According to the environmental blog Treehugger, Nestlé was forced to drop its Indonesian palm oil producer Sinar Mas Group after a successful viral video campaign by Greenpeace, which highlighted the destruction palm oil production causes to rainforests and orangutan habitats. But the success can’t be completely credited to Greenpeace. Apparently Nestlé blundered when it got the video taken off YouTube after only fewer than 1,000 people had seen it. This allowed Greenpeace to repost the video on Vimeo.com and send out word about Nestlé’s attempts to suppress their message, ultimately causing enough hubbub to force Nestlé’s hand. This is a great example of what’s known as political jiu-jitsu or as Treehugger put it, “how activists can succeed and how corporations can screw up bigtime.”
Bryan Farrell is the co-founder and editor of Waging Nonviolence. He also hosts and produces the podcast, City of Refuge. His work has appeared in The Guardian, The Nation, Mother Jones, Slate, Grist and Earth Island Journal.
With the last of New England’s coal plants now set to close, the No Coal No Gas campaign is reflecting on the power of fighting together.
Defying a media blackout and severe backlash, Tibetan monks, nuns and residents of a threatened mountain community are showing the world their resistance to a Chinese dam.
Drawing on a long legacy of forest defense in the Northwest, members of the direct action group Troublemakers halted a controversial timber sale in Washington.
Peace and justice organizations, as well as universities, publish their own independent content on Waging Nonviolence. This Community section offers just a sample of their latest stories. Visit their individual pages to see more.
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