April, 20 2022, 10:50am EDT
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For Immediate Release
Contact:
Myriam Fallon, myriam@sunriseproject.org
Gabby Brown, gabby.brown@sierraclub.org
Over 100 Organizations Escalate International Climate Campaign on Vanguard
Vanguard receives worst possible score in new climate assessment as NGOs, grassroots groups, and finance experts ramp up pressure to act on climate.
WASHINGTON
Today, in an open letter to Vanguard CEO Tim Buckley, over 100 organizations representing over 6 million people called on the world's second-largest asset manager to enact the visionary financial leadership that is needed to meet the scale and urgency of the climate crisis. The letter comes with the launch of Vanguard S.O.S., an international climate campaign made up of civil society organizations, finance experts, grassroots groups, and climate activists, many of whom pushed BlackRock to start tackling its climate problem with the BlackRock's Big Problem campaign.
"As one of the biggest shareholders in nearly every public company on the planet, Vanguard has enormous influence it could be wielding for climate action, but so far it has failed to use it," said Ben Cushing, Fossil-Free Finance Campaign Manager with the Sierra Club. "Vanguard faces a critical test this shareholder season, as every major US bank is facing resolutions pushing them to stop funding the reckless expansion of fossil fuel development. Voting in support of these resolutions would show that Vanguard is taking its role seriously in combating the climate crisis and protecting investors' long-term savings. If it fails to vote for credible climate action, it'll be clear that Vanguard is stuck in the past, and the pressure on the company will only increase."
Vanguard received the worst possible score -- zero out of 30 -- in a scorecard ranking 30 major asset managers on their climate commitments released this morning by Reclaim Finance.
"Our new report shows that Vanguard is one of the biggest climate laggards of the asset management industry," said Lara Cuvelier, Sustainable Investments Campaigner with Reclaim Finance. "Vanguard is one of the top two investors in companies developing new coal projects and holds $130 billion in the 12 biggest oil and gas expansionists, and there is not a single policy in sight from Vanguard to restrict investments in fossil fuel expansion or even use its shareholder voting power to hold the world's biggest polluters accountable."
Grassroots pressure is also mounting against Vanguard this week with protests planned in the U.S. and Europe. Activists are targeting the asset manager for its massive investments in fossil fuels, companies driving deforestation, and the harm these investments are causing to vulnerable communities around the world.
In the Philadelphia area, where Vanguard is headquartered and most company leadership lives, a week-long walk started Monday. Activists and community members are following the money upstream from destructive facilities along the Delaware River to those profiting from these industries. The walk is set to conclude with a protest at the Vanguard headquarters in Malvern, PA on Friday.
"Not only are Vanguard's investments driving climate chaos globally, they include some of the biggest polluters in the Delaware Valley," said Eileen Flanagan, Campaign Director with Earth Quaker Action Team, a grassroots, nonviolent action group founded by Philadelphia area Quakers. "Whether we are living on the frontlines of air pollution, students concerned about our future, or Vanguard customers concerned about the wisdom of these investments, we all have a stake in correcting Vanguard's destructive course."
The Vanguard S.O.S. campaign is calling on the finance giant to implement a series of solutions to address the climate crisis and the detrimental impacts of its investments, starting by using its massive shareholder power this spring to vote in favor of climate shareholder resolutions and against corporate boards that are obstructing change.
In the coming months the campaign will continue to escalate pressure against Vanguard executives to prioritize aggressive action on climate, including focusing on organizing and educating Vanguard customers and employees.
"The second largest asset manager in the world has been flying under the radar while it steers us toward global climate catastrophe. Despite Vanguard's public commitments on racial and environmental justice, the firm remains one of the biggest investors in coal, oil, and gas -- industries that are destroying our planet and polluting Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities across the U.S. and the Global South," said Cecilia Behgam, Senior Researcher with the Action Center on Race and the Economy. "Even Vanguard's so-called 'socially responsible' ESG funds invest in polluting and carceral industries, while its 'charitable' funds channel money to climate change denial groups and right wing groups fueling bigotry."
