Donald Pols, the former director of Milieudefensie—the Dutch branch of Friends of the Earth—has been dismissed from his role as chief sustainability officer at Tata Steel after just one day on the job. The Indian-owned steelmaker announced the termination on Tuesday, citing "additional information about his background" that had not been disclosed during the hiring process.
Dutch daily NRC subsequently reported that Pols had been a member of the far-right Afrikaner Studente Front (ASF) during his student years at the University of Pretoria. ASF was a prominent pro-apartheid group active in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Pols participated in the disruption of a visit by Nelson Mandela to the university, where hundreds of ASF members burned flags of Mandela's African National Congress and shouted pro-apartheid slogans.
Pols admitted to NRC that he had been a member of ASF and described his behaviour at the time as "reprehensible." He added: "There is no justification for it, nor do I seek one. I take responsibility. But I am in no way the person I was back then."
A Controversial Move from Activist to Insider
The controversy surrounding Pols began a month earlier, when his appointment at Tata Steel was first announced. The move was swiftly condemned by Milieudefensie, the environmental NGO he had led for years. In a press statement, Milieudefensie chairman Marty Smits said: "We are surprised by Donald Pols’ departure and deeply disappointed by his decision to join Tata Steel, one of the Netherlands’ largest polluters."
Pols had previously gained attention for his prominent role in a high-profile court case that Milieudefensie brought against fossil fuel giant Shell. Last year, Shell managed to overturn a landmark climate judgment by a Dutch court, which in 2021 had ordered it to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by the end of the decade. It was the first such ruling against a company in the world. At the time, Pols expressed his disappointment, saying: "This should have been the moment of a real breakthrough in the fight against dangerous climate change." He added: "That didn't happen today, but the fight against dangerous climate change is a marathon, not a sprint, and the race has only just begun."
Following Pols's departure, Smits reiterated Milieudefensie's stance: "Milieudefensie holds companies accountable for their responsibilities. We are driven by science, critical, and unwavering. We will only be satisfied when all major polluters are Paris Proof. In doing so, we actively seek dialogue but always maintain our independence. We therefore have no understanding of this decision by Donald Pols."
Tata Steel's Environmental Record in the Netherlands
Tata Steel Nederland has long been a source of pollution in the Netherlands, particularly in the city of IJmuiden, where the company operates its largest steel factory. The company was formed in 2021 after Tata Steel Europe was split into two separate branches, one in the Netherlands and another in the UK. It now faces its own legal case, with residents of IJmuiden suing for €1.5 billion over health problems caused by the factory and a decline in property values. The region's environment agency also imposed a €2.4 million penalty on Tata Steel for "exceeding various standards," including "excessive emissions of hydrogen fluoride and heavy metals."
According to the National Institute for Public Health and Environment, people living near Tata Steel are more likely to fall ill because of these emissions. In April, the Dutch parliament agreed to a €2 billion subsidy for Tata Steel to support a green transition, requiring the company to switch from coal to gas and, after 2030, to hydrogen, as well as drastically reduce its CO2 emissions.
Pols had justified his move to Tata Steel as a "logical next step," arguing that it gave him "the opportunity to demonstrate that industrial sustainability is not only enforceable but can also be driven from within." He said: "For years, I have exerted external pressure on companies to translate climate ambitions into concrete action – including through the courts. I am bringing that experience into the company."
The episode highlights the tensions between environmental activism and corporate sustainability roles, as well as the lasting impact of past political affiliations. For a continent grappling with both industrial transition and far-right extremism, Pols's case serves as a cautionary tale. Meanwhile, the EU has been debating its own approach to migration and security, as seen in the EU's approval of controversial return hubs and tougher deportation rules.
