Just weeks after witnessing thousands of people in Croatia protesting against an invasion of giant chicken farms in their towns, I found myself packing my bags again. The Big Ag corporate interests planning to quadruple Croatia’s poultry production haven’t given up, and now have their eyes on another pristine corner of Croatia.

This time, I traveled to Croatia’s northeast, right on the border with Hungary, where a fiercely dedicated community is fighting to keep a megafarm from destroying an area widely known as the ‘Amazon of Europe’.

Grassroots resistance against the Chicken King

My journey started with a bus drive down from Budapest to the border, where the Drava River divides Hungary and Croatia. This region, right where the rivers Drava and Mura meet, is the stunning Mura-Drava-Danube UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

Covering 930,000 hectares along 700 kilometres of rivers, this is a biodiversity hotspot with rare habitats such as floodplain forests, gravel and sand banks, river islands and oxbow lakes. It’s an ornithological haven packed with rare bird species including black storks, marsh harriers and the highest density of breeding pairs of white-tailed eagles in continental Europe. 

But Big Ag MHP Group, Europe’s biggest poultry player, led by the infamous billionaire ‘Chicken King’ Yuriy Kosiuk wants to turn this paradise into an industrial zone. 

The Legrad-Donja Dubrava Citizens’ Initiative, a grassroots group leading the opposition to the farm, warns that this facility will house a staggering 1.8 million chickens annually. The 50,000m² facility will pump 30 million liters of groundwater annually from its own wells for technology and cooling, while producing 1 million litres of wastewater per year.

I was invited here by Korina and Emil, a local couple who are spearheading the grassroots resistance. They are not your typical activists; rather they are ordinary people who are taking action to defend the place they live. Emil took me on a tour to see exactly what we are up against. First, he showed me an existing megafarm linked to Perutnina Ptuj–Pipo, the same company behind the new project, which is already operating nearby. We then visited the site of the proposed expansion.

Locals told me the company is rushing to open its doors as early as next month. The threat is immediate, but this community isn’t backing down.

The protestival on the riverbank against corporate greed

The community is incredibly  creative with their protest tactics. A few weeks before I arrived, they had already made waves with “kayaktivism,” with around 60 activists launching onto the river to take striking photos that exposed how dangerously close the facility is to the water. They traded paddles for microphones and organised a “Protestival” right on the riverbank, attended by hundreds of people and representatives from various organisations, musicians and local grassroots groups.

The energy was electric. Traditional Croatian folk musicians shared the stage with rock legend Darko Rundek, all standing united against corporate greed.

All waters are connected, different communities threatened by the same Big Ag playbook

Back in my hometown of Budapest, the Danube river is my favorite part of the city. And water doesn’t care about borders. The Danube River, which flows through Hungary and forms part of the border between Croatia and Serbia, joins the Drava, flowing into the sea and the global oceans. So what happens here matters.

The people of northern Croatia’s struggle against the Veliki Pažut industrial poultry farm is a real David and Goliath fight – a small community standing up to international corporations to defend an area they love. But sadly, it is the experience of many communities world over.

• In Spain, communities are organising against the construction of a new factory farm cramming one million hens and producing over 235 million eggs a year. 
• In Mexico, the iconic cenotes of the Maya rainforest are being polluted by illegal pig farms, threatening the water supply for indigenous communities across the region. 
• In Nigeria, the world’s largest meat company, JBS, is planning a US$ 2.5 billion expansion that locals fear will threaten livelihoods and undermine food security.

All over the world local communities are threatened by the same Big Ag playbook: bulldozing lands, extracting profit and leaving behind pollution and contamination. So this isn’t just a local dispute over a construction permit. It’s a battle between community and corporate extraction.

We can’t let Big Ag use our rivers as a sewer for their industrial waste.

Locals showed me the way. I proudly took a stand to protect their land, and the beautiful Drava river against corporations like MHP, that only serve billionaires and their shareholders.

Just like in Sisak, Croatia, where local people drew a line and the Chicken King backed down, today, on the banks of the Amazon of Europe, the message to Big Ag remains exactly the same.

Not here, not anywhere.

Stop Big Meat and Dairy

It’s time to cut through corporate lies, cut agriculture emissions and shift towards sustainable agroecology.

Sign now!

Dániel Nyitray is Global Campaign Lead for Big Ag at Greenpeace International based in Hungary.

Amsterdam – In regards to the North Dakota District Court issuing a “narrowly tailored” anti-suit injunction, Greenpeace International Senior Legal Counsel Strategic Defence Daniel Simons said: 

“Greenpeace International’s anti-SLAPP case against Energy Transfer in the Netherlands will continue and the central arguments are not impacted by the anti-suit injunction issued by the North Dakota District Court. As directed by the North Dakota Supreme Court, the anti-suit injunction is ‘narrowly tailored’ so as not to interfere with key claims in Greenpeace International’s anti-SLAPP case. 

“The North Dakota courts have cleared the way for Greenpeace International to continue pursuing justice under Dutch law. The only limitation imposed pertains to Greenpeace International asking for a finding that the North Dakota District Court case ‘lacked legal foundation.’ However, these are not central claims for the anti-SLAPP case.”

ENDS

North Dakota District Court order

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

Oman – New satellite imagery analysis by Greenpeace Germany indicates that oil leakage from the Russian shadow fleet tanker Caroline Bezengi, grounded in Oman’s Al Hallaniyat archipelago, has accelerated and is now estimated to have spread across roughly 600 square kilometres – a fourfold increase over just the last two days. 

