the core element in the production of plastics. Faced with falling profits from dirty energy use, the industry is proposing massive expansion of the petrochemical production of plastics—drowning our communities and oceans in plastic trash. Our … Read more

This is an Emergency!

Amid the crises we have been struggling with in 2020, in our communities, in our nation, and in the world, I find myself more appreciative than ever of your support. Let me share a few examples of how your contribution to Pacific Environment makes a meaningful and important difference in tackling one of our most important global emergencies: … Read more

Making “Zero Waste” Cool in Vietnam

Professor Nhan Nguyen brings his passion for reducing plastic waste into the classroom at RMIT University in Ho Chi Minh City. “Climate change and plastic pollution are the environmental issues of our time,” Nhan says. “Vietnam doesn’t contribute much to climate change, but we are a major contributor to plastic pollution. I want my students to know about these … Read more

Protecting People from Pollution—and COVID-19

While it may seem unusual for an environmental group to provide medical relief, for Zhang Jun, temporarily pivoting his organization to COVID-19 relief made sense. When the COVID-19 crisis hit China, he contacted the local government in Anhui Province (about 200 miles from the outbreak’s early epicenter in Wuhan) to offer his team’s help. Having … Read more

Help Us Take On Plastic Pollution

Did you know that more than 90% of plastic waste is never recycled? Instead, most of it is being sent to landfills and incinerators, or polluting our land and our oceans. Meet Mrs. Lan who is working on the frontlines of plastic pollution in Vietnam. Mrs. Lan picks through household trash to make her living … Read more

TAKE ACTION: Tell Wikipedia to Name Oil Spill Culprit

Remember Exxon Valdez? How about the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill? Even decades later, these man-made environmental disasters are having a lasting impact on our planet, harming people and wildlife. In popular culture and the news, we remember these catastrophic events and firmly associate them with the companies responsible. On May 29, 2020, the largest … Read more

NGOs thank U.N. Shipping Agency for Virtual Climate Talks

Today, Pacific Environment thanks the UN’s Shipping Agency for hosting virtual dialogues on rapid decarbonization rules for international shipping. The meetings were held in part due to pressure from Pacific Environment and allies  urging that the world cannot allow the COVID-19 crisis to exacerbate the climate crisis. Good technical progress made this week reveals that … Read more

Our Top 5 of 2019

With the support of activists like you, we are building people power around the Pacific Rim to fight climate change, defend the oceans, promote open and inclusive societies, and ensure a just transition to a clean energy future for all. Here are five accomplishments I’m especially proud of this year. They would not have been … Read more

Decisions in London, Impacts in the Arctic

Earlier this year, Mellisa Maktuayaq Johnson told a room full of international shipping experts in London that “the sea and the land are our store.” Most people in the audience are used to shopping at supermarkets like Safeway or Costco, so it took a moment before they grasped the implications of what they were hearing. … Read more

BREAKING: Stop Polluting the Arctic, Indigenous Leaders Tell Carnival

If you signed our petition demanding that cruise ship operator Carnival clean up its dirty ships, your voice is now being heard in the hallways of corporate power. This morning, Pacific Environment joined a delegation of Arctic Indigenous leaders and other marine and environmental experts to deliver our petition demanding that Carnival Corporation stop using … Read more

Tweet @Carnival for the Climate

Will you help me protect the Arctic? Carnival Corporation claims that environmental stewardship and sustainability are core company values across all 10 of its subsidiary cruise line brands. Yet, most of the ships on its Arctic and Alaska routes continue to burn the dirtiest fuel available for marine transportation: heavy fuel oil. So far, Carnival … Read more

Join Us at the Global Climate Summit!

Even as some nations are failing to live up to the vision of the Paris Climate Agreement, leaders at the state, province, and city level, progressive companies, and many, many activists — the vanguard of change — are taking action to move our countries beyond fossil fuels. The week of September 10th, people are gathering … Read more

If You Love the Pacific Coast, Speak Up Today

Last weekend, I escaped the chilly San Francisco Bay Area weather by driving along California’s scenic Highway 101 to visit my sister in Los Angeles. All along this beautiful coastal drive, the beaches were packed with sunbathers, swimmers, and surfers. In some places, I could pull right off the road and take just a few … Read more

Take Action: Tell Carnival to Stop Destroying the Arctic

Did you know? Cruise giant Carnival’s Arctic ships have a dirty secret. Enticing passengers with promises of first-row tickets to the Arctic’s stunning natural wonders, few people know that Carnival’s ships are powered by one of the dirtiest fossil fuels on the planet. It’s called heavy fuel oil, and if spilled, this dirty oil would … Read more

Communities Win International Protections for the Arctic Ocean

Reporting directly from London, I’m excited to tell you that yesterday was a big day for Arctic waters and wildlife. Indigenous leaders and environmental activists like me convinced the international community to adopt new rules that require ships to avoid fragile marine ecosystems, reducing the threat of oil spills, environmental disasters, and harm to wildlife … Read more