The organization, which will be the focus of this report, is Greenpeace Canada. It is a subsidiary of the largest non-governmental environmental organization in the world. It can be accessed online by following this address. The main purpose of Greenpeace Canada is to ensure the ability of nature to nurture life within the Canadian territory (2021). In practice, this means taking all necessary actions to preserve and sustain the environment and minimize human impact.
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Summary of Values
Any NGO has a set of principles that it chooses to follow. Greenpeace Canada is no exception, as it also has certain values, which distinguish it morally. First of all, it respects the core beliefs of Greenpeace International, which are personal responsibility, nonviolence, independence, neutrality, and promotion of solutions (Values – Greenpeace International, 2021). The Canadian subsidiary accentuates courage as its most important moral principle. Overall, the combination of environmental consciousness and emotional motivation constitutes the code of ethics of Greenpeace Canada.
Latest Environmental Activity
One of the recent actions, which demonstrated the organization’s loyalty to the environment happened at the end of the previous year. GNL Québec is a project of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility, which is planned to be constructed at Port Saguenay. It is common knowledge that any LNG initiative has a severe adversarial impact on the environment. As it is a fossil fuel, its transportation use contributes to the greenhouse effect.
Greenpeace Canada has attracted attention to the negative repercussions for the environment, which are likely to happen due to GNL Québec. The message reverberated among many Canadians sensitive to nature-related damage. As a result, “citizen groups and environmental organizations presented elected officials in the National Assembly with a petition against GNL Québec” (Kurdi, 2020). Aside from global warming, environmentalists warned against the degradation of biodiversity. Provided success, this initiative will save Eastern Canada from the further deterioration of nature.
Impact on Human Health
Naturally, the environment is not the only beneficiary of this petition, as the inhabitants of Port Saguenay will be directly affected if GNL Québec is constructed. Liquefied natural gas is extracted through the process of hydraulic fracturing. In order to pressurize the underground water, numerous chemicals are used, some of which are toxic to human health. They can damage the reproductive system, precipitate lung diseases, and aggravate heart conditions.
The same consequences are true for the population of Port Saguenay and the territories in proximity. Environmentalists point out that more than 780 kilometers of land will be affected, as well as thousands of streams may be damaged (Kurdi, 2020). Subsequently, soil contamination will complicate the irrigation, which will leave people without clean water. This would constitute a serious public health issue as many infectious diseases are likely to emerge.
In my opinion, Greenpeace Canada has noble intentions but poor execution. First, a major focus is placed on the environment rather than people’s well-being. Second, the organization’s activities are limited to raising environmental awareness. At the same time, it does not accomplish anything meaningful in practice. The reason why the petition gathered so many supporters is the already existing discontent with GNL Québec, rather than the organization’s promotion of its values.
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Altogether, it should be evident that Greenpeace Canada draws inspiration from the larger organization but is not effective in itself. Its inability to make meaningful changes raises two main questions. The first is: what is a viable way of preserving the environment for a non-governmental organization? The second is: how can an environmental NGO effectively raise awareness if corporate interest prevails in society? Answering these questions should help Greenpeace Canada achieve feasible results in its activities.
Greenpeace Canada. (2021). Web.
Kurdi, L. (2020). Over 110,000 signatures against the ‘GNL Québec’ complex. Web.
Values – Greenpeace International. (2021). Web.