Wetlands Activism Collective

Wetlands Activism Collective is a volunteer-run grassroots organization focused on resisting global capitalism and its devastating effect on the environment and the lives of human and nonhuman animals through protest, direct action, street theater, political advocacy, and public education.

The collective has worked on many campaigns to challenge corporations linked to forest destruction (Office Max, Home Depot, Mitsubishi, Staples, The New York Times, Office Depot, Crate & Barrel, Sears/Lands’ End, J. Crew, Victoria’s Secret, Pottery Barn), abuse of workers and labor organizers (The Gap, Coca-Cola, Kohl’s, Heineken), animal abuse (Pepsico, Macy’s, Bloomingdales, New York University, Anheuser-Busch, Corona), toxic pollution (Occidental Petroleum, Dow Chemical, ChevronTexaco, Peabody Coal), and financing socially and environmentally destructive megaprojects (Citigroup, Bank of America).

The collective was initially founded in 1989 as Wetlands Preserve, a live music nightclub and environmental and social justice activism and education center based in Manhattan, NYC. The nightclub closed in 2001, but Wetlands Activism Collective continues its activist campaigns to this day. The collective’s most active project is Global Justice for Animals and the Environment (GJAE), which works to oppose free trade agreements in the NAFTA/WTO model that undermine and damage the environment, harm animals, and violate human rights. GJAE is part of TradeJustice NY Metro, a coalition of New York City based organizations opposing pro-corporate free trade policies.