Financial Scandal: Organizational Change Has Led to Chaos in Greenpeace
http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/greenpeace-financial-scandal-how-the-organization-lost-millions-a-976868.html
Last week, news emerged that a Greenpeace employee had lost millions in donor money through ill-conceived currency deals. Now the environmentalists are in danger of losing their biggest asset: their credibility.
Financial Scandal: Organizational Change Has Led to Chaos in Greenpeace
By Michaela Schiessl
June 23, 2014 05:55 PM
On the day the scandal hit newspaper headlines, Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo didn't panic. A South African with Indian roots who grew up in a township under the Apartheid regime, a couple million missing euros was far from the worst Naidoo had seen.
~snip~
Unfortunately, Naidoo hasn't been particularly committed to following his own advice. Had he been, the organization he leads, Greenpeace International (GPI), might not have found itself facing a crisis last Monday after having lost 3.8 million ($5.2 million) through currency trading.
Acting independently and in violation of the organization's regulations, a finance department employee signed forward currency contracts worth 59 million to minimize Greenpeace's currency risks. But when some of the contracts came due, the European currency had -- contrary to expectations -- risen against many others.
The damage extends far beyond the lost millions. Greenpeace has been careful to cultivate an image as intrepid defenders of the environment. Calling themselves the rainbow warriors, activists hang from factory chimneys, throw themselves in front of whaling ships or risk jail time in Russia by calling attention to the plight of the Arctic. Now, another activity has been added: playing the financial markets. For an organization almost entirely financed by donations, the revelation is a PR disaster, endangering from one day to the next the greatest asset Greenpeace possesses: its credibility.