350.org’s East Asia campaign has achieved progress in a region dependent on fossil fuels. From Japan, Vietnam, to the Philippines, our campaigners have been working to create powerful grassroots campaigns that stop new fossil fuel infrastructure and move the region away from coal.
We’ve been on the forefront of climate organizing in East Asia to build capacity and empower local communities to create change. In the lead-up to the Paris Climate Conference, we launched the Climate Empowerment program. The program provided a space for enhanced coordination with partners and supported mass mobilizations with $15,000 in grants. The Climate Empowerment program was a success: we were able to mobilize 76 actions with the support of 31 partners in 11 countries including Vietnam, China, Taiwan, South Korea and Indonesia. These actions demonstrated to politicians and decision-makers that we demanded strong leadership on climate at COP21 in Paris and across the region.
We are also putting the pressure on coal plants and the fossil fuel industry. 350 Japan recently launched a national divestment campaign targeting top fossil fuel financiers and banks. The team has held many events which laid the groundwork for successful grassroots organizing. In Vietnam, we launched the “I can’t” campaign where we worked with 8 Vietnamese celebrities to raise awareness about the devastating health effects of coal-fired power plants. The pressure from the “I can’t” campaign, along with educational workshops, led Vietnam’s Prime Minister to halt new coal plant development and review the country’s national power development plan. In the Philippines, we connected and started organizing with the community in Palawan, who were facing the construction of a coal-fired power plant. Earlier this year the Philippines government, due to immense grassroots opposition, ruled that there would be no new coal plants built in Palawan! Additionally, during Break Free, we worked with partners “Piglas Batangas! Piglas Pilipinas!” in the Philippines to mobilize 8,000+ people to demand the cancellation of current and proposed coal plants in 28 cities.
In the coming months, we’ll launch the East Asia Climate Leadership program to diversify the climate movement, build skills, and form new partnerships across sectors and countries. We’ll bring together climate organizers, activists, bloggers, journalists, and artists, to share their perspectives and effective organizing tools. The program will include monthly web workshops, strategy forums, and a meeting for specific partners to focus on long-term anti-coal and divestment campaigning.
Your support makes it possible to grow the climate movement and push back on fossil fuel infrastructure in East Asia. We’re scaling up in the region, and we can’t thank you enough for your partnership in this crucial work.