Nina Noelle, international environmental disaster expert at Greenpeace Germany, said: “This is a drastic increase, indicating a deterioration of the vessel’s condition. Satellite imagery analysis suggests that the oil spill covered 45 square kilometres up until 26 July. By 2 August it had expanded to around 150 square kilometres, and imagery from 4 August indicates that it now extends across roughly 600 square kilometres .

Hanen Keskes, campaigner at Greenpeace MENA said: “Even relatively small oil spills can have long-lasting consequences for marine ecosystems with chemical residues that persist in marine sediments for years, compromising their ecological resilience. With the oil leak from the stranded Caroline Bezengi now accelerating, the environmental consequences will be severe, threatening coral reefs, seagrass meadows and coastal habitats that support endangered sea turtles, migratory seabirds and marine mammals in the Hallaniyat Islands. Sea turtles rely on the islands’ beaches for nesting and egg-laying, while many seabird species depend on the islands as critical breeding sites. The surrounding waters are also home to the rare Arabian Sea humpback whale.”

Large stretches of Al Qibliyah Island’s shoreline appear to have been affected, while additional oil slicks extend far out to sea, further polluting and damaging this protected marine ecosystem. The tanker has reportedly been leaking oil since it ran aground in June, following a suspected limpet mine attack that resulted in the flooding of the engine room, and urgent action is needed to contain the spill and prevent further harm to marine life and local livelihoods.

The situation surrounding the tanker Caroline Bezengi is yet another alarming example of the serious environmental risks posed by Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. Sanctions are being circumvented using ageing and poorly maintained tankers, putting coastlines and marine ecosystems at risk in order to maintain revenues that help finance Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

With oil apparently leaking at an accelerating pace and the tanker stranded in a difficult location, there is an imminent risk of an unprecedented oil disaster from a broken tanker, with devastating consequences for the region’s coastlines and marine ecosystems.

Greenpeace urges the Omani authorities and all relevant regional bodies to act immediately to assess all remaining options to contain the spill, secure the tanker’s cargo and conduct a comprehensive, independent assessment of the ecological damage. Where additional capacity is needed, Oman should urgently request international assistance for expertise, equipment and resources as required.

The Caroline Bezengi is stranded close to Al Qibliyah, an uninhabited island in the Al Hallaniyat archipelago, within a marine protected area. According to reports, the tanker was nearly fully loaded when it ran aground and estimated to be carrying around 800,000 barrels of oil.

The difficulties surrounding the Caroline Bezengi reflect wider concerns raised by previous Greenpeace investigations into Russia’s shadow fleet.[1] The vessel lost its flag registration in Cameroon on May 29, and is since listed as ‘flag unknown’ by the International Maritime Organisation. Omani authorities reportedly ordered the Shanghai-based owner to act, but received no response. The tanker is not insured by any recognised Protection and Indemnity (P&I) club, but an opaque insurer called Arsenal Kyrgystan, apparently based in the Kyrgyz Republic, according to information for October 2025 obtained by Greenpeace Nordic from Danish authorities.[2] It is unclear whether that cover remains valid and will make sufficient funds available for emergency measures, clean-up, ecological restoration and compensation. 

Without an accountable owner and clear, adequate insurance or even a responsible flag state, Oman and affected communities risk being left to fully bear the environmental and financial consequences of this unfolding disaster.

ENDS

Satellite images from the Greenpeace Global Mapping Hub available in the Greenpeace Media Library 

Notes: 

[1] Previous Greenpeace investigations into Russia’s shadow fleet: Greenpeace has actively targeted Russia’s “shadow fleet”, a network of aging, underinsured oil tankers used to evade sanctions, through a combination of direct ocean protests, investigative research, and environmental modeling. Activists from Greenpeace Germany, Greenpeace Nordic, and Greenpeace CEE/Ukraine have staged direct peaceful actions, such as painting messages on offshore bunker refuelers and protesting in European waters to highlight the double threat of war funding and catastrophic oil spills. To hold governments accountable, Greenpeace Germany published a comprehensive report cataloging 192 high-risk shadow fleet tankers, which helped inform subsequent EU sanctions, and developed interactive oil spill simulations to visually demonstrate how potential leaks from these decaying vessels would devastate coastal ecosystems. 

[2] Information obtained via an FOI request to the Danish Marine Authority (DMA) by Greenpeace Nordic in 2026. The web-site for a company under this name, claiming to provide marine insurance services can be found here: https://arsins.kg/en/about. The DMA obtained this information from the captain of the Caroline Bezengi, when it moved in and out of the Baltic in 2025 and 2024.  

Contacts: 

Nina Noelle, crisis communications and international relations manager, Greenpeace Germany, +49 151 10622733, nina.noelle@greenpeace.org

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

Last week I woke up to a hazy, orange sky, a red sun, and the smell of burning wood drifting through the Montreal city air. 

Smell is one of our strongest ties to memory.¹ As someone who has spent years camping with friends, I have always associated the scent of burning wood with warmth, laughter by the fire, and a deep connection to nature.

This time, the smell made my stomach sink.

That scent did not come from a nearby campfire. It was millions of hectares of boreal forest burning across the continent. My throat tightened as I thought of the thousands of people, especially Indigenous communities, forced to evacuate while their homes burned to the ground.

Smoke Knows No Borders

We are actually witnessing a global ecological shift. Canada’s devastating 2023–24 wildfire seasons saw 20.4 million hectares burn down. These were not isolated events. We’re seeing forests burn around the world, from Australia’s bushfires and Mediterranean blazes to the burning Amazon; climate-driven fire seasons are increasingly common occurrences.

Climate change and wildfire smoke do not respect geopolitical borders. In 2023, haze from Canadian fires crossed the Atlantic and caused air quality alerts in western Europe. Pollution anywhere speeds up climate disruption everywhere. If we treat ecological collapse as just a local problem, we miss how interconnected the climate crisis really is.

