You may have missed the UN's declaration that 2014 is the international year of solidarity with the Palestinian people. After all, for over six decades, UN resolutions and declarations have been violated by Israel with complete impunity. But what makes this year different is that the groundswell of international solidarity for Palestine is reaching a tipping point - demonstrated by the growing movement for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS).

When even the Daily Mail starts reporting about the reputational damage to actor Scarlett Johansson over her role as SodaStream's global ambassador, referring to the "fizz of controversy" over SodaStream's operation inside an Israeli settlement, you know the message is getting through.

In just the first three weeks of 2014, we have also seen significant coverage of the impact of BDS in mainstream Israeli media, with illegal settlement expansion seen as the catalyst.

British ambassador to Israel Matthew Gould said on Israel's Channel 2: "I am concerned that in five years Israel will wake up and find that it does not have enough friends."

He went on to warn: "Israel is losing support. I look at the British Parliament, look at the media - there is a change."

In 2005, taking inspiration from the international struggle against South African apartheid, Palestinian civil society announced a call for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel until it complied with international law and universal principles of human rights.

High-profile artists, performers and academics such as Steven Hawking have respected the Palestinian call.

And BDS provides an opportunity for everyone to do something to support Palestinian rights.

From checking what is in your supermarket trolley, to raising the issue at union branch meetings or working locally to stop complicit companies from winning council contracts.

Even spending a couple of minutes emailing your MP or MEP can make a significant impact if it is part of an organised campaign.

This was demonstrated when thousands of people used the Palestine Solidarity Campaign's e-tool last year to successfully lobby MEPs to stop EU funding for Israeli projects in illegal West Bank settlements.

Companies such as SodaStream are paying an increasingly heavy price for their involvement in the Israeli occupation industry.

Last month, the British government warned companies of "reputational damage" of having links with settlements and reiterated the government's clear position that Israeli settlements are illegal.

SodaStream has been targeted because its main factory is situated in an Israeli settlement, on occupied Palestinian land in the West Bank.

As a result, it has faced weekly protests outside the "EcoStream" shop in Brighton and a national day of action called by PSC against SodaStream in 2013.

John Lewis, with 30 stores around Britain, has also come under the spotlight.

Last year, PSC launched an ongoing campaign to persuade the company to cut its settlement ties and stop stocking SodaStream.

Fortnightly protests are held outside its flagship London store every other Saturday and PSC is stepping up the pressure with a letter-writing campaign to John Lewis's CEO.

At our AGM today, PSC members and affiliates will be talking about how best to build solidarity, and step up the pressure on companies profiting from Israel's settlements, occupation and wall.

SodaStream is not the only target. G4S has faced scrutiny over its provision of services to Israel's prisons and security services, where allegations of torture of Palestinian prisoners - men, women and children - are routine.

Veolia has lost a swathe of contracts following campaigns by PSC branches up and down the country, highlighting its involvement in the Jerusalem Light Railway.

Another focus of BDS is on agricultural produce, including avocados, dates, potatoes and fresh herbs, which are grown in illegal Israeli settlements, on stolen Palestinian land.

Produce grown in illegal settlements in the Jordan Valley is becoming increasingly difficult to shift onto a European market, with an article in the Associated Press reporting that export-driven income has dropped by more than 14 per cent, largely due to supermarket chains in Europe refusing to stock the produce.

Britain was singled out as a particularly problematic market for illegal settlement goods.

A head of the regional council representing 7,000 settlers claimed: "We are almost not selling to the (western) European market any more."

Finding produce in a supermarket in Britain clearly labelled as originating from an Israeli settlement can be as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack.

We need to shift this on a step further - it's not good enough simply for supermarkets to say that they are not stocking Israeli settlement produce.

This year, we will be stepping up our campaigning for Sainsbury's and other supermarkets to follow the example of the Co-operative, and stop using any suppliers which deal in settlement produce - such as Mehadrin, Agrexco, Arava Export Growers and Adafresh.

In the struggle against South African apartheid, international solidarity played a vital role.

Targeting companies for their complicity in apartheid and boycotting South African goods built up significant awareness and inexorable pressure.

And just as the trade unions played a key role in the Anti-Apartheid Movement, trade union support for Palestinian rights is playing a critical role in the campaign against Israeli occupation and apartheid.

As a student in the 1980s, I didn't buy South African goods. I didn't bank with Barclays. Companies such as Barclays lost a generation of students because of the boycott.

When public awareness reaches that mass level, the movement against racism and apartheid, and in support of freedom, justice and human rights, becomes impossible to ignore. And to do that, we need your support.

Sarah Colborne is director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

For more information, to get involved in the campaigns, to receive our regular email updates, to join PSC, or to affiliate your union branch: www.palestinecampaign.org.