AGM Season 2025: Beyond ShareAction's campaigns

It’s critically important to us that those facing the most acute impacts of corporate decision-making – such as communities facing devastating consequences of the climate crisis, or workers struggling to make ends meet – can participate actively in the movement to influence positive change. Across 2025, we’ve worked with a number of organisations, individuals and communities to help ensure that topics of critical importance to stakeholders all over the globe are given the attention they deserve at annual general meetings (AGMs).   

Over the last year, we joined forces with a range of individuals and organisations to support the delivery of 45 AGM questions which brought important asks independent from ShareAction’s campaigns. These powerful questions shed light on a huge expanse of vital topics including the impact of destructive palm oil sourcing practices on communities in Indonesia, the importance of involving the voices of low-income families in dialogue on access to nutritious and affordable food, and the consequences of fast-food advertising on the health of young people. 

We supported Friends of the Earth and their fantastic youth activists to attend the Unilever AGM. The young people delivered powerful, hard-hitting testimonies on behalf of communities in Indonesia to the Unilever board, questioning the company’s links to destructive Indonesian palm oil supplier Astra Agro Lestari (AAL) and exposing the devasting impact of AAL’s operations on the environment and health of the local community.  

We also teamed up with youth-led movement Bite Back 2030 and supported youth activists Alice and Luke to attend the AGMs of five global food giants, including McDonalds, Greggs and Domino’s Pizza Group. Alice and Luke expertly took to the AGM floor, delivering powerful messages on behalf of young people and driving forward their inspirational campaign calling out the ‘relentless bombardment of junk food advertising’.  Luke shared that the best part about his experience attending AGMs was “having the chance to speak truth to power - to challenge major food companies face-to-face and represent my generation”.  

We caught up with our friends at Coastal Watch Association (CWA) - a grassroots, community-led group based in the gulf of Texas - to hear more about their work to halt ‘Project Yaren’ in its tracks. Project Yaren refers to the proposed build of an ammonia plant in Ingleside on the Bay by fertiliser giant Yara International and energy infrastructure company Enbridge. Thomas Cerwonka of CWA attended the virtual AGM of Yara International in May 2025 to express significant concerns about the impact the ammonia plant would have on the local community.  

Following his compelling testimony to the Yara Board on the devastating health and environmental consequences of Project Yaren going ahead – referring to its alarming proximity to the local primary school and the projected volume of CO₂ emissions - Thomas reflected on the significance of the AGM intervention in facilitating direct engagement with Yara, a breakthrough that had previously been unattainable. Thomas remarked, “AGMs provide a good opportunity to gain access to company leadership as well as an opportunity for other shareholders to hear about key issues associated with the company. It also meant that we were able to schedule a follow-up meeting with the Yara Chief Financial Officer (CFO), which was very productive. ” 

Thomas also said: “As a result of the follow up meeting with the CFO, we were able to arrange direct access to technical and engineering Yarapersonnel to gain answers to some of our more detailed questions.” This marked the beginning of meaningful dialogue with Yara, a vital first step in achieving positive change for the local community. 

Working with partners and their networks is pivotal to our work to hold boards of directors to account and push for real change. We’re delighted to play a small part in supporting individual campaigners and other organisations to influence positive action in the corporate world, a typically inaccessible space. We’re looking forward to a busy 2026 AGM season where we’ll be compelling company leaders all over the globe to do far better in taking their responsibilities to the planet, and people’s livelihood and health, seriously.