“It has been a tremendous honor to have served Greenpeace’s members, activists, and our incredible team for the past five years. Together, we’ve played a leading role in moving many of the world’s largest companies and governments. The team at Greenpeace is steadfast and contagiously courageous; I can’t wait to see what comes next.”
In the past five years, Radford has led Greenpeace to game-changing victories for the forests, climate, and oceans. Many of the world’s largest corporations changed their practices during Radford’s tenure, including the massive paper corporation APP (Asia Pulp and Paper), which took action to end deforestation as a result of NGO pressure on consumer brands like Mattel and Hasbro that sourced from APP. It was a campaign that the New York Times called “Activism at its Best,” and exemplified Greenpeace’s work to fight global corporations with global grassroots networks and coalitions.
In addition, over 20% of red list fish have been taken off the shelves of supermarkets around the country as a result of Greenpeace’s successful campaign to move grocery stores to stock sustainable seafood, and companies like Facebook and Apple have heeded Greenpeace’s call to become renewable energy champions.
As part of its climate campaign, Greenpeace has successfully moved local coal industry targets, contributing to the campaign to stop coal export terminals in the Pacific Northwest and working alongside communities to shut down coal plants like the Fisk and Crawford coal plants in Chicago, as well as other coal plants around the country.
“Phil’s connection with people on the front lines of the environmental fight in the United States has been essential to the organization staying at the forefront of the movement,” Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo said. “Under Phil’s leadership, Greenpeace convinced Apple and Facebook to switch to clean energy and Greenpeace made a huge contribution towards convincing Asia Pulp and Paper and Wilmar to stop deforestation in Indonesia. I know that Phil will continue to bring positive change and work towards a greener future for the generations to come.”
During his tenure, Greenpeace USA grew to over one million members and supporters, and earned nearly $42 million in annual income. The organization saw an 80% increase in net income which enabled a greater scope of national and global work including supporting work in the global south.
“During Radford’s tenure, Greenpeace has been helping the whole environmental movement shift back towards its roots: local, connected, tough,” said Bill McKibben, President and Co-founder of 350.org.
Radford was also known for building powerful alliances and collaborative efforts with progressive groups around the country, including the co-founding of the Democracy Initiative, a partnership between Greenpeace, the NAACP, the Communication Workers of America, and the Sierra Club, aimed at getting voters in and big money out of the democratic process.
Ben Jealous, former president and chief executive officer of the NAACP as well as co-founder of the Democracy Initiative with Radford, said:
“Phil Radford is a modern movement building giant. He has built powerful diverse coalitions to bolster the fights for the environment and voting rights. In the process he has shown himself to be unmatched in mobilizing everyday people to fund their movements directly.”
Greenpeace has begun the search for a new Executive Director to tackle the considerable environmental challenges facing the world. Greenpeace’s foundation–strong financials, a track record of wins, and the best brand in the business–positions the organization to reach even greater heights moving forward.
Contact: Travis Nichols, [email protected], 206.802.8498
