John,

Last month, things got icy at the Ministry of Economy in Paris. We
delivered more than 200,000 SumOfUs members’ signatures demanding that the
French government drops its financial support to Total's devastating new
gas megaproject in the Arctic.

[1]Photo of the huge blocks of ice brought in front of the Ministry. They
representing the 700 million euros guarantee that the French state could
grant Total for its destructive projectPhoto credit : Anna Kurth /
Reporterre 

TV and radio crews followed us and our partners from Les Amis de la Terre
and 350. We installed a massive ice sculpture in front of the Ministry. It
spelled €700,000,000 to represent the guarantee that the French State
could grant Total for its destructive project.

[2]Photos of the three campaigners in front of the Ministry carrying the
boxes containing the 200,000 signaturesCampaigners behind the stunt (from
left to right):
Anna-Lena Rebaud (Friends of the Earth), Clémence Dubois (350) et Leyla
Larbi (SumOfUs)

[3]Photo of the delivery of your signatures by our campaigner, Leyla, to
Nicolas Dufaud, Chief of Staff of the Ministry of the Economy and
FinanceDelivery of your signatures to Nicolas Dufaud, Chief of Staff of
the Ministry of Economy and Finance

For hours, the ice blocks melted, just like the Arctic ice pack. After a
while, they disappeared completely, like public money might vanish in
Total's deep pockets.

John, your mobilization shed light on this secretive project.
You put pressure on the French government which now faces harsh criticism.

[4]Press clippings of our action in front of the ministryThe stunt was
covered by many: on the radio, in newspapers, on tv and on social networks

John, we must keep pressuring Macron! And we need your help to
obtain a firm and definitive NO from the French
government. [ [link removed] ]Can you make a monthly donation to
strengthen our campaign and put an end to public funding of oil and gas
projects?

Your message is clear as ice: public money must no longer be used to fund
projects that destroy our future, pushing us even further into the abyss
of the climate crisis! Now, let’s ensure that the French government walks
the talk.

You can do these two things to strengthen the mobilization against Total’s
gas megaproject:

* Share the [ [link removed] ]video of our campaign and icy stunt on social media 
* [ [link removed] ]Become a monthly donor to support our campaigns against the funding
of coal, oil and gas projects by public institutions.



Thanks for all that you do,
Leyla and the Team at SumOfUs


**********
More information:

[ [link removed] ]NGO's ice sculptures in Paris to protest Total expansion in Arctic 
Euronews. 20 May 2021

[ [link removed] ]Exclusive: International lenders back $9.5 billion financing for
Russia's Arctic LNG 2 - document
Reuters. 18 September 2020.
 
[ [link removed] ]Global Warming Is Driving Polar Bears Toward Extinction, Researchers
Say
The New York Times. 20 July 2020.
 
[ [link removed] ](Op-ed in French) L’Etat français doit cesser son soutien à
l’exploration gazière en Arctique.
L'Obs. 26 February 2021.
 

 

 

SumOfUs is a worldwide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy.

Please help keep SumOfUs strong by chipping in $3. [link removed]