Kingston, Jamaica — As the International Seabed Authority (ISA) opens its 31st Session today, Greenpeace International is calling on member states to take firm and swift action if breaches by subsidiaries and subcontractors of The Metals Company (TMC) are established. Evidence compiled and submitted to the ISA’s Secretary General suggests that violations of exploration contracts may have occurred. [1][2] 

Louisa Casson, Campaigner, Greenpeace International said: “In July, governments at the ISA sent a clear message: rogue companies trying to sidestep international law will face consequences. Turning that promise into action at this meeting is far more important than rushing through a Mining Code designed to appease corporate interests rather than protect the common good. As delegations from around the world gather today, they must unite and confront the US and TMC’s neo-colonial resource grab and make clear that deep sea mining is a reckless gamble humanity cannot afford.”

The ISA launched an inquiry at its last Council meeting in July 2025, in response to TMC USA seeking unilateral deep sea mining licences from the Trump administration. If the US administration unilaterally allows mining the international seabed, it would be considered in violation of international law. 

Greenpeace International has compiled and submitted evidence to the ISA Secretary-General, Leticia Carvalho, to support the ongoing inquiry into deep sea mining contractors. This evidence shows that those supporting these unprecedented rogue efforts to start deep sea mining unilaterally via President Trump could be in breach of their obligations with the ISA.  

The analysis focuses on TMC’s subsidiaries — Nauru Ocean Resources Inc (NORI) and Tonga Offshore Mining Ltd (TOML) — as well as Blue Minerals Jamaica (BMJ), a company linked to Dutch-Swiss offshore engineering firm Allseas, one of TMC’s subcontractors and largest shareholders. The information compiled indicates that their activities may violate core contractual obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). [3] If these breaches are confirmed, NORI and TOML’s exploration contracts, which expire in July 2026 and January 2027 respectively, , the ISA should take action, including considering not renewing the contract.

Greenpeace International analysis key findings can be found in the footnotes.[2]

Letícia Carvalho has recently publicly advocated for governments to finalise a streamlined deep sea mining code this year and has expressed her own concerns with the calls from 40 governments for a moratorium.[4] At a time when rogue actors are attempting to bypass or weaken the international system, establishing rules and regulations that will allow mining to start could mean falling into the trap of international bullies. A Mining Code would legitimise and drive investment into a flagging industry, supporting rogue actor companies like TMC and weakening deterrence against unilateral mining outside the ISA framework.

Casson added: “Rushing to finalise a Mining Code serves the interests of multinational corporations, not the principles of multilateralism. With what we know now rules to mine the deep sea cannot coexist with ocean protection. Governments are legally obliged to only authorise deep sea mining if it can demonstrably benefit humanity – and that is non-negotiable. As the long list of scientific, environmental and social concerns with this industry keeps growing, what is needed is a clear political signal that the world will not be intimidated into rushing a mining code by unilateral threats and will instead keep moving towards a moratorium on deep sea mining.” 

ENDS

Photos are available in the Greenpeace Media Library.

Notes:

[1] The 31st Session of the International Seabed Authority https://isa.org.jm/sessions/31st-session-2026

[2] Greenpeace briefing (March 2026). Inquiry On Potential Breaches By ISA Contractors https://www.greenpeace.org/static/planet4-international-stateless/2026/03/40094db7-isa_contractors_greenpeace_international.pdf

Key findings:

 – Following TMC USA’s application to mine the international seabed unilaterally, NORI and TOML have amended their agreements to provide payments to Nauru and Tonga, respectively, if US-authorised commercial mining goes ahead. This sets up their participation in a financial mechanism predicated on mining in contradiction to UNCLOS.

 – NORI and TOML have signed intercompany intellectual property and data-sharing agreements with TMC USA, and the data obtained by NORI and TOML under the ISA exploration contracts has been key to facilitating TMC USA’s application under US national regulations. 