And right about now, the images of wildfires surging from across the world create a real sense of global emergency. Do you feel this, too?

Health Risks of Wildfire Smoke Exposure

We can’t keep seeing wildfire smoke as just a seasonal problem. The fine particles found in wildfire haze carry toxic chemicals, heavy metals, and black carbon that go deep into our bloodstream.

Recent research confirms that breathing in wildfire smoke raises the risk of heart disease, stroke, and lung problems for months after the smoke is gone. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) also warns that extreme fires could increase by up to 50% worldwide by the end of the century if emissions are not reduced.

We must urge our leaders to consider this: What is the point of short-term economic growth or rising stock markets if the simple act of breathing outside becomes dangerous for our health?

Need for Political Courage and Systemic Change

One of the most frustrating aspects of this dire situation is the gap between what politicians say and what they actually do.

Governments may issue air quality warnings and talk about climate targets, but many still use public money to support fossil fuel projects and support industrial practices that worsen global warming. For example, in Canada, billions of tax dollars are set to fund fossil fuel projects, even as the country falls behind on its emissions targets.

Calling fossil fuel expansion short-sighted during a climate crisis is an understatement. While oil company CEOs rake in excess profits, frontline communities and families pay the real price through health problems, food insecurity and higher living costs.

Forest Management & Indigenous Fire Stewardship

For over a century, industry-led forest management has focused on putting out all fires, clear-cut logging and planting monoculture tree plantations. Unfortunately, this has led to dense, uniform forests, turning them into giant tinderboxes during climate-exacerbated heatwaves. 

To change this, we need to move from just fighting fires to caring for forests in a holistic way that respects nature and Indigenous knowledge:

1. Restoring Indigenous Fire Stewardship 

For thousands of years, Indigenous Peoples in North America, Australia, and South America have practiced cultural burning, which means controlled, low-intensity fires during cooler seasons. Recent research shows that returning land and fire management to Indigenous communities helps clear dangerous undergrowth, restore biodiversity, and prevent major wildfires.

2. Resilience from Diversity 

Instead of managing forests by planting fast-growing trees that benefit the timber industry, experts recommend focussing on ecological diversity. A mix of tree species, ages, other vegetation and structures in the forest makes ecosystems stronger in the long run.

3. Protecting Primary & Old-Growth Forests

Ancient forests store huge amounts of carbon and keep soil moist much better than young tree plantations. Protecting these old-growth forests is one of the most affordable and effective ways to fight climate change.

Reason for Hope: Global Climate Solutions for Wildfire Prevention

The solutions we need already exist. If we recognize how serious this crisis is, we can move forward together and achieve real change by:

• Respecting and supporting Indigenous-led solutions → For millennia, Indigenous Peoples and local communities have respected and defended nature. Their experience shows that the resiliency of forests is strongest when the local people who rely on them have the power to care for and manage their territories.
  
• Stopping the flow of government subsidies to fossil fuels and Making Polluters Pay → Moving government support from fossil fuels to green energy, forest restoration, and community resilience can address the real causes of climate change. And instead of making wealthy polluters wealthier, we should make them pay for the harm they cause.
  
• Global Climate Accountability → We need to treat the climate emergency as a real international health and security crisis. Countries must keep their promises under the Paris Agreement and work quickly to cut methane and carbon emissions. If we lower global temperatures, forests will be less likely to burn to the ground.

Taking Back Our Future

The smell of firewood should continue to remind us of nights under the stars with friends, not the loss of our homes or our future. We already have the knowledge, tools, and solutions to protect and restore forests. Now is the time to ask our leaders for a long-term vision, while we can still safely breathe the air around us.

Defend the defenders

Demand the recognition of Indigenous rights and their territories.

Join now

Julie Amira Byrnes is Engagement Manager at Greenpeace International

1. Molly McDonough (2024), The Connections Between Smell, Memory, and Health, Harvard Medicine Magazine ︎

New York – As the fifth round of negotiations on the Global Tax Treaty – also known as the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation – opens today in New York, Greenpeace International is calling on governments to raise their ambition. Gaps in the draft text, published in full for the first time, must be addressed so that global tax rules can help solve the connected climate, nature, and inequality crises, rather than letting corporate polluters and the super-rich profit while everyone else pays the price.

Nina Stros, Global Senior Policy Expert, Greenpeace International said: “Governments and delegates still have not grasped what is at stake but they face a simple choice. Create global tax rules to speed the transition to a fairer, more resilient future by disincentivising investment in environmentally destructive industries, ending tax-dodging, and holding wealthy polluters to account. Or keep shielding polluting corporations and the super-rich while communities pay the price through higher bills and climate devastation. The money is right there. It is about time governments recognised this once in a generation opportunity to make those most responsible for the climate, nature and inequality crises we are facing pay their share, and reclaim trillions of dollars to invest in our shared future.”

While the world recently saw its first-ever trillionaire, the largest oil and gas corporations are reporting another bonanza in second-quarter profits. Meanwhile, record-breaking heatwaves, rising ocean temperatures and the cost-of-living crisis continue to put communities under pressure worldwide.[1]

The newly published ‘zero draft’ of the Global Tax Treaty falls far short of the ambition needed to hold the wealthiest polluters to account. Negotiators must push back against the disconnect between this draft and the realities of the climate and inequality crises communities face.[2][3][4]

Despite 24 countries making submissions aligned with strengthening the Treaty’s Sustainable Development article, the text does not go beyond the high-level clause already in the terms of reference.[5][6] Governments are left with far too much room to continue with business as usual, rather than creating a clear new legal obligation to hold wealthy polluters to account through national and global tax mechanisms. Similarly, the polluter pays principle appears nowhere in the current draft. The article on taxing high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) has been weakened since the last round of negotiations in January 2026, reducing obligations on countries to act. The draft also fails to include any provisions on minimum profit taxation of multinational companies, or on the taxation of extractive industries and natural resources.

