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Corporations are the dominant force in modern life, surpassing even church and state. The largest are richer than entire nations, and courts have given these entities more rights than people. To many Americans, corporate power seems out of control. According to a Business Week/Harris poll released in September 2000, 82 percent of those surveyed agreed that ''business has too much power over too many aspects of our lives.'' And the recent revelations of corporate scandal and political influence have only added to such concerns.

In this collaborative report we look at Bechtel's history of operations in the water, nuclear, energy and public works sectors.

Bechtel Group Inc., one of the lead contractors in the reconstruction of Iraq, has a 100-year history of capitalizing on environmentally unsustainable technologies and reaping immense profits at the expense of societies and the environment. A Collaborative Report released today by CorpWatch, Global Exchange and Public Citizen provides case studies from Bechtel's history of operations in the water, nuclear, energy and public works sectors.

On May 20, we began the 24-Hour Indignation Fast Against the Macapagal-Arroyo Government and Monsanto, joined by supporters from many parts of the country and of the world. Together, we are ending today that one-fast as well as the 30 days of hunger strike against Bt corn, sealing our common commitment to continue the fight against Bt corn and other genetically-engineered foods until victory is at hand.

In a jaw-dropping affirmation of Monsanto's monopoly control over commodity crops, one of the world's most notorious patents for genetically engineered crops was yesterday upheld by the European Patent Office (EPO) in Munich - this despite a nine year battle by civil society (and industry) to have it revoked. European Patent No. 301,749, granted in March 1994, is an exceptionally broad "species patent" which grants gene giant Monsanto exclusive monopoly over all forms of genetically engineered soybean varieties and seeds - irrespective of the genes used or the transformation technique employed. The patent, attacked as immoral and technically invalid by food security advocates worldwide, was vigorously opposed by Monsanto itself until they purchased the original patent holder (Agracetus) in 1996, and switched sides to make the soybean species patent a major ingredient in its global recipe for crop monopoly.

Between June 23-25, 2003, the USDA, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the State Department will host a conference on Agricultural Science and Technology in Sacramento. For developing countries, this means biotechnology. Three ministers from every developing country (except Cuba, and those countries astride the so-called 'axis of evil') will be invited. Add on a press corps in the hundreds, and it's clear that, internationally at least, this is something of a big deal. Here are some reasons to mobilize against it.

The Group of Eightmembers yesterday committed themselves to concluding the stalled Doha world trade round on schedule by the end of next year, but hinted at no shifts in negotiating positions that could lead to progress in the talks.

The residents of Mecosta County and the surrounding areas in central Michigan regard water as central to their identity. They fish for trout and watch ospreys and eagles feeding in the streams. They spend warm days by the ponds and small lakes that dot the woodlands. And of course the Great Lakes, which hold a fifth of the world's fresh water, are a constant presence. So when a huge multinational bottled water company decided to move in and start pumping over half a million gallons of water a day out of the springs that feed their lakes and streams, the residents took it personally.

San Francisco On Sunday, June 1, Direct Action to Stop the War kicks off a week of activities culminating in protests at Bechtels headquarters in San Francisco and offices throughout the country. Activists will expose Bechtels role in both instigating and profiting off of the war against Iraq at the expense of both the Iraqi and American people. The activist demand that the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people take precedence over corporate profits in the rebuilding effort and that the corporate invasion of Iraq and the Middle East be stopped.

Defunct energy giant Enron used the U.S. government to coerce the World Bank and poor nations to grant concessions and resolve its investment problems, according to documents and correspondence released by the Treasury Department.