 – Just a few individuals hold key decision-making roles across the TMC and all relevant subsidiaries, making claims of independent management ungrounded. NORI, TOML, and TMC USA, while legally distinct, are managed as an integrated corporate group with a single, coordinated strategy under the direct control and strategic direction of TMC.

[3] The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea https://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/unclos_e.pdf 

[4] Deep Sea Conservation Coalition: countries against deep sea mining https://deep-sea-conservation.org/solutions/no-deep-sea-mining/momentum-for-a-moratorium/

Contacts:

Sol Gosetti, Media Coordinator for the Stop Deep Sea Mining campaign, Greenpeace International: sol.gosetti@greenpeace.org, +34 633 029 407

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0) 20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace around the world taking action, Indigenous communities defending their land from the Indonesian government, a Monumental Kite festival and many other great moments. Here are a few of our favorite images from Greenpeace work this week. Comment below which you like best!

Indonesia – Members of Chesa Selasa x The Freak Show performed during Indonesian musician Kunto Aji’s appearance at the 2026 Urup Festival “Welcoming the First Sun of 2026.” Greenpeace Indonesia collaborated with the Urup Festival to provide solar panel installations for electricity needs in the visitor camping area as a tangible form of clean energy transition.

Indonesia – Malind Indigenous plaintiff Sinta Gebze delivers legal documents to a staff member at the Administrative Court (PTUN) in Jayapura, Papua.

Members of the Malind Indigenous community have filed a lawsuit challenging the environmental feasibility permit for the planned construction of a 135-kilometer access road, issued by the Regent of Merauke, at the Jayapura Administrative Court (PTUN).

Spain – Greenpeace activists join solidarity activities in response to the judgment of the Energy Transfer SLAPP (Strategic lawsuit against public participation) case against the organization.

Energy Transfer’s SLAPPs (Strategic lawsuit against public participation) are part of a wave of abusive lawsuits filed by Big Oil companies like Shell, Total, and ENI against Greenpeace entities in recent years

France – On the lock, in kayaks and zodiacs, Greenpeace France activists unfurl a large banner reading: EDF <3 Putin, as well as other banners reading: EDF stop toxic contracts, Rosatom = war crime, Rosatom = toxic contracts, Solidarity with Ukrainians and EU Sanctions = false promises.

Mexico – Greenpeace Mexico held its Monumental Kite Festival for the Oceans, this time at Princess Beach in the port of Acapulco.

Through the display of a set of 20 monumental kites, and accompanied by the enthusiastic presence of families, tourists, and local residents, the Festival’s objective was to create a space to raise awareness among the general public about the value of these ecosystems and the importance of strengthening collective efforts to protect them in the critical context of climate change.

Belgium – European Parliament screening of the documentary GASLIT with community members Melanie Oldham and Sharon Wilson.
The documentary by Greenpeace USA, featuring Academy Award-winning actor and activist Jane Fonda, won Best Documentary at this year’s Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

Greenpeace has been a pioneer of photo activism for more than 50 years, and remains committed to bearing witness and exposing environmental injustice through the images we capture.

To see more Greenpeace photos and videos, visit our Media Library.

I am living through my fourth war in my four decades on this planet.

Beyond the raw, immediate impact my family and I in Lebanon, and countless others are experiencing on the ground, I am watching a deeper crisis unfold at the global level.

Headlines are increasingly dominated by soaring oil and gas prices and market volatility. When the global economy is dependent on a centralised, combustible resource, missiles do more than just cut off power or disrupt shipping. They rock the very foundation of global stability.

When the global economy is dependent on a centralised, combustible resource, missiles do more than just cut off power or disrupt shipping. They rock the very foundation of global stability.

The current crisis is a tragic, undeniable argument for why we must accelerate the transition to Renewable Energy. 

Renewables for resilience, independence and defence

This isn’t just about carbon emissions or climate targets. It’s about resilience, security, and survival.

