Rainbow Warrior

A history of the Rainbow Warrior, in pictures

Posted by bex — 10 October 2008 at 6:09pm - Comments

With the Rainbow Warrior on her way to the UK, we thought we'd put together a slideshow to share a few of the highs - and lows - of her remarkable history. Our flagship, the Rainbow Warrior has travelled from South America to the South Pacific, the Antarctic to the Atlantic - an icon for environmentalists around the globe.

The ship coming to the UK is of course the Rainbow Warrior II; the original vessel was sunk in 1985 by French government agents trying to foil protests at their nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific. (The ship's name was inspired by a Native American prophecy which foretells a time when human greed would make the world sick, and warriors of the rainbow would come together to save it.)

The Rainbow Warrior is coming to the UK

Posted by bex — 8 October 2008 at 1:15pm - Comments

See all Rainbow Warrior tour updates or get them by email.


She's our world famous flagship, she's helped to win Greenpeace campaigns across the globe and now she's coming to the UK to persuade Gordon Brown to Give Coal the Boot.

The 'Quit Coal' tour in the Philippines

Posted by jossc — 20 June 2008 at 12:10pm - Comments

Greenpeace activists paint the message 'Quit Coal' on the driveway of the Department of Energy today in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, Philippines

Taking the message to the Philippines Department of Energy

Mareike, web editor aboard the Rainbow Warrior, give us an update on from the Philippines about how the 'Quit Coal' tour is progressing.

Burning coal accounts globally for over 70 per cent of CO2 pollution from power generation and is the greatest single threat to our climate.

That's why the Rainbow Warrior is on a global tour from New Zealand, via the Philippines and Thailand, to the UN climate panel meeting in Poland at the end of this year, promoting a massive uptake of renewable energy and energy efficiency and the phase out of coal.

Update: Rainbow Warrior ends peaceful protest at Pagbilao

Posted by jossc — 27 May 2008 at 1:37pm - Comments

Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior passes by the coal ship Sam John Spirit as it exits the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant pier in Quezon Province, 150 kilometers south of Manila.

The Rainbow Warrior's protest at the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant in the Philippines has ended on a high note. Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri sent a message of support to the crew saying, "I will file a resolution in the Senate seeking a halt in the construction of new coal fired power plants in the country."

The action ended on the eve of the G8 Environment Ministers Meeting in Japan, where the richest industrialised countries in the world gathered at the weekend to discuss solutions to climate change. Ending the use of coal needs to top the agenda.

More information on our international site »

"Quit coal" tour gets underway in Philippines

Posted by jossc — 23 May 2008 at 11:58am - Comments

The Rainbow warrior blocks coal shipments at the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant in Quezon province, 150 kilometres southwest of Manila.

The crew of the Rainbow Warrior kicked off a month long "Quit coal" tour around south-east Asia today when they blocked a coal shipment at the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant in Quezon province, south-west of Manila.

Rainbow Warrior in palm oil blockade

Posted by jamie — 15 November 2007 at 6:08pm - Comments

The Rainbow Warrior blockading the MT Westama which is carrying 30,000 tonnes of palm oil

View from the Rainbow Warrior of the MT Westama, laiden with 30,000 tonnes of palm oil © Greenpeace/Christian Aslund

Events in Indonesia have stepped up apace, and the Rainbow Warrior is currently blockading a tanker in the port of Dumai in Sumatra. The tanker, the MT Westama, is carrying 30,000 tonnes of palm oil and the Warrior is positioned so that tugs can't reach the tanker to assist it out of the port.

Exporting the palm oil is a company called Permata Hijau Sawit - their suppliers are known to be involved in the destruction of rainforests and peatlands in Riau province, temporary home of our Forest Defenders Camp.

I'll post back when I know how it turns out, but in the meantime read the full story on our international site.

Update: After two days, the blockade finally came to an end on Saturday.

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