Ucizi Ngulube, Tax Justice Campaigner, Greenpeace Africa, said: “The global majority championed this United Nations process because the current global tax system is fundamentally unfair, serving a handful of wealthy nations and billionaires at the expense of everyone else. As we head into INC-5, countries must remain ambitious. We don’t need vague promises, we need bold proposals that stop the exploitation and inequality, and hold the ultra-rich polluters accountable for the climate damage they leave behind.”

By closing loopholes on profit-shifting and tax havens, and setting new taxes, nationally and globally, on the profits of the biggest polluters and on extreme wealth, countries could unlock public funds urgently needed for climate action, nature protection and essential public services.[7]

Mayor Melchor Mergal, Municipal Mayor of Salcedo, Eastern Samar, Philippines, survivor of super-typhoon Haiyan and member of Greenpeace delegation in New York said: “I have seen what the increasingly frequent and devastating storms can do to a community, and I know what it takes to rebuild. The money is needed for stronger homes, schools and health centres that can safeguard our communities against the next storm. The funds exist. What we are missing is the political will to make those most responsible pay for the damage. A strong treaty would give communities like mine the means to recover and to build real resilience through making polluters pay.”

Greenpeace International is calling on negotiators in New York to strengthen the sustainable development and HNWI articles in line with the proposals countries, experts and civil society groups have put forward, to include the polluter pays principle into the text, and ensure the treaty can reclaim at least one trillion US dollars per year in public finance for climate action, public services and a fair transition.

ENDS

A Greenpeace delegation, including Mayor Melchor Mergal, will be at INC-5 in New York. The delegation is available for comments or interviews before, during and after the talks.

Greenpeace media briefing for the key dynamics at INC-5, our analysis of the zero draft, and full background on the spokespeople.

Notes:

[1] As war on Iran drives record Q2 profits for Big Oil, communities struggle with extreme weather and soaring costs

[2] The Global Tax Treaty is the first genuinely inclusive forum for delivering fair and inclusive global rules. Unlike under the OECD, every country has an equal vote, and decisions are taken by majority rather than consensus. 

[3] In April, 57 countries met in Santa Marta, Colombia, to advance action on ending coal, oil and gas dependence. The final synthesis report highlights under-taxation of fossil profits as a barrier to a just transition, concluding that progressive tax reforms are necessary. 141 countries also voted for a just transition away from fossil fuels under a UN General Assembly resolution endorsing the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion on climate change in May. 

[4] Co-Lead’s Zero Draft of UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation (July 2026)

[5] Global Tax Treaty – briefing for champions on progressive polluter taxation

[6] United Nations General Assembly, Terms of reference for a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation

[7] A Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels: Greenpeace Policy Briefing Policy Briefing 

Contact:

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

From calls for climate action in the Philippines and Switzerland, to protests demanding permanent protection of Raja Ampat. Here are a few of our favourite images from Greenpeace work around the world this week.

Philippines – Greenpeace Philippines and frontline communities challenge Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to ensure that his administration’s vision of development will protect people–not polluters–as he delivers his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), warning that the country cannot claim genuine progress while millions of Filipinos continue to bear the growing costs of extreme heat and the climate crisis.

Switzerland – The drought in Switzerland is continuing and is casting a shadow over the National Day with bans on open fires and fireworks. This summer shows what lies ahead for us. Due to global warming, summer droughts and the risk of weather-related forest fires will continue to increase.

Greenpeace activists are therefore in no mood to celebrate. On Thursday 30 July 2026, they unfurled a banner on the shores of Lake Constance at Mannenbach-Salenstein harbour bearing the slogan ‘No reason to celebrate. Climate action now!’. They are calling on Switzerland to finally acknowledge the climate crisis and take appropriate action: 100 million Swiss francs are needed for immediate measures to tackle heatwaves and protect the climate.

Indonesia – Greenpeace activists staged a peaceful, non-violent protest to reiterate their call for the full and permanent protection of the Raja Ampat ecosystem. This action involved unfurling banners reading “Protect Raja Ampat, Stop Dirty Energy” and “Is Your Car Powered by Forest Destruction?” just as Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita pressed the button to open the Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show (GIIAS) 2026, the largest annual automotive exhibition in Indonesia.

Spain – Artificial smoke, ashes, burnt logs and a black banner outside the Congress of Deputies reading “Spain is burning. Your inaction is killing us”. This is how Greenpeace Spain activists peacefully protested this morning in Madrid to show their solidarity with the thousands of people affected by the fires, as well as demanding that political groups and administrations act and engage in real politics to address the climate emergency. All this at the start of a fourth heatwave and with much of the country affected by historic fires that have already claimed 15 direct fatalities and displaced more than 100,000 people.

New Zealand/Aotearoa – Greenpeace New Zealand activists dropped an 18-square-metre banner from a giant rimu tree to call for conservation land protections on New Zealand’s West Coast. They are protesting government reforms to conservation laws that would make it easier to commercially exploit and sell off public conservation land. The activists are recreating an iconic image from one of New Zealand’s most famous conservation campaigns, which successfully stopped native forest logging on public land across the country.

Germany – Greenpeace documents dead zones through research carried out on Boris Herrmann’s research yacht, the Malizia Explorer along the German Baltic Sea coast. Greenpeace scientists test the water with a CTD-Probe among other methods, for nitrate and phosphorous levels, temperature, oxygen and salt levels and for PFAS.