Here is why a decentralised, renewable-led transition is a path toward vital protection and economic security:

1. Strengthening the grid: You cannot “blow up” the sun. It is incredibly difficult to disable a decentralised network of millions of rooftop solar panels. Distributed energy is inherently more resilient to sabotage than a handful of massive, vulnerable thermal plants.
2. Ending energy dependency: Conflict brings blockades and supply chain collapses. A country that produces its own power from its own sun and wind cannot be held hostage by disrupted shipping lanes or volatile oil markets.
3. Economic sovereignty: As prices soar, nations relying on imported fuels face crippling inflation. Transitioning to local renewables acts as a “hedge” against war driven shocks, keeping costs predictable for families when they are most vulnerable.
4. Decentralisation as defence: By removing “single points of failure”, we ensure that hospitals, schools, and homes can maintain power even if the national grid is compromised.

Not just energy goal but security imperative

We’ve long advocated for energy sovereignty, but the current situation proves this isn’t a “green” luxury. It is a strategic necessity.

The transition to renewables is often framed as a climate goal. But in a region where stability is fragile, it is also a security imperative. 

We need to build energy systems that are as resilient as the people who rely on them. Renewables are the best (and much needed) way to make that happen. 

Julien Jreissati is Programme Director at Greenpeace Middle East and North Africa, based in Lebanon.

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The City of Johannesburg, South Africa’s economic capital and most densely populated city, is experiencing a water shortage which has seen residents bathing in public in protest. The only thing more ludicrous than the lengths fellow citizens have had to go to try and resolve the matter is the Marie Antoinette-esque response from officials who say that they too are impacted by this shortage, and have even had to “go to a certain hotel to bathe” to navigate the situation.

Some of our city’s suburbs have experienced disruptions to domestic water supply for weeks at a time, and city officials warn of even worse times ahead. It is hard to imagine that taps are running dry in the country when just a month ago, the region experienced one of the worst floods in its recorded history. So this isn’t simply about “running out of water.” It’s about climate stress meeting weak systems and the most vulnerable communities paying the price.

Water everywhere, but not a drop to drink 

A Red Level 10 storm in southeastern Africa reportedly saw hundreds of thousands from Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe displaced and hundreds dead. Residents from one of South Africa’s villages most impacted by the floods, Mbaula Village, Limpopo province, described the water arriving “with a roar; not a rise, but a wall that gave no warning”. But, despite all of that rain in the region, and dams servicing the city reportedly sitting at 100 percent capacity, water restrictions persist.  

Civil society groups argue that Johannesburg’s water crisis was not primarily caused by drought but by chronic infrastructure neglect, the resulting massive water losses, governance failures at Joburg Water, and poor coordination between authorities. Burst pipes around the city are rife. But despite President Cyril Ramaphosa’s attempts to upscale repairs and maintenance ahead of last year’s G20 meeting hosted there, continuous heavy showers during the subsequent rainy season have not only undone a lot of these patchwork repairs but have also delayed many structural repairs from going ahead.

Very often we think of climate impacts as the dramatic ruin that results from floods, fires and droughts. But the slow and silent ways that climate change chips away at the fabric of our cities frequently goes unnoticed. Southern Africa is currently experiencing a rainy season super-charged by the climate crisis and La Niña. While Johannesburg may not have flooded to the extent of its northern neighbours Mpumalanga and Limpopo, recent continuous showers have accelerated its infrastructural woes. Until planners address this breadth of climate impacts communities will continue to be left in the lurch. 

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When the math isn’t mathing 

Despite general awareness of the climate crisis, and tools developed by scientists to help us anticipate and navigate the destruction it brings, there is often a disconnect in understanding the immediacy and severity of the local risks we face. Perhaps not surprising when on the global stage it is positioned by many decision-makers as a problem for tomorrow (and not a problem at all, by others). 

When South African Weather Services issued a Red Level 10 warning for the storm that would eventually destroy many homes and lives, many people stayed put because they could not fathom the extent of the destruction that would ensue. Even South African government officials reportedly ignored the warning, and only started evacuation efforts once the storm hit. This speaks to a much deeper gulf between people and the science that could protect us. 

