This week, people at hundreds of locations in scores of countries celebrated Earth Day, with activities ranging from tree plantings and trash pick-ups to conferences and art exhibits. Not many of those people, however, seem to have attended protests, though that is how Earth Day first came into being. In 1970, huge, nonviolent protests across the US drew an estimated 20 million people, an eruption of mass sentiment that President Richard Nixon felt threatened his re-election chances so acutely that he created the Environmental Protection Agency and signed far-reaching environmental laws.
It’s important for journalists to understand the role of protest, partly because our coverage shapes what society as a whole knows about the controversies in question. Of course we should not become the mouthpieces of protestors, but rigorous reporting does not equate to being a mouthpiece. Our civic role is to ascertain and share the facts as best we can so the public and policymakers can make informed judgments.
Probably no environmental organization in the world is more associated with the tactic of protest than Greenpeace. Nonviolent protest has been part of Greenpeace’s DNA since the group’s founding in 1971, when activists sailed a boat into a prohibited area off the Alaskan coast to obstruct US nuclear bomb testing. Since then, Greenpeace has grown into a global operation, with branches in 55 countries that employ direct action, research, and public advocacy against fossil fuels, species extinction, nuclear power, overfishing, and other environmental scourges.
Now, the US branch of Greenpeace may itself be on the brink of extinction, due to a lawsuit arising from the Standing Rock pipeline protests in 2016 and 2017. Energy Transfer, the company building the Dakota Access oil pipeline, sued Greenpeace, charging that it incited the protests through a misinformation campaign. A jury in the oil and gas–producing state North Dakota found Greenpeace guilty after a trial studded with irregularities: Seven of the 11 jurors had ties to the fossil fuel industry; the judge refused news organizations access to a livestream of the proceedings; and Greenpeace’s core defense — that it played only a supporting role in a protest that actually was led by Indigenous peoples — was dismissed. Martin Garbus, a human rights lawyer who previously defended such global icons as Nelson Mandela and Vaclav Havel, called it “the most unfair trial” he had ever witnessed.
In March 2025, the jury ordered Greenpeace to pay nearly $667 million in damages. Although later reduced to $345 million, that amount remains exponentially larger than the group’s annual budget and would likely bankrupt it. Greenpeace is appealing. Journalists interested in covering the next phase of the story can find the contending parties’ perspectives here and here.
Timed to Earth Day, the former executive director of Greenpeace USA, Annie Leonard, has co-authored a book making the case for nonviolent protest as an essential tool for bringing about social change. Protest: Respect It, Defend It, Use It is a global compendium of instances when protestors shifted the course of history, often by telling stories that captured media attention. “Protest interrupts business as usual,” Leonard writes, “shines a spotlight on a wrong or a demand, elevates an issue on the public agenda,” and in so doing has helped deliver “rights and progress we value and may even take for granted today: weekends, women’s right to vote, desegregation, same-sex marriage, cleaner air and water….”
Protest is not for the faint-hearted. At least 2,253 defenders of land, forests, or rivers were killed globally between 2012 and 2024, according to the NGO Global Witness. Today, as authoritarian governments and corporations increasingly seek to silence free speech and criminalize activism, our role as journalists remains essential: to inform the public and hold power accountable. Which means treating activists the same way we treat politicians and CEOs: as newsmakers.
From Us
CAAD-CCNow survey. Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD) and CCNow are developing a new, improved, and global Journalist Field Guide to Covering Climate Disinformation, building on CAAD’s existing resource. Read the current version and share your feedback to help shape the new version.
Free training! CCNow is accepting applications for the spring cohort of The Climate Newsroom, our three-session free training program for journalists in the US. Training begins the week of May 12. Learn more and apply by May 8.
Radar Clima. Cómo cubrir la conferencia en Santa Marta (Colombia) para la transición más allá de los combustibles fósiles. La última edición de Radar Clima, nuestro boletín en español para periodistas de todas las áreas, te trae datos clave, recursos, contactos de voces expertas y ángulos de cobertura para reportear una crisis que está transformando territorios de América Latina y España. Échale un vistazo a las ediciones anteriores y suscríbete para recibir el boletín los miércoles.
Locally Sourced. The latest edition of our biweekly newsletter for local journalists explores how climate change increases rates of violence, including gender-based violence. Check out the Locally Sourced archive and sign up to get the newsletter every other Tuesday.