High numbers of factory farms lead to an increased production of liquid manure, which is later spread onto the fields, with traces eventually landing in the open seas after rainfall. These substances lead to detrimental conditions in the water and the sea bed, including so-called dead zones. Drone images of the Malizia Explorer just off the Schleswig-Holstein coast.

UK – As Shell announces record profits an electric advan outside Big Ben at Westminster is showing images of the damage caused by wildfires across Europe. The images raise awareness that the biggest polluters continue to profit while ordinary people bear the brunt of the costs of these climate disasters. It’s time to hold Shell accountable and demand they pay for the damage they’ve caused.

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, please visit our Media Library.

Amsterdam, Netherlands – Chevron and ExxonMobil today reported combined profits of more than US$26 billion for the second quarter, closing another bumper earnings season for the world’s largest oil and gas corporations as the illegal war on Iran drives up oil prices and the cost of living.

The latest huge United States results follow high quarterly earnings from European multinational corporations Shell, TotalEnergies, Equinor and Eni.[1] The announcements land as households face rising energy, transport and food costs. Oil and gas giants are banking billions from the price shocks of another war, while the fossil fuels they sell keep driving climate disasters that communities are paying for with their homes, their harvests and their lives.[2] Late-June heatwaves alone killed more than 10,000 people across Europe, while wildfires in July forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes in countries including Algeria, Canada, France and Spain.

Rebecca Newsom, Global Political Lead at Greenpeace International, said:

“These profits are another reminder that crisis is a feature of the fossil fuel business model, not a bug. The illegal war on Iran has pushed oil prices higher and the world’s biggest polluters are cashing in – at the very moment their products are driving the deadly heatwaves and fires devastating communities around the world.

“This is fossilflation – their profits are driving up our bills. Families pay through rising food prices and other mounting costs of climate disasters, while oil and gas corporations profit from the very instability they help create. For as long as wrecking the climate stays this lucrative, the crises will keep coming.

“Governments must respond by permanently increasing taxes on oil and gas profits – not just windfalls – and backing a global polluter profits tax, alongside new rules to end tax dodging and profit shifting under the Global Tax Treaty. These measures could unlock hundreds of billions of dollars to help communities recover and accelerate the shift to renewable energy, while disincentivising further investment in the fossil fuel industry. It’s time governments used the tax system to make this destruction unprofitable, and to support a just and equitable global transition away from fossil fuels.”

Chevron’s second quarter profit of US$12 billion, is a 328 per cent increase from the first quarter, while Exxon’s profit of US$14.7 billion, is a 67 per cent increase from the first quarter.

From 3 August, governments meet in New York for the next round of negotiations to agree on a Global Tax Treaty.[3] Greenpeace is calling for new global rules to end tax-dodging and make oil and gas corporations and the super-rich pay for the climate damage they have caused, in order to fund a fair, green and resilient future. A new 20% global tax on oil and gas profits, applied fairly, with tax rates progressively increasing over time, could raise more than US$100 billion a year in its first few years.[4] The revenues from bolder taxes on wealthy polluters must support communities recovering from war and climate disasters, strengthen public services, protect families from rising bills, and finance a just transition to renewable energy that leaves no one behind.

Fifty seven countries committed to advancing an end to coal, oil and gas dependence at the Santa Marta conference in Colombia in April, and 141 countries subsequently backed a just transition away from fossil fuels through a UN General Assembly resolution endorsing the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinion on Climate Change in May.[5][6] Governments must now turn those commitments into action by ending new fossil fuel expansion, permanently increasing taxes on oil and gas profits, and accelerating investment in renewable energy.

ENDS

Notes:

[1] Q2 profit results from Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, TotalEnergies, Equinor and Eni 

[2] Global Witness: big five oil majors’ profits jumped 125% in the year Russia invaded Ukraine 

[3] Also known as the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation. Greenpeace media briefing: Global Tax Treaty negotiators meet as record heat intensifies worldwide 

[4] Proposal for a surtax on fossil fuel industries’ profits (Global Alliance for Tax Justice) 

[5] Santa Marta conference to end fossil fuels a landmark moment for climate, energy stability – The final synthesis report from co-chairs Colombia and the Netherlands highlights the under-taxation of fossil profits as a barrier to a just transition, concluding that progressive tax reforms are necessary.

[6] UNGA heeds Pacific voices, backs world court on states’ climate obligations 

Contact:

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

The ongoing illegal war waged by the United States and Israel against Iran has already cost the US more than US$100 billion in direct military spending and related economic losses. However, this figure captures only a fraction of the conflict’s true toll.

Beyond the immediate fiscal burden on governments, the war has triggered global energy market volatility, inflated basic living costs, disrupted international trade, and caused immense human suffering. These compounding impacts expose a fundamental vulnerability: the world’s continued dependence on fossil fuels transforms regional crises into severe global economic and humanitarian shocks.

Human losses and the humanitarian crisis in Iran and the wider Middle East

While financial statistics dominate economic debates, the most severe cost of the conflict is human. Beyond the geopolitical and market disruptions, the US‑Israeli war on Iran has inflicted widespread destruction across the region. Direct military bombardment has led to  thousands of civilian and military casualties, shattering families and leaving deep, generational trauma.

The systematic destruction of housing, schools, and essential civic infrastructure has forced millions onto perilous displacement routes, crowding families into under-resourced shelters. Compounding this crisis, targeted damage to critical power grids, water treatment plants, and regional hospitals has left entire populations cut off from clean drinking water, electricity, and emergency healthcare. As basic lifelines collapse, the conflict rapidly transforms from a regional war into a catastrophic, full-scale humanitarian emergency.