As water woes rise, vulnerabilities deepen

Experts are now warning of the possibility of a malaria outbreak in flood-affected communities across southern Africa. Drinking water has reportedly become contaminated with flood water, which scientists warn could lead to a cholera outbreak. Having to deal with illness threatens to further marginalise those trying to rebuild their lives with limited resources and insufficient access to healthcare. Globally, the UN has warned that freshwater reserves are shrinking due to rising temperatures and mismanagement. South Africa is feeling that pressure acutely. 

Given the South African government’s delayed response to the flood warnings, one might excuse any cynicism in their ability to proactively deal with the cascading issues to come in its aftermath. South Africa’s water crises show what happens when climate stress meets aging systems. It also demonstrates an urgent need for climate adaptation. 

The lesson here is clear: climate resilience must be built into water infrastructure before a crisis hits. At the same time we must hasten the transition away from polluting and water-hungry industries that are driving us deeper into environmental crises – and embrace sustainable water and energy systems for all.

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Thirsty for AI

We’re also seeing a worrying disconnect between decision-making and science as we witness South Africa’s AI data centre boom. Despite President Ramaphosa’s acknowledgement of the water crisis as a national issue, water guzzling industries like AI data centres seem to be rapidly spreading in the country. 

Even the simplest ChatGPT prompt costs roughly one bottle of drinking water to cool down electronic systems at these facilities, according to a Washington Post study with the University of California. 

A recent Greenpeace East Asia report found that AI-related carbon emissions are soaring, with electricity consumption for AI chip manufacturing increasing over 350% in recent years. Not only is AI depleting our water supplies, but its growing contribution to the climate crisis threatens to further exacerbate the situation by worsening climate impacts. 

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The climate crisis is not a thing of tomorrow. We see it in the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather disasters around the world. But, we also see it in the slow and steady collapse of the world around us. To respond effectively requires urgent, concerted effort. 

Only when we see reckless pursuit of profit for what it truly is, can we understand the constant risk that greedy corporations put us in. And what they carelessly take away from us every day. And, maybe then we’d be more selective of the industries we let in.

Commenting on today’s OPEC+ decision to increase oil production by 206,000 barrels per day from April in response to the escalation of conflict in Middle East including the disruption of oil and gas supply in the Strait of Hormuz, Greenpeace International Executive Director Mads Christensen said: 

“Today’s OPEC meeting makes one thing clear: as long as our world runs on oil and gas, our peace, security and our pockets will always be at the mercy of geopolitics. Increasing output may temporarily ease price pressures, but it does not address the structural vulnerability at the heart of this recurring crisis: the world’s continued dependence on fossil fuels.

“Political leaders in all countries must wake up and reclaim the moral compass. This means pursuing peaceful, diplomatic solutions, and securing access to affordable, sustainable energy to replace the volatility of the fossil fuel–driven world order. Renewable energy enables local energy production and is not hostage to geopolitical conflict.

“The escalating violence in the Middle East is a human tragedy. Once again, people are bearing the brunt of Donald Trump’s violence and blatant attacks on the international rule of law. Greenpeace calls for an immediate ceasefire, for international law to be upheld and a return to diplomacy to stop the suffering of civilians.”

ENDS

Contact:

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International is deeply concerned by the joint military strike on Iran by the US and Israel.

“We express deep sympathy for all those affected by the violence, wherever they live, and urge that every effort be made to protect civilians, homes, and critical infrastructure,” says Mads Christensen, Executive Director, Greenpeace International.

“Military strikes inflict yet more harm on the people of Iran, who have already endured a brutal crackdown in which thousands of protesters and bystanders have been killed, with many more still feared dead.

“Such action will not bring stability or security, it risks deepening suffering, fuelling retaliation, and destabilising an already fragile region.

“The strike on Iran today raises serious concerns under international law and further undermines critical international legal frameworks designed to prevent war and protect human life.

“All parties must immediately halt further military action and return to structured, good-faith negotiations under credible international oversight.

