Chevron
IBM
Blackwater

Multinational Corporation-Free Maine 2008

What you can do

1.) First and foremost, be conscious with your consumption. You vote with your dollar. You are what you consume. Support local businesses. Be aware of the ecological footprint of products you buy. Ask yourself: “Do I really need this? Is this necessary for my survival? Where does this come from and who and what does it interact with along the way?”

2.) Create what you need when possible. Learn skills that contribute to your basic survival! Grow food! Plant seeds (both metaphorically and literally)! Build local networks and community that aim for bartering of resources and services.

3.) War Tax Withholding & Resistance. The bottom line of war can always be boiled down to resources. Corporations are dictating the United States’ government’s decisions. Refrain from buying products where the tax money goes to military funding or the company profits from war.

4.) Join your local time dollar network or other alternative monetary system. Avoid using money when possible. Trade with your neighbors!

5.) Utilize our MNC-free Maine resource list to educate yourself and therefore others on pressing issues regarding the corporate impact and the effects on globalization on our local communities.

6.) Divestment. As mentioned before, do not give your money or time to corporations that exploit the earth, our sisters and brothers, and that are only concerned with profit. There is divestment beyond the avoiding of buying goods or services. You personally can divest from these companies, but you can also make sure that your college and other local governments do not invest in the stock of these corporations. If not, collaborate with the community to change such.

7.) Shareholder Action. Conversely, one can buy stock in corporations for the purpose of pressuring for policy change at stockholder meetings. This is often more effective when done with a larger group.

8.) Get involved with organizations and groups that are working on corporate accountability, education and policy efforts concerning this topic, skill-sharing, divestment, and community-building.