by AILAN EVANS at dailycaller.com
ver the past few weeks, activists and influencers have joined in a viral campaign opposing the Willow Project, a planned Alaska oil development, posting “#StopWillow” on social media platforms including TikTok and Instagram. However, instrumental in the campaign is a pro-conservation group co-founded and heavily funded by a Swiss-born left-wing billionaire.
The Willow Project is a multi-billion dollar oil drilling development in Alaska proposed by energy firm ConocoPhillips. The project, which is expected to produce over 180,000 barrels of oil a day when ramped up, has endured numerous setbacks, and the Biden administration is poised to soon either approve or deny the project’s proposed drill sites.
As the Biden administration’s decision appears imminent, numerous TikTok influencers and activists have boosted the Stop Willow hashtag to implore the Biden administration to deny the project. A key player in the #StopWillow campaign is Stop Willow, an initiative of the Conservation Lands Foundation (CLF), a Colorado-based environmental activist organization that often targets domestic oil and gas projects.
CLF was co-founded by Hansjorg Wyss, a Swiss-born philanthropist who has donated heavily to left-wing causes and candidates, along with groups allied to the Democratic Party, according to Wyss’ group’s records and multiple news reports.
Stop Willow’s name has become synonymous with the online campaign to derail the Willow Project, according to Forbes, and it strongly advocates for the Biden administration to deny ConocoPhillips the ability to drill.
Stop Willow’s website includes a variety of resources, such as fact sheets and recent coverage related to its campaign to halt the Willow Project, while repeatedly making use of the Stop Willow hashtag. Moreover, the Stop Willow site immediately directs visitors, through a large blue button superimposed with “Take Action To #StopWillow,” to a site called Protect The Arctic, which provides further resources about how to get involved in opposing the Willow Project.
Protect The Arctic’s site, which also promotes the Stop Willow hashtag, includes a list of resources for activists to use, such as a letter template addressed to President Joe Biden and Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, as well as images of Alaskan wildlife. In addition, the site links to a folder of media assets and talking points to be used by influencers on social media to urge the Biden administration to halt the project.