The Pentagon’s bill is only the beginning

The war has already cost US taxpayers more than US$100 billion, according to Fortune. On 21 July, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress that military operations against Iran had reached US$37.5 billion, and the Pentagon has requested an additional US$67.1 billion to further fund the operation. All this while making massive cuts to funding for healthcare and clean energy. 

While substantial, this figure measures only the direct military expenditure. It omits the far larger economic toll borne by global businesses, public finances, and households coping with energy shocks and inflation.

The Strait of Hormuz: a fossil fuel chokepoint at the heart of the Iran energy shock

The conflict has re-emphasised the strategic vulnerability of the Strait of Hormuz. Updated data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) indicates that 20.9 million barrels of oil per day roughly one-fifth of global petroleum consumption passed through the Strait in the first half of 2025. The corridor is equally vital for liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, particularly from Qatar.

Because a massive portion of global energy flows through this single maritime bottleneck, even the threat of disruption impacts the global economy. Heightened geopolitical risk instantly spikes oil prices, shipping insurance rates, and transport costs. The economic consequences of the war extend beyond energy prices and trade disruptions. 

As risks in the Strait of Hormuz intensified, major maritime insurers repriced or withdrew war-risk cover, while Lloyd’s expanded its high-risk designation to the entire Persian Gulf. According to the World Economic Forum, shipping traffic through the Strait fell by around 95%, prompting the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to establish a US$40 billion reinsurance facility to help restore maritime trade. The episode illustrates how governments are increasingly acting as insurers of last resort when geopolitical risks exceed the capacity of private markets.

Higher food prices, a deepening cost of living crisis and windfall fossil fuel profits

Rising energy prices rapidly ripple through every sector of the economy. Agriculture still relies heavily on fossil fuels for machinery, fertilizer production, irrigation, and shipping. Consequently, high oil prices directly drive up the cost of food, hitting lower-income households hardest.

While consumers bear the burden of inflation, major energy corporations reap massive profits from market instability. Greenpeace estimates that during the initial phase of the conflict:

• Top 100 oil and gas companies: earned an estimated additional US$30m or more in profit per hour during the first month.
  
• Projected revenue: with oil hovering near US$100 per barrel, major producers such as Saudi Aramco, Gazprom and ExxonMobil could generate an additional US$234bn in profits by the end of 2026.
  
• Corporate earnings surge: Shell reported US$6.9bn in first‑quarter profits, more than double the previous quarter. Four major European firms, Shell, TotalEnergies, BP and Equinor, reported over US$18bn in adjusted post‑tax earnings in Q1 2026, an 80% quarter‑on‑quarter increase.

This is fossilflation in action, a cost of living crisis driven by fossil fuel price shocks, where households worldwide pay through higher bills while oil and gas giants turn war‑fuelled chaos into windfall profits.

Trade disruptions, global economic risks and fossilflation

Energy markets are not the only sector under strain; major shipping routes have faced severe operational shifts. Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb Strait disruptions since late 2023 forced maritime carriers to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope, adding up to 6,000 kilometers per voyage and up to 38% more CO2, in routes like from Shanghai to Hamburg. 

• Hourly economic damage: Germany’s parliamentary research service estimated losses in 2023 of up to €360m per hour due to extended transit times, higher fuel burn, increased labour costs, port congestion and supply chain delays.
  
• Flow reductions: route shifts have severely curtailed the share of global oil trade and liquefied natural gas trade that historically passed through the Red Sea and Suez Canal.

Looking ahead, the World Bank’s chief economist has warned that a prolonged escalation could slow global economic growth to 1.3% and drive global inflation up to 4.5% under a severe disruption scenario. In other words, the more we depend on oil and gas, the more war and instability anywhere becomes an economic crisis everywhere.

Climate, security and peace: how fossil fuel dependence creates strategic risk

The US‑Israeli war on Iran  highlights that fossil fuel dependence is not only a climate challenge; it is also a security challenge. The global reliance on oil and gas creates strategic vulnerabilities by concentrating energy supplies in regions exposed to geopolitical tensions and by making economies sensitive to disruptions in a limited number of production sites and transport routes.

Military conflicts involving fossil fuel-producing regions often create a cycle of insecurity: dependence on oil and gas increases geopolitical competition; conflicts then trigger energy price shocks, inflation and economic instability; and the resulting uncertainty can delay investment in cleaner and more resilient energy systems.

The environmental consequences of war also add to the long-term costs. Military operations require large amounts of fossil fuels, while damage to energy infrastructure can release pollutants and greenhouse gases. Reconstruction after conflict often requires energy-intensive materials such as steel and cement, potentially locking economies into additional fossil fuel demand.

Reducing fossil fuel dependence should therefore be understood not only as a climate policy, but also as a strategy for strengthening energy security, reducing exposure to geopolitical shocks and improving economic resilience.

War’s hidden environmental cost: how geopolitics wrecks the Earth and deepens injustice

Beneath the geopolitical headlines, an environmental crisis is unfolding across the Middle East as military conflict and extreme climate vulnerability reinforce one another in a region warming at twice the global average rate.

Resource scarcity such as water insecurity, and destruction of farmland worsen pre-existing displacement crises, forcing millions more people from their homes into severe climate and economic vulnerability. With desalination plants supplying over two-thirds of the region’s water, targeted strikes on facilities and reservoirs spanning Iran’s Qeshm Island to sites in Bahrain and the UAE have cut off clean drinking water for tens of thousands of civilians.