WATCH: The Fossil Fuel Phaseout Conference Is Days Away. World leaders are gathering tomorrow, Friday, April 24, in Santa Marta, Colombia, at The First Conference on Transitioning Away From Fossil Fuels to begin drafting a global “roadmap” to phase out fossil fuels. The 80-plus countries that favored a roadmap at COP30 collectively amount to the largest economic superpower on Earth. Watch our preview webinar.
Noteworthy Stories
Food crisis warning. The Iran War and the resulting disruption of shipments of petroleum-based fertilizers essential to global food production will result in hunger in certain parts of the world — and possibly even famine — in coming months. By Adam Hanieh at the Financial Times…
- Meanwhile, leaders in Canada are taking steps to relieve consumers of the cost burden of higher electricity and gas prices by slashing taxes on fuel.
- European leaders will meet next week to consider cutting taxes on electricity to alleviate the financial burden of the energy crisis, Bloomberg News reports.
- In Asia, the energy shock has created a full-blown scarcity crisis. Analysts are warning that even if a peace deal is reached in the near future, the economic disruptions will linger for months.
Structural shift. In 2025, renewable energy surpassed coal as the world’s largest electricity source for the first time. The thinktank Ember projects that renewables will outpace nuclear power in 2026. By Molly Lempriere for Carbon Brief…
Burn rate. Wildfires in the US used to burn slower or even die out at night due to dropping temperatures and higher humidity, but a new report from Science Advances finds that climate change is causing fires to burn longer and stronger. By Seth Borenstein for the Associated Press…
Going green. New England has some of the highest energy costs in the US, but rural towns like Warwick, Mass., are transitioning away from fossil fuels and saving money in the process. By Bianca Garcia for WBUR…
On the Beat
¿Tienes 10 minutos? El medio español Climática acaba de lanzar un nuevo podcast, Climática Exprés, con todas las noticias sobre clima que necesitas conocer cada semana, en sólo 10 minutos.
Discouraging trend. Despite the fact that the need to reduce fossil fuel emissions grows more urgent each year, a new report from the media watchdog group FAIR shows that coverage about climate change in US news outlets “plunged” in 2025.
Quote of the Week
“The economics of clean energy are now on our side. Today, clean energy is the cheapest and quickest way to meet our growing energy demand. As a result, we’re seeing bright spots of hope all over the world.”
– Manish Bapna, chief executive of the Natural Resources Defense Council, told The New York Times
Resources & Events
RSVP: News Reimagined: The Creator Journalism Summit. A one-day event at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Monday, May 4, journalists, creators, and newsroom leaders will come together for discussions on how to grow audiences and build trust. Learn more and RSVP.
Clean energy savings. A new report from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) finds that EU countries with the cleanest energy mix will save 58% more on bills than counterparts still dependent on fossil fuels. Read the report.
Global food report. A new joint FAO-WMO report, released yesterday, shows how extreme heat is already threatening global food production yields and livestock and agricultural workers’ health. Read a summary at Climate Home News…
Jobs, Etc.
Jobs. World Wildlife Fund seeks an Associate Specialist, Climate Communications (Washington, D.C.). Public First is looking for a Director of Media: Energy & Climate (London). High Country News is hiring a Partnerships Editor (remote, western US states). The Raleigh News & Observer is looking for a Reporter to cover climate change and environmental issues (Raleigh, N.C.). McClatchy Media is hiring a Meteorologist (Sacramento, Calf.) Climate Central is hiring a Vice President for Business Development (primarily remote).
Fellowships. Climate Tracker Asia is opening applications for the NextGen Climate Bootcamp 2026: Voices of Philippine Youth; apply by May 22. The Pulitzer Center is accepting applications for its Rainforest Investigations Network Fellowships; apply by May 22. Quanta Magazine is accepting applications from early-career science journalists for its summer/fall 2026 writing fellowship. Solutions Journalism Network is accepting applications for the second cohort of its Solutions Visuals fellowship; apply by tomorrow, April 24. The Chips Quinn Reporter Fellowship is accepting applications; apply between April 13 and May 13.
Workshop. The Pulitzer Center is accepting applications for its six-week virtual workshop to help climate-focused reporters with little or no video experience turn their reporting into engaging content for social platforms; apply by tomorrow, April 24.
For MENA journalists. The Middle East-based Climate School has launched the second edition of its Climate Journalism Diploma, supported by Arabi Facts Hub. The Arabic-language program is designed to equip journalists with the knowledge and tools needed to cover climate issues with accuracy, depth, and impact across the Middle East and North Africa. Learn more and apply by April 25.