EarthAction

Join Us to Count the Nuclear Weapons Money

One trillion dollars is being allocated over the next ten years to modernize the nuclear arsenals of nine countries.

The corporations making these weapons lobby for increased spending on nuclear weapons, stimulating the nuclear arms race and increasing the risk of a nuclear war.

Count the Nuclear Weapons Money will demonstrate the scale of this investment, and how it could instead be devoted to peace and humanitarian needs.

While governments meet at the United Nations in New York for the first ever United Nations High-Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament, we will be outside the UN counting one million specially designed notes each of $1 million value, adding up to $1 trillion.

Front of a $1 million note depicting what the nuclear weapons budget currently supports.

Help us count the nuclear weapons money

Join us between May 10-16 as we count ($100 million per minute, $6 billion per hour, $146 billion per day for seven days). While counting we will highlight economic, social and environmental areas in which this money could instead be invested.

Already we have parliamentarians, civil society leaders, artists, sports stars, musicians, activists, religious leaders, youth, war veterans and others signed up to count the money for 20-30 minutes each.

Click here to sign-up as a money counter.

Back of a $1 million note indicating what the money should instead be spent on. Design by Michael Green.

Please donate to make this action a success

It costs money to move the nuclear weapons money. Please donate so that we can print the 1 million notes, publicise the action, create a powerful installation of the counted money, and support the advocacy to end investments in nuclear weapons.

For more information see our GoFundMe campaign.

Move the Nuclear Weapons Money

The New York action is part of Move the Nuclear Weapons Money, a global campaign to cut nuclear weapons budgets, divest from nuclear weapons corporations and move the money to meet areas of human need, such as ending poverty, protecting the climate, supporting renewable energy, creating jobs, and providing adequate healthcare, housing and education for all.

The campaign was launched in October 2016 by the International Peace Bureau, World Future Council and Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament, building on work these organizations have done for over a decade on nuclear divestment and cutting nuclear weapons budgets.
The campaign now includes a number of other organisations and networks including the Basel Peace Office, Global Security Institute, UNFOLD ZERO, World Federalist Movement and the Abolition 2000 Working Group on Economic Dimensions of Nuclearism.

The campaign works closely with the Global Campaign on Military Spending.

Press conference at the United Nations

Jackie Cabasso speaking at a press conference at the United Nations for the Count the Nuclear Weapons Money campaign, March 28, 2018

Move the Nuclear Weapons Money held a press conference at the United Nations on March 28, 2018 to launch our new online platform and announce Count the Nuclear Weapons Money.

At the press conference we also promoted the UN High-Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament and released an open letter to the leaders of USA, South Korea and North Korea signed by more than 100 US civil society groups expressing support for the upcoming inter-Korean summit in April and the US-DPRK summit in May.

See Amid growing nuclear dangers, experts highlight importance of the UN High-Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament.

READ MORE AT UNFOLD ZERO

IPHRDs Are Not Terrorists

The Cordillera Peoples Alliance in cooperation with the Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club held a press conference last March 31st to condemn the DOJ's terrorist proscription of past and present CPA leaders, environment defenders, indigenous rights activists and human rights advocates.

Members of the Baguio City Council also presented the resolution expressing their support for the 7 Baguio activists saying that they are actually fighting for noble causes that benefit the people.

The CPA also announced the upcoming celebration of the 34th Cordillera Day in Baguio City that aims to spread awareness of issues that affect the region. Specifically, they aim to highlight the issue of government's tyranny against the people. #IPHRDsNotTerrorists

Sign the Petition

Nuclear Abolition Campaigners Announce New Initiatives at UN Press Conference

Abolition 2000 member organizations organized a press conference at the United Nations in New York today to highlight the critical need for successful diplomacy on nuclear-weapons related conflicts, promote the upcoming UN High-Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament, and announce two related initiatives.

These were an Open Letter to the Leaders of USA, South Korea and North Korea and Count the Nuclear Weapons Money, a civil society action to take place during the UN High Level Conference.

Open letter to leaders of USA, South Korea and North Korea

Jackie Cabasso, Executive Director of Western States Legal Foundation, released the open letter, which has been signed by more than 100 US civil society groups. The letter expresses support for the upcoming inter-Korean summit in April and the US-DPRK summit in May, and urges the leaders “to patiently and diligently seek common ground.”

