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Thomas Henningsen, marine biologist at Greenpeace
"A lot has happened in 40 years. The greatest thing we have achieved is that we have given the environment, nature a voice." Dieter Rucht, Institute for Protest and Movement Research "Greenpeace was from Start with a strongly media-oriented organization. The pictures should work. "
Jennifer Morgan, Managing Director Greenpeace International
"Germany Greenpeace is an important partner, but we know that we live in a globalized world, and if we only win in Germany, we won't win."
It all started with this rubber dinghy.
On October 13, 1980, environmentalists blocked a Kronos Titan tanker.
The crew was to dump diluted sulfuric acid in the North Sea on behalf of Bayer.
A few months later: Two men are climbing a chimney wearing respirators and protective suits.
They protest against the chemical company Boehringer with a banner.
David against Goliath, that's how it started with Greenpeace Germany, and the first two actions fell on fertile ground.
Gerd Leipold, founding member of Greenpeace Germany
"The time was ripe for Greenpeace 1980. In the 1980s the ecological issue suddenly developed into an important issue. The Greens had been founded, a lot was happening in science, and there was a youth movement, so to speak, that was falling was looking for something. Just as it is the case today. And from that, a rapidly growing organization developed very, very quickly. "
Nine years earlier, in September 1971, Greenpeace International was founded in Canada.
What began as a single protest against nuclear tests quickly turned into a professional environmental movement.
Dieter Rucht, Institute for Protest and Movement Research
"Greenpeace started with a small group of hippies who wanted to do something there, in Vancouver or near Vancouver. But it developed quite differently. Over the years, Greenpeace has been ahead of everyone else developed into an environmental group in Germany, which means a relatively tightly organized and hierarchical organization. "
Often it is night and fog action, surprise attacks on industry or politics that make the young environmental organization known.
For example the trip in a hot air balloon over the German-German border in August 1983 with Gerd Leipold on board.
Gerd Leipold, founding member of Greenpeace Germany
"The airspace over Berlin belonged to the four allies, and at the same time the four allies were the nuclear powers that test nuclear weapons."
Although the journey took less than an hour and the two pilots were able to return to West Berlin after a brief interrogation, the anti-nuclear weapons campaign attracted worldwide attention.
Dieter Rucht, Institute for Protest and Movement Research
"The pictures should be effective, the pictures should be as concise and gripping, emotional as possible. They were designed in such a way that one could gain maximum attention from the mass media. And that's also what got stuck. It is also what brought the attention but also money. "
Already at the end of the 1980s, Greenpeace Germany separated 40 million marks in donations and thus quickly became one of the financially strongest sections in the international Greenpeace network.
Germany is involved in campaigns that go beyond the German borders at an early stage.
With success: On the high seas, the environmentalists fight for a whale catching ban, they set up a polar station in the Antarctic and obtain an environmental protection protocol that puts the continent under protection for at least 50 years.
Protests ensure that the contracting states of the London Dumping Convention decide not to dump any more nuclear waste in the sea, and when agents of the French foreign intelligence service sank the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior from New Zealand in 1985 and a crew member dies, environmental fighters hit a worldwide wave towards sympathy.
The number of supporters and donors continues to grow.
Gerd Leipold, founding member of Greenpeace Germany
"If you are successful, you have to change. At the end of the 1980s, environmental awareness in Germany was very strong, and people have already said: Yes, now I know there is a problem. And what now "And the obvious answer was to take care of it. What solutions are there?"
At the beginning of the 1990s, Greenpeace Germany launched the Greenfreeze, a refrigerator without the harmful refrigerants CFC and PFC.
An international success.
To date, over a billion refrigerators have been manufactured and sold based on the ecological model.
And in 1996 the company presented the Smile, a car that consumes less than three liters of petrol per 100 kilometers.
Examples that want to show that technical solutions are often boycotted by the industry, but are definitely available and only need to be implemented.
But of all things the action with the greatest attention, the protest against the sinking of the Brent Spar oil platform previously operated by Shell, is also causing trouble for the environmental organization.
Thomas Henningsen, marine biologist at Greenpeace
"There was justified criticism, namely about the amount of oil sludge in the Brent Spar, which we incorrectly stated, incorrectly calculated. We also admitted that. But it was about the big picture, namely to prevent old oil platforms from simply being sunk in the sea because it is cheaper. We have achieved that, and we have also achieved that this ban on sinking oil platforms is still in effect worldwide. "
Other successful campaigns are also controversial.
Again and again the environmental organization campaigns against genetically modified food.
Detlef Weigel, Max Planck Institute
"As a scientist who has been working on genetic diversity for over 20 years, I think it is wrong that Greenpeace should exclude genetic engineering so much as one of the many means in modern breeding. It is not The only means, but an important means. And we know from climate change: We need all means that are available. We have learned in the last 20 years that, for example, even two different types of corn that look the same to us they can be differentiated by thousands of genes. In my opinion, one gene doesn't make that much difference. "
No individual opinion.
In 2016, one hundred Nobel Prize winners called on Greenpeace to rethink campaigns against genetically modified rice.
This is important to fight hunger in the world.
Thomas Henningsen, marine biologist at Greenpeace
"We know that there are different opinions. We say that the precautionary principle has to take effect here in any case. Because we don't know what to expect. We have many signs that genetic engineering is in the environment and brings with it dangers that we cannot even assess. Therefore: No to genetic engineering. "
After 40 years there has also been a generation change at Greenpeace.
Ina Zerbin, activist
"I came into contact with Greenpeace as a child because my parents were sponsoring members. Right from the start, I felt a tremendous sense of success from carrying out these joint group campaigns Clothing stores in around 40 cities at the same time and have called for cleaner production. At the beginning you had the feeling: Okay, I'm standing here with ten people. What's the point? Somehow it goes under. But our employees were also very stressed , apparently passed it on. And later the company signed the request for clean production. This success motivated me very much. "
Greenpeace is facing new challenges today.
Other environmental and climate protection organizations have grown up.
Many problems have become more abstract, and a simple photo or video alone is no longer enough to gain acceptance on social media, as this campaign at the end of 2019 shows.
The CDU's C was kidnapped and sent on a media trip, including its own Twitter account with many followers.
A climate protection campaign that was supposed to show that the party has distanced itself from its Christian values.
Jennifer Morgan, Managing Director of Greenpeace International
"It doesn't always have to be the big bombastic actions. Of course, that's also part of our story. But sometimes I also think I have a feeling somehow: How does society work at this moment? How can we Reaching out and bringing people along? The simplest of things can have such a big impact. "
After 40 years it is no longer the image of David versus Goliath, rubber dinghy versus tanker that defines Greenpeace.
In Germany alone, more than 600,000 people donated 71 million euros in 2019.
There are more than three million sponsors worldwide.
Thomas Henningsen, marine biologist at Greenpeace
"The challenge that we have is to really bring leaders to the floors where decisions are made that implement all the solutions that we have long on the table. The second is, To form alliances because we have to get people to get involved. "
Greenpeace no longer acts as a lone warrior, but cooperates with other organizations, in demonstrations, events and negotiations.
Jennifer Morgan, Managing Director Greenpeace International
"What is really important to me now is that we work together, with trade unions, with health organizations, of course with young people, with development organizations. Greta Thunberg and the Friday For Future movement, that we all work together against this Fight system so that we can have a better future. "
Even if Greenpeace itself has become a Goliath, the struggle of the environmentalists is not getting any easier.