The Divestment Movement Comes of Age

Last Friday, February 13th, people across six continents stood up to the fossil fuel industry and called for divestment. People in sixty countries participated in over 450 events. There were actions in cities around the world including some especially powerful events in London, New York, Toronto, Johannesburg, Tacloban and Luxembourg. People asked governments, universities, financial institutions and
religious groups to stop investing in fossil fuels.

This was followed up On Valentines day (February 14th) with a campaign that asked us to “break-up” with an industry that is profiting from destroying the environment.

The goal is to challenge the social license of fossil fuel companies and to de-legitimize the industry.

The world rallied around a simple message: “Fossil fuels are history, and it’s time for our institutions to divest.” The more than 50 billion that has already been divested illustrates that many organizations have already heeded the call.

However, the power of Global Divestment Day goes far beyond the actions that took place on the 13th and 14th of February or the billions of dollars that have already been divested. Millions of people who are not currently involved in divestment are now thinking about the issue in a way they never have before.

This was an important couple of days for a fast growing movement. We are seeing the beginning of a global movement away from fossil fuels.