Sevilla, Spain – Greenpeace activists joined a civil society march today for Global Economic Justice, with a giant float of a baby Elon Musk holding a chainsaw threatening planet Earth. As the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) starts tomorrow in Sevilla, campaigners are calling on world leaders to advance commitments for new and fair global tax and debt rules, and to hold fossil fuel polluters accountable for climate and nature damages.[1] [2]

The conference opens against a backdrop of intensifying conflicts, geopolitical tensions, rising inequality, and accelerating climate and environmental breakdown. The outcome document, the Compromiso de Sevilla, released ahead of the conference, does not go far enough. It delivers on some promises on international tax cooperation and encouraging taxes on environmental contamination and pollution. However, bold language on sovereign debt architecture reform was weakened by Global North governments during the negotiations, and the agreement falls short on responding to the urgency of the climate, nature and social crises.[3]

Fred Njehu, Greenpeace Africa’s Global Political Lead for the Fair Share campaign,[4] said: “Sevilla is a rare opportunity for global economic justice and for urgent conversations on how billionaires and corporate polluters should pay their fair share of taxes to fund climate action, nature protection and social programmes. World leaders need to listen to what the public wants and deliver a tax system that works for all.”

Eva Saldaña, Executive Director of Greenpeace Spain and Portugal, said: “Multilateral cooperation is key to addressing global threats and resource gaps for global climate and economic justice. It must not become an excuse for more powerful governments, in the Global North or elsewhere, to water down ambition. We must put people over greed and listen to the voices rising from the streets – in Seville and all over the world. All governments must actively support the UN Tax Convention process and pursue real solutions to the debt crisis, so that we can finally begin to transfer resources away from polluters and the super-rich for the wellbeing of all people and especially for those who are suffering the most from the climate emergency.”

Greenpeace demands reforms in international tax cooperation and public financing for sustainable development. Specifically: 

• Endorsement of the UN Tax Convention process for just and equitable global tax rules, that make the super-rich pay their fair share and make corporate polluters, such as the fossil fuel industry, pay for their climate damages.
• Explicit commitments from governments – via the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force, and beyond – to remove fossil fuel production subsidies and introduce progressive taxes and fines on fossil fuel corporations, and other high emitting sectors. This builds on the FfD4 outcomes document’s endorsement of “taxes on environmental contamination and pollution.” The revenues should be used to pay for domestic climate action and international climate finance support  – in particular action to support communities to respond and recover from climate disasters.

Rebecca Newsom, Global Political Lead for Greenpeace International’s Stop Drilling, Start Paying campaign, said: “While fossil fuel-driven floods, storms, wildfires and droughts increasingly hit communities around the world, people are crying out for their governments to tax oil, gas and coal corporations to pay for climate-related loss and damage. So what are political leaders waiting for? They must seize the opportunity of Sevilla to make polluters pay – or face growing public anger for continuing to let dirty industries off the hook.”

Hanen Keskes, Campaigns Lead at Greenpeace Middle East North Africa, said: “This is not the time to lack ambition as civil society is calling for urgent debt relief and structural reform. The burden of debt is undermining the most vulnerable countries’ ability to respond to climate, nature and social crises. Governments must show that they are ready to build a fairer and more sustainable future – one rooted in justice, not extraction.”

ENDS

Members of the Greenpeace delegation in Seville are available for interviews in Spanish, English, German, and Swahili.

Photos and Videos can be downloaded via Greenpeace Media Library and will be updated throughout the conference. 

Notes:

[1] Greenpeace Spain’s float of Elon Musk measures 2 metres wide by 3.5 –  4 metres high.

