Friends of the Earth (EWNI)

Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland (also known as FoE EWNI) is one of 75 national groups around the world which make up the Friends of the Earth network of environmental organisations. It is usually referred to as 'Friends of the Earth' within its home countries.

History
Friends of the Earth was founded in England in 1971, two years after the group was first founded in San Francisco in 1969. Its first leader was Graham Searle, a former vice president of the National Union of Students. One of the first campaigns was to dump 1,500 glass bottles in front of the HQ of soft drinks giant Schweppes in Connaught House, London in protest at the company's policy of having non-returnable bottles. The group had eight local branches in 1971. By 1976 there were 140, and by 1980 it had 250 and 17,000 registered supporters. Between 1984 and 1993 its director was Jonathan Porritt a former teacher and chairman of the Ecology party. Porritt left in 1993, by which time its membership hit 226,000. The next executive director was Charles Secrett who held the position till 2003. Between 2003 and 2008, FoE EWNI's executive director was Tony Juniper. Since 2015 Craig Bennett has been Chief Executive.

Structure and funding

FoE EWNI has a dual structure, comprising a trust, which is a registered charity, and a limited company, which carries out political campaigning – something a charity is forbidden to do under UK rules. FoE gets 96% of its funding from individuals.

Total income for Friends of the Earth Ltd. for the year ending May 2010 was £2,978,015 while total expenditure was £3,039,618, making a deficit of £61,603.

References

External links
A full list of FoE EWNI local groups
Birmingham Friends of the Earth
Manchester Friends of the Earth
Nottingham Friends of the Earth
Website of Friends of the Earth Europe

Category:Friends of the Earth
Category:Environmental organisations based in the United Kingdom
Category:Environmental organizations established in 1971
Category:1971 establishments in the United Kingdom