At the same time, heavy bombardments targeting oil depots and refineries, including Tehran’s Shahran and Shahr-e Rey facilities, threaten public health by leaching toxic pollutants directly into local air, soil, and waterways.

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This environmental breakdown is compounded by severe financial and atmospheric costs that further undermine long-term stability. Over US$58bn in destroyed energy infrastructure alongside US$600m per day in lost tourism revenue are forcing regional governments to divert critical capital away from water management, renewable energy, and climate adaptation.

Furthermore, the first two weeks of military operations alone produced an estimated 5m tonnes of CO₂ exceeding the annual carbon footprint of 84 nations combined. Ultimately, climate resilience cannot be built in a vacuum, as peace and geopolitical stability remain essential prerequisites for environmental adaptation and human survival.

Breaking the cycle: energy independence, renewables and a just transition

The Iran war demonstrates that the transition away from fossil fuels is increasingly an economic and security priority. Renewable energy, energy efficiency and electrification can reduce exposure to volatile international fossil fuel markets and decrease dependence on politically vulnerable supply routes.

Unlike oil and gas, renewable energy sources such as wind and solar rely primarily on domestic resources rather than imported fuels. Expanding renewable electricity generation, strengthening electricity grids, improving energy efficiency and accelerating electrification of transport, buildings and industry can help protect economies from future energy price shocks. The benefits extend beyond climate mitigation. Reduced fossil fuel dependence can lower energy import bills, improve trade balances, create more predictable energy costs for businesses and households, and reduce the economic leverage created by concentrated fossil fuel supplies.

The lesson from the US‑Israeli war on Iran is that energy security in the 21st century is not achieved by securing access to more fossil fuels; it is achieved by reducing dependence on them.

Reducing fossil fuel reliance is ultimately an essential investment in global stability, human security, and economic resilience. In the meantime, an immediate ceasefire and a return to diplomacy are urgently required to stop further civilian loss, prevent regional destruction, and pave the way for sustainable global security, economic stability and a just peace rooted in climate and social justice.

Fawad Durrani is an expert on climate change, conflict and migration at Greenpeace Germany.

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I am Māori, the original people of New Zealand. And, as Māori, we are shaped by principles like whakapapa (our ancestral lineage and connection to all things) and utu (the obligation to restore balance when harm is caused). We are connected to te taiao (the natural world) not as owners, but as part of a beautiful and delicate web of life.

I have spent most of my adult life involved in struggles for justice. For years, I have been locked in a legal battle against six of New Zealand’s biggest greenhouse gas emitters in the agriculture and energy sectors: Genesis Energy, Dairy Holdings, New Zealand Steel, Channel Infrastructure and BT Mining. This case includes the world’s biggest dairy exporter, Fonterra and a major fuel supplier, Z Energy who together with the other companies are responsible for about a third of the country’s total climate emissions.

Smith v Fonterra

The core argument behind my case has always been that if corporations knowingly contribute to dangerous climate harm, then surely there must be some legal mechanism to hold them accountable. I don’t think this is a radical proposition, and nor do most people. Courts exist precisely to examine difficult questions where public harm and private power intersect.

In 2024, we won a historic victory. The Supreme Court of New Zealand unanimously ruled that my case could go to a full trial. It was a massive breakthrough for global climate litigation. Our trial was locked in for April 2027.

But corporate power does not accept defeat quietly. Fearing the evidence that would come out in an open courtroom, these big polluters bypassed the public and went straight through the back door to the highest office in the land.

New Zealand Parliament proposes to ban climate tort cases 

The New Zealand government is now rushing through the Climate Change Response (Tort Liability) Amendment Bill – a law effectively ghostwritten by the polluters themselves.

This proposed law bans citizens from suing heavy polluters for climate damage, and it applies retrospectively to kill my court case before it can even start.  The government has stepped in to rewrite the law, specifically to protect the country’s biggest climate polluters. By doing this, they are shutting the courtroom doors in the faces of ordinary people.

This decision strikes at the foundations of democracy. It raises profound questions about the rule of law, the separation of powers, and whether ordinary citizens can still seek justice when their interests clash with those of politically influential industries.

The people v politically influential industries

The question that comes sharply into focus is Who holds power, and who is forced to live with the consequences of decisions made by that power?

We hold obligations to those who came before us, and to those who will come after us. That worldview stands in direct conflict with political systems that treat the environment as expendable whenever profit margins or electoral calculations are at stake.

Recent investigations, including a scathing finding by the Ombudsman, revealed the shameful truth of how this new law was born. Executives from Z Energy and Fonterra had direct access to the Prime Minister’s Office. They handed over private briefing documents suggesting exactly how the law should be rewritten to exempt them from accountability.

When investigative journalists and watchdogs asked for these documents under official transparency laws, the Prime Minister’s Office hid them, keeping the corporate collusion secret from the public.

When ordinary people finally manage to get their concerns before a judge, the government shouldn’t be allowed to simply change the rules midstream to ensure the case never reaches a conclusion.

Climate justice rally call around the world

These corporate giants are aware of the legal precedent this case could set, it is no surprise they are trying to shut down the courts.

What is happening in New Zealand is a warning sign for the rest of the world. Across the globe, climate litigation is breaking new ground. Activists are successfully using the courts to force change.  If they succeed in New Zealand, other polluting industries could use this same playbook of secret lobbying to strip away your rights next.

Democracy isn’t self-sustaining – rights survive only when people are willing to stand up and defend them. We cannot allow corporate bullying to override democratic justice.

It is time to resist

The climate crisis is accelerating. Public trust in institutions is fraying. Economic inequality is widening. Indigenous rights remain contested. These interconnected symptoms reflect a political system struggling to balance concentrated power with the public good.