[2] The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) is a once-in-a-decade opportunity to reform financing at all levels, including to support reform of the international financial architecture. FFD4 Conference will be held in FIBES Sevilla Exhibition and Conference Centre (30 June – 3 July 2025)

[3] The Compromiso de Sevilla: Outcome | FFD4

Contacts in Seville:

Tal Harris, Global Media Lead – Stop Drilling Start Paying campaign, Greenpeace International. +41-782530550, tharris@greenpeace.org  

Begoña Rodríguez, Media Lead – Climate Responsibility Team, Greenpeace Spain & Portugal. +34 605248097, begona.rodriguez@greenpeace.org

Additional contacts: 

Christine Gebeneter, EU Communication lead, Greenpeace CEE based in Austria, +43 664 8403807, christine.gebeneter@greenpeace.org 

Lee Kuen, Global Comms Lead – Fair Share campaign, Greenpeace International. +601112527489, lkuen@greenpeace.org

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

From a giant banner in Venice, to confronting bottom trawling in New Zealand waters to celebrating the oceans in Mexico, here are a few of our favourite images from Greenpeace’s work around the world this week.

Italy – Activists from the UK action group Everyone hates Elon and Greenpeace Italy unfolded a giant 20x20m banner reading “If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax” on Piazza San Marco, as Jeff Bezos is due to celebrate his reportedly multi-million wedding in the lagoon city this week.

New Zealand – Greenpeace Aotearoa activists confront the Talley’s bottom trawler Amatal Atlantis on the Chatham Rise, painting “ocean killer” on its hull to protest destructive bottom trawling.

The Rainbow Warrior is off the coast of Aotearoa campaigning for an end to New Zealand’s destructive bottom trawling in New Zealand waters and the Tasman Sea.

Mexico – For more than two decades, Greenpeace and other civil society organizations have been seeking a Global Oceans Treaty to protect marine ecosystems from harmful industries, and on June 25, Mexico joined the countries that have ratified this global agreement.

Mexico’s ratification was approved by the Mexican Senate. Now the Treaty will be sent back to the Presidency for its publication in the Official Journal of the Federation and once this is done, Mexico will have to deposit its ratification at the United Nations, thus joining the 60 countries necessary for the entry into force of this international instrument.

Germany – Greenpeace Germany activists disguise the Edeka meat plant in Lüttow-Valluhn as a crime scene. Five long banners in barrier tape look hang from the roof of the Edeka plant with the warning: “Tierleid und Klimazerstörung” (“Animal suffering and climate destruction”).

Other activists demonstrate with barrier tape at the entrance to the meat plant. A truck in Edeka design bears the modified marketing slogan “Wir lieben Tierleid, deshalb produzieren wir es selbst.” (“We love animal suffering, so we produce it ourselves.”).

Brazil – During the Parintins Festival, Amazonian culture and resistance come to life in the Bumbódromo arena, echoing the knowledge of the forest to the world. In 2025, at the 58th edition of the festival, the contagious energy of the Caprichoso and Garantido bulls joined a new and urgent call: for an Amazon free of mining.

This year, the Marujada Movement and the Friends of Garantido Movement joined forces with Greenpeace Brazil to transform the crossing to Parintins into a true act of mobilization to defend the forest and its people.

Italy – Activists from seven countries are taking action with Greenpeace Italy against climate-wrecking fossil gas at the new liquefied gas import terminal of Ravenna. At sea, activists reached the infrastructure and attached large banners on it reading “Burn, baby, burn” referencing President Trump’s mantra “Drill, baby, drill” alongside an image of a burning Earth flanked by the faces of US President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Spain – In the framework of the presentation of the Sustainable Food Model presented by Greenpeace, the organisation brings empty boxes of farmers, livestock farmers and fishermen to the Ministry of Agriculture in Spain to demand a change in the unsustainable Spanish agri-food system.

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.

It all began with a shared vision: to empower Greenpeace’s Innovation Hub to spark meaningful, lasting change. But how did this shared journey of creativity, challenge and transformation come to life?

Greenpeace, looking for fresh perspectives and external support, joined the Master Challenge platform and became part of a university consulting program in partnership with the Utrecht University in the Netherlands. That’s where we came in – four students from diverse backgrounds, cultures and experiences brought together through our intrapreneurship course and united by a common purpose: to work on a project that truly mattered.

