spring 2004Action Alert

Weyerhaeuser is the#1 destroyer of old-growthforests in North America.

INSIDE: • RAN Breaks The Bank• Wake Up Weyerhaeuser!• Ford: America’s Oil Addict

Forest protection patriots unfurl a 2,400 square-foot bannerfrom a construction crane in downtown Seattle.Photo by Garth Lenz

Take Action Today!Write to Weyerhaeuser CEOSteve Rogel and tell him todevelop a global policy toprotect endangered forests.

WRITE TO:Steve RogelChief Executive OfficerWeyerhaeuserMail Stop CH 2D2333663 Weyerhaeuser Way SouthFederal Way, WA 98003

GO TO:action.ran.org

ISSN 1081-5120 >> Action Alert is published four times yearly. Commercial reproduction prohibited. Students, teachers, and activists may copy text for limited distribution. ©2004 Rainforest Action Network • 221 Pine Street, #500 • San Francisco, CA 94104, USA • 415-398-4404 • www.ran.org

RAN compels Bank of America to set new standards:

1 Bank of America agreed toreduce greenhouse gasemissions from its chain ofactivities according to bestestimates of theIntergovernmental Panel onClimate Changes. Setting areduction goal of 7 percent by2008, it is the first US bank toset targets and timelines to helpcombat climate change.

2 Bank of America agreed to endfunding for logging, mining anddrilling in pristine intact forestsworldwide. New no-go zonesexpand forest protection toencompass intact tropical,temperate and boreal forestecosystems as defined by theWorld Resources Institute. Evenmore, it will help fund mappingof forests for future protection.

3 Bank of America has agreed torespect the rights of indigenouscommunities whose livelihoodsor cultural integrity could beadversely impacted by itsinvestments. The bank will notfinance operations in areaswhere indigenous land claimsare not settled. This is one stepcloser to our goal of free andinformed prior consent for all.

Stabilize Earth’s Climate Protect Endangered Forests Respect Indigenous Rights

www.ran.org

Wake Up!Weyerhaeuser

RAN Breaks The BankBank of America Agrees To Protect ForestsAnd Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Ending one of the shortest campaigns in RAN history, Bank ofAmerica agreed to adopt sweeping new forest protection and climatechange policies on the eve of a National Day of Action that was toofficially launch “No Way BofA.” In the wake of RAN’s recentCitigroup victory, Bank of America was to be the next target of a RAN-led grassroots campaign calling on the mega-bank to stop pillagingthe planet and exceed environmental standards set by Citigroupearlier this year. RAN’s effective negotiating skills and grassrootsorganizing followed an April 22nd “Earth Day Deadline” issued to tenof the nation’s largest financial institutions, urging them to takesignificant steps towards protecting the environment or risk beinghighlighted as an environmental laggard by RAN’s members,activists, and allies around the world.

Bank of America responded in an enormous way! Its climate changeand forest policies developed with input from RAN set new industrybest practices and signify the beginning of a sea change in therelationship between ecology and economy. Big banks are waking upto the fact that if the environmental bubble bursts, the globaleconomy bursts with it. Along with Citigroup’s environmentalstandards, Bank of America’s policies are a clear sign that the era ofdestructive investment is ending. With the help of dedicatedmembers and activists like you, we are confident that we will helpusher in a new era of socially responsible and environmentallysustainable investing!

Of course, there’s still much more work to be done. RAN is ready towork with any bank that takes its environmental responsibilityseriously and is willing to help shape policies that ensure protectionfor endangered forests, reductions in climate-changing greenhousegas emissions, and protection of the rights of indigenouscommunities to defend their land and livelihood. Bank of America’snew policy is an excellent example of how RAN motivatescorporations to develop meaningful solutions to the most pressingenvironmental problems of our time. RAN’s campaigns serve as thecatalyst to compel corporations to catch up with modern values.

The Global Finance Campaign has never had a busier or moreexciting time! Ongoing dialogue with Citigroup, a new policy toimplement at Bank of America, and productive negotiations withsome of their largest competitors all makes for an action-packedseason. Stay tuned!

Ford: America’s Oil AddictThe first step toward recovery is for Ford Motor Company to admit it has aproblem: oil addiction. According to the EPA, Ford vehicles ranked theabsolute worst in average fuel efficiency of all major automakers in 2003.Ford’s oil addiction endangers us all. Instead of working to help stopcatastrophic climate change, Ford continues to threaten the health of ourcommunities, environment and economy by manufacturing and marketingthe most out-dated fleet of gas-guzzlers on the road today.

Write and call today! Tell Ford to demonstrate clear vision for a cleanenergy future now. Demand that Ford make a U-turn and take immediateaction to produce a new fleet of vehicles that get 50 mpg by 2010 and havezero tailpipe emissions by 2020.

Become a sustaining member.

221 Pine Street, Suite 500, San Francisco, CA 94104tel: 415-398-4404 email: rainforest@ran.org www.ran.org

221 Pine Street, Suite 500, San Francisco, CA 94104

Being a sustainer means that with your regular and continued support, we can spend more timerunning campaigns and less time fundraising. If we can keep winning victories, we can save therainforests. Your ongoing support is crucial to our success!

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#163

After years of grassroots pressure, the World Bank commissioned anindependent review of its role in environmental destruction. TheExtractive Industries Review (EIR) strongly recommended that thebank change course and adopt major reforms, including phasing outits support for coal mining immediately and for oil production by2008. It also recommends respect for human rights by requiringprior informed consent for any project affecting indigenous and localpeoples, including securing a ‘social license’ from affectedcommunities. Finally, the EIR report calls for the establishment of‘no-go zones’. It’s time now for the Bank to adopt theserecommendations. Write today and tell World Bank President JamesWolfensohn to adopt all of the EIR recommendations.

WRITE TO:Mr. James Wolfensohn, PresidentWorld Bank Group1818 H St, NWWashington, DC 20433-0001

also on the web at >www.ran.org

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Grassroots Pressure Moves World Bank

In 1986 RAN hangs first protest banner off of the World Bankbuilding in Washington, D.C. to highlight to the connectionbetween global finance and environmental destruction.

WRITE TO:Mr. William Clay Ford, Jr.Chairman & CEOFord Motor CompanyOne American RoadDearborn, MI 48126

CALL:Ford Headquarters

1-800-392-3673

AA163