“At this critical time, the rights, safety and dignity of the Iranian people must come first. Civilians should never pay the price for political tension, competing resource interests, or geopolitical power struggles. The people of Iran, like people everywhere, have the right to live free of violence, fear and coercion and to determine their own future.

“The international community must act urgently to prevent further escalation, prioritise diplomacy and ensure accountability for actions that contravene international law and put civilian lives, ecosystems and the global climate at further risk.

“War brings immediate human suffering but also long-term environmental harm. Military conflict contaminates land and water, destroys ecosystems, accelerates climate breakdown, and leaves lasting scars on communities for generations. At a time when the world must urgently unite to confront the climate crisis, further militarisation moves us in the wrong direction.

“Greenpeace calls on all parties to de-escalate tensions and pursue peaceful, diplomatic solutions.”

ENDS

Contacts:

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

A US court has just sided with fossil fuel pipeline giant Energy Transfer and ordered Greenpeace International and Greenpeace entities in the US to pay US$ 345 million.

Quick backstory: last year, a Morton County jury of nine reached a verdict in Energy Transfer’s abusive intimidation lawsuit against Greenpeace entities in the US (Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund), and Greenpeace International. 

The new judgment from the North Dakota court rejects portions of the absurd jury verdict delivered last March but still awards hundreds of millions of dollars to ET without a sound basis in law, failing to solve the injustices of the case. This judgement is the biggest damage award ever imposed on Greenpeace organisations. It’s meant to shut the movement up.

So let’s be clear: this type of corporate bullying is designed to rob us of our rights and freedoms. 

Energy Transfer has pursued this intimidation lawsuit because Greenpeace USA and Greenpeace International dared to show solidarity with Indigenous environmental defenders who oppose the climate-wrecking Dakota Access Pipeline. It was never about justice and Energy Transfer’s SLAPP suit remains a blatant attempt to silence free speech, erase Indigenous leadership of the Standing Rock movement, and punish solidarity with peaceful resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline. 

So what comes next? Greenpeace International and Greenpeace organisations in the US will seek a new trial, and if that is denied, appeal the judgment with the North Dakota Supreme Court.

At the same time, Greenpeace International has a suit pending against Energy Transfer in the Netherlands under the EU’s anti-SLAPP directive – a landmark test case against corporate bullying.

Energy Transfer’s SLAPPs are part of a wave of abusive lawsuits filed by Big Oil companies like Shell, Total, and ENI against Greenpeace entities in recent years but we will continue to resist intimidation tactics. The fight against Energy Transfer’s SLAPP continues — and it is far from over. We will not be silenced.

We will only get louder, joining our voices to those of our allies all around the world against the corporate polluters and billionaire oligarchs who prioritise profits over people and the planet. 

Stop Corporate Intimidation!

Tell Energy Transfer and other corporate bullies: Stop your attacks on free speech.

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Mandan, North Dakota — Greenpeace International and Greenpeace organisations in the US announce they will seek a new trial and, if necessary, appeal the decision with the North Dakota Supreme Court following a North Dakota District Court judgment today awarding Energy Transfer (ET) $US 345 million. ET’s SLAPP suit remains a blatant attempt to silence free speech, erase Indigenous leadership of the Standing Rock movement, and punish solidarity with peaceful resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline. Greenpeace International will also continue to seek damages for ET’s bullying lawsuits under EU anti-SLAPP legislation in the Netherlands.

Mads Christensen, Greenpeace International Executive Director said: “Energy Transfer’s attempts to silence us are failing. Greenpeace International will continue to resist intimidation tactics. We will not be silenced. We will only get louder, joining our voices to those of our allies all around the world against the corporate polluters and billionaire oligarchs who prioritise profits over people and the planet. 

“With hard-won freedoms under threat and the climate crisis accelerating, the stakes of this legal fight couldn’t be higher. Through appeals in the US and Greenpeace International’s groundbreaking anti-SLAPP case in the Netherlands, we are exploring every option to hold Energy Transfer accountable for multiple abusive lawsuits and show all power-hungry bullies that their attacks will only result in a stronger people-powered movement.”

