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G20 Activists: Why Am I Here Today?
Sep 25, 2009
The banner has come down. Greenpeace activists are safe. And, after two
hours hanging from the West End Bridge, the 80x30-foot banner spoke to
world leaders meeting in Pittsburgh at the G20 summit.
"Why am I here today?" The activists share their story in this inspirational video.
I
get goose bumps every time I watch this video. The line that sticks in
my head each time I watch is, "as Americans we need to do the right
thing, especially when it's hard."
It's not easy to change the
way the world operates. There is no "easy button" to turn off all the
pollution and resource destruction. But, the reality is--burning fossil
fuels for energy is destroying our planet. We need a fundamental switch
to clean, renewable energy in order for future generations to have,
well, a future.
I
realize that's not easy. It will take all of us working together,
building "green" infrastructure. But, I believe that fighting for a
clean healthy future for my son is worth it. I want to be able to look
him in the eyes and tell him I did everything I could to make sure he
could touch a 1,000 year old tree, swim in pollutant-free rivers,
breath fresh air and see glaciers.
I'm not a climber, but I was able to hang my very own Greenpeace banner -- on Facebook! There is a really neat new app, try it out.
And, if you haven't taken action yet, please do. President Obama needs to hear from all of us that we are ready for a strong world climate treaty. Together, we can do great things.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
© 2023 Greenpeace
The banner has come down. Greenpeace activists are safe. And, after two
hours hanging from the West End Bridge, the 80x30-foot banner spoke to
world leaders meeting in Pittsburgh at the G20 summit.
"Why am I here today?" The activists share their story in this inspirational video.
I
get goose bumps every time I watch this video. The line that sticks in
my head each time I watch is, "as Americans we need to do the right
thing, especially when it's hard."
It's not easy to change the
way the world operates. There is no "easy button" to turn off all the
pollution and resource destruction. But, the reality is--burning fossil
fuels for energy is destroying our planet. We need a fundamental switch
to clean, renewable energy in order for future generations to have,
well, a future.
I
realize that's not easy. It will take all of us working together,
building "green" infrastructure. But, I believe that fighting for a
clean healthy future for my son is worth it. I want to be able to look
him in the eyes and tell him I did everything I could to make sure he
could touch a 1,000 year old tree, swim in pollutant-free rivers,
breath fresh air and see glaciers.
I'm not a climber, but I was able to hang my very own Greenpeace banner -- on Facebook! There is a really neat new app, try it out.
And, if you haven't taken action yet, please do. President Obama needs to hear from all of us that we are ready for a strong world climate treaty. Together, we can do great things.
The banner has come down. Greenpeace activists are safe. And, after two
hours hanging from the West End Bridge, the 80x30-foot banner spoke to
world leaders meeting in Pittsburgh at the G20 summit.
"Why am I here today?" The activists share their story in this inspirational video.
I
get goose bumps every time I watch this video. The line that sticks in
my head each time I watch is, "as Americans we need to do the right
thing, especially when it's hard."
It's not easy to change the
way the world operates. There is no "easy button" to turn off all the
pollution and resource destruction. But, the reality is--burning fossil
fuels for energy is destroying our planet. We need a fundamental switch
to clean, renewable energy in order for future generations to have,
well, a future.
I
realize that's not easy. It will take all of us working together,
building "green" infrastructure. But, I believe that fighting for a
clean healthy future for my son is worth it. I want to be able to look
him in the eyes and tell him I did everything I could to make sure he
could touch a 1,000 year old tree, swim in pollutant-free rivers,
breath fresh air and see glaciers.
I'm not a climber, but I was able to hang my very own Greenpeace banner -- on Facebook! There is a really neat new app, try it out.
And, if you haven't taken action yet, please do. President Obama needs to hear from all of us that we are ready for a strong world climate treaty. Together, we can do great things.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.