PHOTOS, RESOURCES, MORE INFORMATION
Photos from various grassroots protests will be here when available: https://tinyurl.com/5e76e58u
The open letter to Vanguard and full list of signers can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/47kxkpnc
The detailed explanation of the solutions Vanguard S.O.S. is calling for can be seen here: https://vanguard-sos.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/VanguardSOS-Demands.pdf
ADDITIONAL QUOTES
"Vanguard is the quintessential example of an institution that could be doing so much good for the world, and is instead sticking to a business-as-usual mode that is ending in tragedy for the planet and its people," said Bill McKibben, author and founder of Third Act. "Imagine how blinkered you'd have to be to be earth's second-biggest asset manager and not using that power to help ward off the greatest emergency humans have ever faced. It's tragic--but it's also maddening, and that anger will propel action as people demand accountability."
"Vanguard is fueling climate colonialism. Its investments are driving deforestation and Indigenous rights violations in the Amazon rainforest and climate chaos across the world, with over $12 billion invested in oil companies operating in the Amazon alone," said Roshan Krishnan, Climate Finance Campaigner with Amazon Watch. "Indigenous communities across the Amazon basin live under the persistent threat of violence from the extractive corporations that Vanguard doesn't seem to have a problem pouring billions into. Vanguard must immediately end its investments in these companies, adopt a strong policy respecting Indigenous rights and sovereignty, and direct its investments toward a climate-safe future free of fossil fuels and deforestation."
"Everyday, workers and union members work hard to ensure their financial future and secure their retirement. Every hour worked means money in their pension funds or workplace retirement plans. These funds are their future, and they trust that they are being invested wisely. But Vanguard's poor record on climate votes, and investments in climate destroying industries hurt their communities. Vanguard's continual lack of action on climate poses an enormous systematic risk to our economy," said Beverly Ortiz, Organizing Director with Climate Finance Action.
"This escalation on Vanguard is only the beginning. In the coming months we will be working to educate and organize Vanguard customers and employees. We want these important stakeholders to understand the extent of Vanguard's climate problem and the necessary and urgent steps the company must take to protect the investments of their customers, and to protect the planet for everyone," said Casey Harrell, Senior Strategist with The Sunrise Project.
The Sierra Club is the most enduring and influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. We amplify the power of our 3.8 million members and supporters to defend everyone's right to a healthy world.
(415) 977-5500LATEST NEWS
Kamala Harris Wins March for Our Lives' First-Ever Endorsement
"Kamala Harris has proven herself to be a thoughtful and forceful leader on gun violence, who has time and again listened to young people and fought for our lives."
Jul 24, 2024
March for Our Lives, which was launched six years ago after yet another U.S. mass shooting, announced its first-ever political endorsement on Wednesday, backing Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' bid for the White House.
"The stakes couldn't be higher," said the group, which was founded in the wake of the February 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. "As one of the largest youth-led movements in the nation, we are clear-eyed about the challenge ahead and we believe that Kamala Harris is uniquely suited to meet this moment."
Warning of the threat posed by Republican former President Donald Trump—who just survived an assassination attempt—and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), March for Our Lives said that "the country that young people will soon inherit stands at the precipice—on one side, authoritarianism that threatens our fundamental rights, including our right to live freely without fear of gun violence; on the other, a world where we can keep fighting to build the future that young people know we deserve."
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Harris began seeking the Democratic nomination for November after President Joe Biden dropped out and endorsed her on Sunday. March for Our Lives said that "we call on her to run a campaign that fights for the policy solutions that young people want, like an assault weapons ban, action on climate change, a vigorous defense of abortion, court reform, and an immediate and lasting cease-fire in Gaza. Young people are savvy voters, who will see through empty promises and cynical horsetrading. We believe that Kamala will step above that and fight for a bold, progressive future—and we will hold her accountable for that."
Since Sunday, Parkland shooting survivor and March for Our Lives co-founder David Hogg has been fiercely supporting Harris, posting on his social media frequent updates about her historic fundraising successes over the past few days.
"Kamala Harris has proven herself to be a thoughtful and forceful leader on gun violence, who has time and again listened to young people and fought for our lives," Hogg said in a statement Wednesday. "Given her strong record on gun safety and prioritizing youth voices during her time in office, I'm proud that Kamala Harris will receive March for Our Lives' first-ever endorsement, and I'm so excited for our work to mobilize young people for her campaign."
Natalie Fall, the group's executive director, toldABC News—which first reported on the endorsement—that "we see a lot of energy around Vice President Harris in this election; there's no denying that. I think everybody's seeing it right now."
"I just think young people in particular didn't really see themselves represented or reflected in the Biden ticket in the way that they wanted. It's not to say that President Biden hasn't had great accomplishments," she explained. "But I think we need someone who can meet this moment and who is up to the challenge of taking Donald Trump to task and really defeating his effort to erode all of our institutions and our democracy."