The Court’s final judgment today rejects some of the jury verdict delivered in March 2025, but still awards hundreds of millions of dollars to ET without a sound basis in law. The Greenpeace defendants will continue to press their arguments that the US Constitution does not allow liability here, that ET did not present evidence to support its claims, that the Court admitted inflammatory and irrelevant evidence at trial and excluded other evidence supporting the defense, and that the jury pool in Mandan could not be impartial.[1][2]

ET’s back-to-back lawsuits against Greenpeace International and the US organisations Greenpeace USA (Greenpeace Inc.) and Greenpeace Fund are clear-cut examples of SLAPPs — lawsuits attempting to bury nonprofits and activists in legal fees, push them towards bankruptcy and ultimately silence dissent.[3] Greenpeace International, which is based in the Netherlands, is pursuing justice in Europe, with a suit against ET under Dutch law and the European Union’s new anti-SLAPP directive, a landmark test of the new legislation which could help set a powerful precedent against corporate bullying.[4] 

Marco Simons, Interim General Counsel at Greenpeace USA and Greenpeace Fund said: “Speaking out against corporations that cause environmental harm should never be deemed unlawful. It is guaranteed by the US Constitution, and is essential to the protection of communities and the health of democracy. This is a setback, but the movement to defend people and the planet has always faced setbacks and resistance, and Energy Transfer will fail in its goal of silencing its critics. 

“The absurdity of this judgment can easily be illustrated. These Greenpeace organisations have been held responsible for supposedly delaying a pipeline that to this day does not have legal authority to operate, and which was actually delayed by the decisions of the US Army Corps of Engineers. The judgment includes tens of millions of dollars for signing a letter also signed by 500 other organisations, which echoed statements made in United Nations reports. If the courts still believe in justice, this result will not stand.”

Energy Transfer’s SLAPPs are part of a wave of abusive lawsuits filed by Big Oil companies like Shell, Total, and ENI against Greenpeace entities in recent years.[3] A couple of these cases have been successfully stopped in their tracks. This includes Greenpeace France successfully defeating TotalEnergies’ SLAPP on 28 March 2024, and Greenpeace UK and Greenpeace International forcing Shell to back down from its SLAPP on 10 December 2024.

ENDS

Photos and Videos can be accessed from the Greenpeace Media Library.

Notes: 

[1] The judgment entered by North Dakota District Court Judge Gion follows a jury verdict finding Greenpeace entities liable for more than US$660 million on March 19, 2025. Judge Gion subsequently threw out several items from the jury’s verdict, reducing the total damages to approximately US$345 million. 

[2] Public statements from the independent Trial Monitoring Committee  

[3] Energy Transfer’s first lawsuit was filed in federal court in 2017 under the RICO Act – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a US federal statute designed to prosecute mob activity. The case was dismissed in 2019, with the judge stating the evidence fell “far short” of what was needed to establish a RICO enterprise. The federal court did not decide on Energy Transfer’s claims based on state law, so Energy Transfer promptly filed a new case in a North Dakota state court with these and other state law claims.

[4] Greenpeace International sent a Notice of Liability to Energy Transfer on 23 July 2024, informing the pipeline giant of Greenpeace International’s intention to bring an anti-SLAPP lawsuit against the company in a Dutch Court. After Energy Transfer declined to accept liability on multiple occasions (September 2024, December 2024), Greenpeace International initiated the first test of the European Union’s anti-SLAPP Directive on 11 February 2025 by filing a lawsuit in Dutch court against Energy Transfer. The case was officially registered in the docket of the Court of Amsterdam on 2 July, 2025. Greenpeace International seeks to recover all damages and costs it has suffered as a result of Energy Transfers’s back-to-back, abusive lawsuits demanding hundreds of millions of dollars from Greenpeace International and the Greenpeace organisations in the US. The next hearing in the Court of Amsterdam is scheduled for 16 April, 2026. 

