Greenpeace Annual Report 2000

The accounts presented here are the consolidated accounts of all the Greenpeace organisations operating worldwide.

The consolidated accounts of those entities comprising Greenpeace International are also presented here.

While there is no legal obligation to prepare these consolidated accounts, they are prepared for the purpose of being transparent to Greenpeace supporters globally. The consolidated accounts therefore provide a picture of both the total income and expenditure and the total assets of Greenpeace environmental campaigning organisations around the world, as well as of Greenpeace International.

The following notes relate only to the accounts for Greenpeace 'Worldwide', shown right.

The year ending 31 December 2000 saw an increase of 14% in income to Greenpeace 'Worldwide'. This reflects increased financial support from the public for Greenpeace's campaigning activities. Supporter numbers as at 1 January 2001 increased to approximately 2.65m, an increase of over 6% on the previous year. In order to retain its independence and in line with a strict fundraising policy, Greenpeace only accepts funds from individuals and independent foundations. No funding is received from corporations or governmental organisations. The decline in merchandising and licensing income in 2000, and the overall low level of this income, reflects Greenpeace's low prioritisation of these activities as a source of funding.

On the expenditure side, Greenpeace's primary focus on campaigning activities is reflected in the 11% rise in campaign expenditure. The expenditure analysis illustrates how resources have been allocated between the separate campaigns, and you can read more on the specific activities of Greenpeace by selecting from the options on the left. Of particular note is the 35% rise in expenditure on marine operations and action support, which underlines the ongoing commitment to retaining our unique action resource, capable of implementing campaign direct actions anywhere on the planet.

The increase in fundraising expenditure, at a higher rate than current-income growth, reflects an investment-for-the-future strategy. There has to be up-front investment in fundraising if the future periods are to show sustained income growth. Greenpeace believes that it should, as far as possible, encourage local populations to support the activities of Greenpeace in their regions, both to increase local legitimacy and to empower local people. We expect to see the first signs of the benefits of these investments in 2001. A key financial indicator of the health of a non-governmental organisation, is the income net of fundraising costs, which in Greenpeace, on a worldwide basis, has continued to increase over the past five years.

The overall result for the year shows a significant surplus, of 2.8m euros. On an operating level, Greenpeace aims to break even - matching income to expenditure; however, on an annual basis this is not easy to achieve, as fundraising income as difficult to predict accurately in advance. It would be imprudent to budget for spending higher that budgeted income. Therefore, in a year where income exceeds budget - such as 2000 - we are likely to show a material surplus. In the medium term Greenpeace does not intend to increase its overall reserve levels and reserves are likely to decline in 2001, when some of the accumulated reserves are spent furthering Greenpeace's goals.

George MacFarlane