The letter states: “Dialogue and diplomacy is essential if we are to prevent a war that would likely result in an unthinkable disaster for the Korean Peninsula, the United States and the world…..We recognize that one encounter between US and North Korean leaders will not likely produce an agreement that leads to a lasting solution. But the planned summits offer the potential for starting a serious process that could move us decisively away from the current crisis.”

Support for the UN High Level Conference

"The United Nations has key roles to play in promoting and supporting diplomacy, nuclear risk-reduction and disarmament,' said Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute. "The upcoming UN High-Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament comes at a vital time to build global support from UN Member States. We encourage all UN members to participate at the highest level, and to give full support to nuclear risk-reduction and disarmament measures."

“States could use this opportunity to either sign the new Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons or commit to a negotiation process to stop the new arms race, lower nuclear risks, and fulfill existing disarmament obligations by agreeing to a phased process of reductions leading to the universal, legally enforceable, verifiable elimination of all nuclear weapons,” said Granoff. “As a first step toward a safer saner world, the nine States with the weapons must all pledge never to initiate a nuclear war.”

For more information on how to be engaged in the UN High Level Conference, see Abolition 2000 working group on the 2018 UN High Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament.

Move the Nuclear Weapons Money

The UN High Level Conference on Nuclear Disarmament is scheduled to take place in New York May 14 -16. Nuclear disarmament campaigners plan to use the occasion to focus public attention on the nuclear-weapons industry, a key stimulus to the nuclear arms race.

“Companies manufacturing nuclear weapons and their delivery systems are a powerful lobby to increase nuclear weapons budgets, and to expand nuclear weapons policies in order to justify this massive public spending,” said Alyn Ware, Global Coordinator of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament.

“Legislators in our networks are becoming increasingly concerned about the risks of the nuclear arms race, and the fact that budget investments in nuclear weapons reduces the funds available for other important needs,” Ware said. “They have joined with civil society in Move the Nuclear Weapons Money, a global campaign to cut nuclear weapons budgets, and end investments in nuclear weapons companies.”

Count the Nuclear Weapons Money

‘The public is not aware of the colossal amount of money wasted on nuclear weapons, and what an incredible contribution this money could instead make to ending poverty, protecting the climate and providing education, housing and basic health care for all,’ said Holger Gūssefeld, Special Projects Coordinator for the World Future Council. “We will demonstrate this by counting out 1 trillion dollars –- the nuclear weapons budget for the coming decade — while the UN High-Level Conference is taking place.”

“Artists have designed mock $1 million notes. We will count 1 million of these one-by-one over seven days and nights outside the United Nations and in public locations in New York,’ said Gene Seidman, Project Director for Count the Nuclear Weapons Money. “While counting – at $100 million per minute – we will shine the light of shame on companies manufacturing these weapons of mass annihilation, and we will highlight areas of economic, environmental and social need that could instead be met with these funds.”

For more information see Move the Nuclear Weapons Money and the Abolition 2000 Working Group on Economic Dimensions of Nuclearism.

From The Basel Peace Office Team

Top 3 Shocking Facts About Plastic Pollution

Fact #1:

8.3 BILLION Metric Tons (9.1 BILLION US Tons) of plastic has been produced since plastic was introduced in the 1950s. The amount of plastic produced a year is roughly the same as the entire weight of humanity!

Fact #2:

Virtually every piece of plastic ever made still exists in some shape or form (with the exception of the small amount that has been incinerated).

Fact #3:

Nearly TWO MILLION single-use plastic bags are distributed worldwide every minute.

Plastic pollution is killing our planet, and plastic pollution is killing us. It's choking our oceans, poisoning our food and water supply, and wreaking havoc on the health and well-being of humans and wildlife worldwide.

That's why we are dedicating Earth Day 2018 to ending plastic pollution. We've developed a series of comprehensive resources and toolkits to help Individuals, Organizations, and Educators like you inform, inspire, and mobilize everyone you know to join the movement to END PLASTIC POLLUTION this Earth Day.

Every week, we'll be releasing new resources to help you build the Earth Day 2018 End Plastic Pollution movement-starting now, with our Scope of Plastic Pollution Fact Sheet offering 10 shocking facts about plastic pollution.

Stay posted for more upcoming resources you can use to play a role in saving our planet. Putting an End to Plastic Pollution is a fight citizens across the world MUST win.

Our survival depends on it.

Join the fight today!

DONATE NOW

The Earth Day Network Team