In 2019, we saw the power of grassroots movements growing around the world, helping to rewrite the future of climate change.
Across continents these movements – led by women, Indigenous activists, and people like you – are working to challenge the status quo, hold governments and policymakers accountable, and drive change from the bottom up in the fight for social and environmental justice.
At Global Greengrants Fund, we’re proud to have seeded many of these movements, and to celebrate victories alongside our grantees. Read on for three major wins from our network in 2019.
Kenya
In June, a Kenyan tribunal canceled plans to build the country’s first-ever coal fired power plant, citing environmental and public health risks. This would not have been possible without years of advocacy and resistance by a strong movement of anti-coal activist groups across the region, including Save Lamu, a Global Greengrants Fund grantee. Find out how Global Greengrants Fund and Save Lamu played a role in resisting the power plant.
Ecuador
After decades of debate in the courtrooms to hold Chevron accountable for dumping billions of gallons of oil into the watersheds of the Amazon rainforest, there was good news to celebrate in July. Ecuador’s Constitutional Court made a unanimous decision to reject Chevron’s final appeal of a $9.5 billion pollution judgment that found the company guilty of deliberate contamination. Global Greengrants Fund has given multiple grants over the years to activists aiming to hold Chevron accountable and responsible for the clean up of the Amazon.
Serbia
Our grantee, Ne Davimo Beograd, has been challenging the development of a waste incinerator in Belgrade due to the potential for exacerbated air pollution from the project, as well as negative impacts on recycling. There was reason to celebrate when the European Investment Bank recently dropped financing for the 340,000 metric tons-per-year communal waste incinerator, lessening the likelihood of its construction. However, several other international financiers are still invested in the project, meaning that the fight continues.
We are proud of victories such as these, and we need your help to keep the momentum going. Today, we call on you to help us in our efforts to seed these movements, and invest in those who eat from the land, drink the water, and envision a healthier future for our children. Make a gift now.