Global Justice Ecology Project (GJEP) explores and exposes the intertwined root causes of social injustice, ecological destruction, and economic domination.

GJEP envisions a world in which all societies are justly and equitably governed with full participation by an engaged and informed populace living in harmony with the natural world and one another.

We accomplish our mission by (1) prioritizing campaigns that are key leverage points for advancing systemic change, and (2) linking struggles and strengthening diverse movements with strategic action, information, and analysis.

Philosophy of Activism

• Maintain an uncompromising stance and keep the bar high.
• Make systemic connections through a holistic analysis.
• Build strong bonds of trust with Indigenous Peoples and their organizations.
• Be accountable to grassroots organizations and communities.
• Use direct action as a strategic tool.
• Be efficient and effective.
• Win.

Principles

We believe in the fundamental equality of all peoples and the intrinsic value of the natural world. Our program work is guided by these principles:

• Confronting oppression, challenging power elites, and amplifying the voice of the least powerful among us.
• Championing diversity and equal rights to break down barriers and open doors to common goals and ideas.
• Working in cooperation, not competition, to build grassroots power.

Our Programs

No Genetically Engineered Trees: We use the cross-cutting issue of GE trees to support and build power on related issues ranging from the rights and autonomy of Indigenous Peoples, forest restoration, to challenging false solutions to climate change such as bioenergy from GE trees.

Strategic Media: We strategically use mainstream and alternative media to expose the root causes of social and ecological injustice.  We amplify the voices of front line communities fighting the impacts of climate change, the fossil fuels industry and land grabs linked to false solutions to climate change such as industrial biofuels.

We partner with Margaret Prescod’s Sojourner Truth show on KPFK Pacifica Radio (Los Angeles) since November 2009, producing weekly “Earth Segments,” as well as weekly interviews on important environmental news.  We also host a New Voices on Climate Change speakers Bureau, and support allies through social media and email campaigns. Langelle Photography uses the power of photojournalism to expose social and ecological injustice. The point of Langelle Photography is to place photographs into the context of social struggle—the struggle for societal transformation toward justice, equity and ecological balance.

History

Anne Petermann and Orin Langelle, activists with decades of experience in the environmental and social justice movements, on local, national and international fronts, founded GJEP in 2003. They saw the need for a project grounded in understanding that environmental degradation, war, the destruction of civil rights and liberties, and economic and social injustice were not isolated, and needed to be addressed at their common root causes.

Key Accomplishments

Stop GE Trees Campaign:

• Created and led a major international campaign against GE trees, which has so far successfully prevented their large-scale commercial release

• Organized historic week of action at the international Tree Biotechnology 2013 conference in Asheville, NC in May 2013–including several arrests and the largest ever protest against GE trees

• Won a decision from the UN Convention on Biological Diversity warning countries of the social and ecological dangers of GE trees

• Assembled a legal team to challenge USDA approval of GE eucalyptus trees,which is discouraging investment and prevented GE tree company ArborGen from going public on the NASDAQ in April 2011, leading to the replacement of its executive staff in January 2012

• Consulted on the creation of an award-winning documentary “A Silent Forest:The Growing Threat, Genetically Engineered Trees,” narrated by internationally renowned geneticist Dr. David Suzuki.

• Brought major media attention to the dangers of GE trees, including a front-page story in the Washington Post, and articles/features in the New York Times, Bloomberg News, Christian Science Monitor, Charlotte Observer, Memphis Appeal, NPR’s Living on Earth program, and Jim Hightower Radio, among numerous others

• Cited frequently by industry leaders as a major obstacle to GE tree research and development

Strategic Media and Communications:

• Worked directly with media to amplify the voices of impacted communities, social movements, grassroots groups and networks.  Since 2004 we traveled to the UN and other international forums, including the Climate Convention, the Biodiversity Convention, the UN Forum on Indigenous Issues and the World Social Forum where we succeeded in featuring these voices in hundreds of newswires and media outlets around the world, reaching millions of people with their messages.

• Produced the DVD “A Darker Shade of Green,” in 2012 to showcase Indigenous Peoples’ resistance to REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation). The DVD is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

• Used the power of photojournalism to expose injustice and help prevent the forced relocation of Amador Hernandez, an Indigenous community in the Lacandon Jungle of Chiapas, Mexico in 2011.

Climate Justice and Indigenous Peoples’ Rights:

• Co-founded Durban Group for Climate Justice in 2004; Climate Justice Now! in 2007. Co-founded Climate Justice Action in 2008, which organized the historicPeoples’ Assembly and Reclaim Power march out at the 2009 UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen.

• Used writing, analysis and direct action to expose the extent of corporate influences on UN climate and biodiversity negotiations. Highlighted the exclusion of Indigenous Peoples, social movements and other stakeholders from UN decision-making.

Download a PDF of this information: About GJEP