The response can’t be silence or resignation. People need to organise, speak out, challenge misinformation, support independent journalism, engage in public debate, stand with communities already suffering the impacts of climate change, and vote with a clear understanding of what’s at stake. Real change has always come from ordinary people deciding that the direction of their country matters enough to fight for.

That’s the challenge before us now.

I intend to continue that fight, both inside and outside the courtroom, because the issues at stake are bigger than any one case and any one generation. I hope you will stand in solidarity with me.

E tū e tū! Tutū te puehu! (Rise up! Kick up the dust!)

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Mike Smith (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu) is a climate change activist, father and grandfather from Aotearoa, New Zealand. He has more than 30 years’ experience in climate education and strategic organisation and action in Aotearoa and internationally.

A version of this article was first posted on E-TANGATA.

CNN Travel called Raja Ampat ‘The Last Paradise on Earth’. National Geographic and The New York Times listed it among the world’s top destinations for 2025. Conservation experts describe the islands of Raja Ampat as ‘the epicentre of marine biodiversity’.

But this place is much more than a tropical paradise. Located off the coast of New Guinea in Indonesia’s Southwest Papua province, this remote archipelago of more than 1,500 islands, cays and shoals spans 4.6 million hectares of land and sea, including a network of more than 1.7 million hectares of marine protected areas. It is home to extraordinary biodiversity, as well as Indigenous West Papuan communities whose lives have been deeply connected to these forests and seas for generations.

For years, Raja Ampat has been celebrated as a rare conservation success story. Today, however, this globally important ecosystem is facing growing pressure from extractive industries. The rapid expansion of nickel mining now threatens the forests, coral reefs and communities that have made the archipelago one of the world’s greatest biodiversity treasures.

Here are six things you need to know about Raja Ampat, and why protecting this extraordinary place matters to all of us.

1. It is the heart of the Coral Triangle

The waters of Raja Ampat are among the most biodiverse marine areas on Earth. At the heart of the Coral Triangle, a vast region recognised as the global centre of tropical marine biodiversity, the archipelago is home to around 75% of the world’s coral species and approximately 2,500 species of fish. Beneath its turquoise waters, vibrant coral reefs provide sanctuary for manta rays, sea turtles, reef sharks and countless other species, making Raja Ampat one of the world’s most extraordinary underwater ecosystems.

2. Its biodiversity doesn’t stop at the shoreline

While Raja Ampat is famous for its coral reefs, its forests are equally extraordinary. Home to endemic mammals, birds-of-paradise and lush mangroves, these forests are inseparable from the surrounding seas. Together they form one living ecosystem, where forests protect coral reefs, mangroves shelter marine life, and species found nowhere else on Earth continue to thrive. Raja Ampat is home to 47 mammal species, including the endemic Waigeo spotted cuscus, and 274 bird species, six of which exist nowhere else on Earth.

3. Indigenous People have made Raja Ampat a conservation success story

Long before Raja Ampat became known around the world, Indigenous West Papuan communities had been caring for these islands and seas for generations. Their cultures, livelihoods and identities are inseparable from the forests, mangroves and reefs that sustain life across the archipelago.

Over the years, Indigenous communities, local organisations, conservation groups and governments have worked together to protect Raja Ampat. Their collective efforts have helped make it one of the world’s most celebrated conservation success stories. In 2023, large parts of the archipelago were designated a UNESCO Global Geopark, while extensive areas on land and at sea are now protected under Indonesian conservation measures. In September 2025, after the #SaveRajaAmpat campaign gained public support and went into an outcry, UNESCO designated the area as a Biosphere Reserve, granting this area double UNESCO status.

Raja Ampat has also become an international example of how conservation and community-based tourism can support both nature and local livelihoods.

4. A global race for minerals is putting Raja Ampat at risk

For decades, Raja Ampat remained largely protected from large-scale industrial development. Today, however, the archipelago is facing growing pressure from extractive industries. With the excuse that minerals such as nickel are crucial for the economy and as countries race to secure them, areas once considered too remote or too valuable to exploit are increasingly being targeted for mining. Raja Ampat is one of those places.

A Greenpeace Indonesia investigation published in June 2025 mapped 16 current and former nickel mining licences across Raja Ampat. The findings raised concerns that one of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots was becoming the latest frontier in the global race for critical minerals. Nickel mining is not critical. Critical are the ecosystems that maintain life on Earth and protect us from the climate crisis. Critical are the livelihoods, knowledge and wisdom of those who have lived in harmony with the planet for millenia.

5. After a major victory, a threat remains

Following a Greenpeace investigation and widespread public mobilisation under the  #SaveRajaAmpat campaign, the Indonesian government revoked, in 2025, four of the five active nickel mining licences in the region. It was a major victory, but one mining licence remains active, and the pressure has not disappeared. 

A new Greenpeace Indonesia report published today has found evidence that at least three companies are preparing new nickel mining projects in eastern Waigeo, the largest island in the Raja Ampat archipelago, while coal mining and  oil and gas expansion continues across the region.

6. There is still time to protect ‘The Last Paradise on Earth’

The victories achieved in recent years have shown that public pressure can make a difference. But protecting this extraordinary archipelago requires ongoing work to prevent destructive extractive industries from expanding into places like these, while recognising and strengthening the rights, territories and leadership of the Indigenous Peoples who have cared for them for generations.

As the world searches for solutions to the climate and biodiversity crises, Raja Ampat reminds us that the most effective solutions already exist. They begin by protecting nature, recognising Indigenous Peoples’ rights and leadership, and ensuring that places like this are never sacrificed in the name of development.

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Jaqueline Sordi is the Communications Lead for the Tropical Forests campaign at Greenpeace International