Over the course of eight weeks, our team dove into the world of environmental innovation, offering strategic insights and collaborating closely with the team behind Innovation Hub. But this wasn’t just a class project – it was a journey filled with inspiration, unexpected challenges and powerful moments that reminded us just how vital innovation is to the future of environmental activism.

Four students joined Greenpeace to bring innovation into environmental activism

When we first connected with Greenpeace, we were immediately drawn to the Innovation Hub’s mission. It was something that bridged our 2 areas of interest – technology innovation and care for the planet. The idea of working on a framework for selecting and assessing projects within a global campaigning network was thrilling. On the first meeting, we got introduced to the Hub and how it serves Greenpeace’s Technology Vision.

As technology develops and the world gets more digitised by the day, Greenpeace is laying the foundations to still remain impactful by implementing its Technology Vision within the organisation. Built around a 3-horizons framework, Greenpeace’s Tech Vision sets the guiding star to digitally transform the entire network, from running campaigns and collecting donations, to collaborating effectively and operating ships. The purpose of the Innovation Hub within this strategic program is simple – to allow for innovative ideas to come to life, help reach more people and raise awareness and funds to fight for a sustainable future.

How do we define success?

No meaningful work is ever without its hurdles. Early on, we realised that defining success for Greenpeace’s new projects was complex. Unlike the corporate world, where key performance indicators (KPIs) are often tied to market share, Greenpeace operates in a dynamic landscape where impact is measured in influence, awareness, and mindset shifts. Our challenge was; how do we ensure that groundbreaking ideas get the support they need?

To answer these questions, we followed this structure: first, we decided on the methodology of how we will go about this. Knowing that there were many different parts that needed to be addressed. After careful examination, we decided that a thorough literature research will bring the most advantages, combined with interviews with the people behind the Innovation Hub. We explored key academic frameworks on non-profit innovation, project evaluation, and knowledge-sharing to ensure our approach was grounded in research. Further, innovation thrives on iteration. We researched how to learn from both successes and failures, ensuring that knowledge is captured and applied to future projects.

To better understand the role and impact of the Innovation Hub, we designed a set of interview questions aimed at exploring its purpose, strengths, challenges, and overall contribution to broader goals. These questions also sought to uncover individual perspectives on how the hub operates, what success looks like, and how its learnings can be applied. The goal was to gather insights that could help evaluate the hub’s effectiveness and shape its future direction. By capturing diverse viewpoints, we aimed to create a well-rounded understanding that supports continuous improvement and strategic alignment.

The challenge along the way – expectation vs reality

One of the challenges we found was the one of internal alignment. Greenpeace is a global network of independent organisations with passionate individuals who bring diverse perspectives. The expectations of every person differed a little bit, and we needed to make sure that while innovation should not be slowed down with bureaucracy, we still needed to provide and establish some general frameworks. We also quickly figured that the time that each person can spend on this project is also highly limited from Greenpeace’s side, so we had to keep in mind this while also assessing the adjustments and recommendations.

Influencing change with the outcome

After 8 weeks of almost daily work, we were able to present our results both at the university and to the leaders of the Innovation Hub project. We managed to influence change along two main areas. We worked on quantitative evaluations – this meant adjusting the scoring assessment (as displayed above) and adding subcategories based on academic research for a more accurate evaluation of ideas. Further, as innovation comes with big challenges in terms of human capital, we worked a lot on learning about innovation change within the organisation. This means learning about how to introduce change, psychological safety and other factors, things that are to be implemented in the long term.

We were awarded first place in terms of most innovative and applicable project out of our class, which was amazing after the many hours of hard work. We hope that our work brought practical improvements and that Greenpeace will continue to develop its Innovation Hub and make it a great success!

We wonder – what do you think of this project? Which parts of your organisation do you think could benefit from this? Let us know in the comments below!

Jonas Wernstedt, Tímea Szipková, Sara Verhoef and Sepehrdad Jam are students in Business Development & Entrepreneurship at Utrecht University in the Netherlands.

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