Contacts:

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Join the Greenpeace SLAPP Trial WhatsApp Group for our latest updates

Birthing babies can become way more complicated in extreme weather, as can managing everyday healthcare and medical emergencies. But such pressures will only increase as fossil-fuelled disasters intensify. Here’s how one South African mother and community care worker handled childbirth in a Red Level 10 storm without access to health facilities – and why governments need to invest in climate-resilient infrastructure and make polluters pay for the mounting cost of their climate impacts.

Cut off by floodwaters and without access to a clinic, a South African home-based carer was forced into an extraordinary role when a young woman went into labour during recent floods. In Mbaula village, amid destruction and isolation, an impromptu baby delivery became a symbol of hope and solidarity in a community left on the margins of healthcare.

On Wednesday 14 January, floods caused by a low-pressure system that began in Mozambique, but quickly moved into the neighbouring South African provinces of Mpumalanga and Limpopo, caused immense destruction. Homes were gutted, roads washed away and more than 30 lives were reportedly lost. In neighbouring countries, the reported death toll went into the hundreds and nearly a million people were displaced.

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At the heart of the areas most affected by the floods was Mbaula, a village in Giyani, Limpopo province.Daily Maverick had reported about homes and lives that lay in ruin in the aftermath of the extreme weather event, but in the words of Mbaula resident Maggie Sethagane, it was also the day “God performed a miracle”. It was on this day, as the Mbaula River swelled and flooded part of the village, that she (with no medical equipment or access to healthcare services) helped a young mother bring new life into the village.

Health facilities are hard to access even in better weather. Extreme conditions make it impossible

Sethagane has been working as a home-based carer since 2001. In her role as a community health worker, she takes care of the sick, visiting them in their homes, explaining treatment and assisting them to take their medication correctly. But on the first day of the floods, she found herself taking on another role – midwife.

Late that evening, Evidence Ramoshaba, a pregnant mother experiencing contractions, came to Sethagane’s door asking for help to reach the local clinic as she was in pain. Villages like Mbaula do not have their own clinic, forcing residents to travel long distances for care. A mobile clinic visits the area once a month, along with an ambulance. However, it is difficult to get an ambulance out to the village at times, even in better weather conditions. The nearest health facility, Makhuva Clinic, was in a neighbouring village, which could only be reached by roads that had been blocked by rapidly swelling rivers.

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“I told her, ‘It is impossible for me to take you to the clinic because there is no road. It has rained a lot. And even if we used the road through Phalaubeni… to get to Makhuva clinic, there is a river ahead. We won’t be able to pass,’ ” Sethagane recounted.

With no other option, Sethagane advised Ramoshaba to return home and wait with her sister-in-law until it was time for the birth. A few hours later, when the mother’s family told Sethagane that the situation was becoming dire, the home-based carer came across to assist. She had no equipment, not even gloves, as the clinic issues these to community health workers on an as-needed basis.

“I told her, ‘Push, push, push, there is no other way’. She pushed, and the child came out. At that point, we didn’t have a razor blade [to cut the umbilical cord], we didn’t have anything. We didn’t know what we were going to do,” said Sethagane.

She told Ramoshaba to sleep, with the baby in her arms, until they could figure out what to do.

It was only the following morning that Sethagane, along with Ramoshaba’s mother, was able to organise a razor and purchase wool from the local seamstresses, who sewed xibelani, traditional Xitsoga skirts. Using those two everyday household items, Sethagane was able to cut the umbilical cord and discard the placenta.

“We took a risk, but there was nothing else we could have done,” said Sethagane.

‘Hope’ despite the storm 

“The child was born on Thursday, 16 January… The child only went to the clinic when she was three days old on the 19th because … the roads were not alright. You could not use them. It was basically on Monday that I took [Ramoshaba] to the clinic when I was going to work. That’s when they checked her to make sure she was alright, and the baby as well.”

