Climate justice – divestment (3)

Movement to Divest from Fossil Fuels Gaining Strength
	Two recent events signify how the movement to withdraw investments from fossil fuels is gaining momentum. On Sunday February 23, the congregation at Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church in Toronto voted unanimously to ensure that none of its funds are invested in any of the world’s 200 largest fossil fuel corporations. Then, on Saturday March 1, Greening Sacred Spaces and the Green Awakening Network hosted a forum on Divestment or What? Economic Tools for Creation Advocacy in a Time of Crisis. As Jeanne Moffat, speaking on behalf of the Climate Justice Group at Trinity-St. Paul’s, said “For too many years governments have not dealt decisively with the impending climate chaos, largely to the peril of low- income countries and low-lying regions of the world.” While this is the first example in Canada of a church deciding to divest, the climate advocacy group 350.org lists 19 religious institutions, nine post-secondary institutions, 22 municipalities, 2 counties, and 17 foundations in the U.S. as having made this commitment. Anglican Archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu sums up the moral case for divestment by citing the key role it played in South Africa: “The divestment movement played a key role in helping liberate South Africa [from apartheid]. The corporations understood the logic of money even when they weren’t swayed by the dictates of morality. Climate change is a deeply moral issue too. Here in Africa we see the dreadful suffering of people from worsening drought, from rising food prices, from floods even though they’ve done nothing to cause the situation. Once again, we can join together as a world and put pressure where it counts.” For more information please see Trinity-St. Paul’s Fossil Fuel Divestment Primer. For more information please contact:  John Dillon Ecological Economy Program Coordinator jdillon@kairoscanada.org  416-463-5312 x 231 Toll-free: 1-877-403-8933

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