The baby girl, Kutshemba, which means “hope” or “believe in” in Xitsonga, was found to be healthy despite the unusual circumstances of her birth.

“This child was born on the day of the disaster. She came on a very hard day, a day with problems… God performed a miracle by making sure this child was born okay, even though she wasn’t born in a clinic,” said Sethagane.

Cradling a sleeping Kutshemba in her arms, a quietly-spoken Ramoshaba told us that she chose to give her child that name because the manner in which she was born held no promise that the baby would survive.

“It was 10pm or 10.30pm, and the rain was falling hard. It was raining so hard… there was no way we could leave the village. There was water everywhere, and the bridge to Makhuva was blocked. There was nowhere to go, but we did try our best; that’s how the baby was born at home,” she said, motioning to the house.

Ramoshaba said she had lower back and abdominal pain for three days with no access to medication before she could seek medical attention at Makhuva Clinic.

Lerato Mutsila and Tamsin Metelerkamp are Daily Maverick journalists based in South Africa.  

A version of this article was originally published by Daily Maverick Earth on 8 February 2026. 

Guest authors work with Greenpeace to share their personal experiences and perspectives and are responsible for their own content.

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In Limpopo, South Africa, devastating floods expose the destructive power of extreme weather supercharged by a fossil fuelled climate crisis. Yet community resilience shines through as neighbours unite to rebuild and adapt amid climate extremes. 

A low-pressure system that began in Mozambique gutted homes, washed away roads, and took more than 30 lives. In neighbouring countries, the death toll went into the hundreds and nearly a million people were displaced.

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I have always known about rivers, dams, rainfall patterns and the quiet, persistent ways water shapes our landscapes. These are things we engage with daily, so I understood water’s nature – its necessity, its patience and its destructive potential. On paper, floods are statistics: millimetres of rain, breached river levels, damaged infrastructure.

But it was only when Daily Maverick’s children’s reporter, Tamsin Metelerkamp, photojournalist Felix Dlangamandla and I walked through Mbaula Village beside the now-quiet Mbaula River, one of the hardest-hit areas in Limpopo that the true power of water fully dawned on us.

No warning, just devastation

We walked through homes split open like cardboard boxes, fields once promising maize harvests smothered in mud and debris. We traced the more than 1km path along which one survivor had been swept. People described the water arriving with a roar; not a rise, but a wall that gave no warning, offered no mercy and left nightmares behind.

People described the water arriving with a roar; not a rise, but a wall that gave no warning.

In those moments, it became clear: water does not negotiate. When it overwhelms, it takes everything in its path. Yet amid the wreckage, another kind of power revealed itself. On the ground, we heard stories of neighbours pulling one another from the mud and sharing food, clothes and shelter with those who lost everything. Community leaders organised clean-ups before any official help arrived. Elders offered comfort, faith leaders led prayers and young people cleared debris with their bare hands.

Loss was everywhere, but so was solidarity.

The floods reminded us that while water can destroy villages, it cannot wash away human connection. In crisis, people did more than survive; they began to imagine how to build back safer and better.

Part of a global crisis

These floods are not isolated. They are part of a pattern we can no longer ignore. South Africa has endured devastating floods and prolonged droughts followed by sudden deluges and intensifying heatwaves. Globally, flooding, fires and storms continue to rewrite climate records. The science is clear: a warming world brings greater extremes – and communities already made vulnerable to the impacts of extreme weather are paying the highest price.

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What Limpopo demands now is not sympathy, but action. Climate adaptation must mean early warning systems that reach rural villages, land-use planning that respects floodplains, resilient housing, protected ecosystems and disaster responses that are swift, coordinated and humane.

The water has receded, but the questions it leaves behind are rising. How we answer them will shape our shared future.

Lerato Mutsila is a Daily Maverick journalist based in South Africa.

A version of this article was originally published by Daily Maverick Earth.

Guest authors work with Greenpeace to share their personal experiences and perspectives and are responsible for their own content.

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