March for Our Lives members plan to participate in this year's election through creative campaigns, door-knocking, and phone banks, Fall said. In a statement, she added that the group aims to elect not only Harris but also candidates "up and down the ballot" who support its priorities.
"March for Our Lives will work to mobilize young people across the country to support Vice President Harris and other down-ballot candidates, with a particular focus on the states and races where we can make up the margin of victory—in Arizona, New York, Michigan, and Florida," she pledged. "We are ready to double down on this commitment and elect the first woman, first Black woman, and the first person of South Asian descent to become our next president."
The gun violence prevention group's endorsement adds to Harris' mounting pile. Throughout the week, she has also received support from many Democratic governors and members of Congress as well as climate, labor, and reproductive rights groups.
As young people rally behind Harris, she is also seeing support from advocates for older Americans. Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, wrote in a Wednesday opinion piece for Common Dreams that "Joe Biden has been the best president for seniors in over half a century. Kamala Harris will be even better."
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Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir endorsed former U.S. President Donald Trump—the 2024 Republican nominee—for the White House in an interview published Wednesday in which he accused the Biden administration of preventing Israel from winning its war on Gaza.
"I believe that with Trump, Israel will receive the backing to act against Iran," Ben-Gvir, who heads the far-right Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party, toldBloomberg. "With Trump, it will be clearer that enemies must be defeated."
"A cabinet minister is supposed to maintain neutrality," the 48-year-old minister conceded, "but that's impossible to do after [U.S. President Joe] Biden."
"The U.S. has always stood behind Israel in terms of armaments and weapons, yet this time the sense was that we were being reckoned with—that we were trying to be prevented from winning. That happened on Biden's watch and fed Hamas with lots of energy," added Ben-Gvir, who was convicted in 2007 of incitement to racism after he advocated the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
While Biden, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other administration officials have decried Israel's indiscriminate bombing of Gaza and high civilian casualties—at least 140,000 Palestinians killed, injured, or missing, according to local and international agencies—the U.S. has approved billions of dollars in new military aid and more than 100 arms sales to Israel since October.
During his White House tenure, Trump—who boasted that he "fought for Israel like no president ever before"—moved the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and brokered the Abraham Accords between Israel and Arab nations Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump has said that Israel should "get the job done" in Gaza, while criticizing the Israel Defense Forces for posting videos showing its obliteration of the embattled Palestinian enclave.
"I don't know why they released wartime shots like that. I guess it makes them look tough. But to me, it doesn't make them look tough," Trump said in April. "They're losing the PR war. They're losing it big. But they've got to finish what they started, and they've got to finish it fast, and we have to get on with life."
While Trump says he wants a deal with Iran to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons, as president he unilaterally withdrew the U.S. from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action—also known as the Iran nuclear deal—and oversaw a "maximum pressure" campaign against Tehran featuring deadly economic sanctions.
On the advice of Iran hawks in his administration including then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Trump also ordered the January 2020 assassination of Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Gen. Qasem Soleimani in Iraq.
Ben-Gvir's interview was published as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to address a joint meeting of U.S. Congress Wednesday in Washington, D.C. A growing number of Democratic lawmakers have called for not only a cease-fire in Gaza but also a suspension of U.S. military aid to Israel, whose conduct in the war is on trial for genocide at the International Court of Justice.
Dozens of Democratic lawmakers and Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont have signaled they will skip Netanyahu's speech. Vice President Kamala Harris, who is also the Senate president, said she will not preside over Wednesday's session. Harris, who is the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee in the wake of Biden's withdrawal from the race on Sunday, said she will meet privately with Netanyahu on Thursday.
Echoing calls from groups including CodePink and the Council on American Islamic Relations, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) said this week that the prime minister should be arrested for war crimes and genocide.
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"The U.S. has become a petrostate and is still, even under President Biden, permitting new drilling," John Sterman of MIT said. "The developed countries don't show any significant efforts to limit drilling."
Jul 24, 2024
Five wealthy countries including the United States have led a global surge in oil and gas development in 2024, threatening international climate goals, according to an analysis published by The Guardian on Wednesday.
The U.S., United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Norway together are projected by the end of 2024 to have issued licenses for fossil fuel projects that will emit 11.9 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions over their lifetimes—far more than in any of the previous five years, and roughly equal to a full year of emissions from China, the world's highest emitter—according to industry data analyzed by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and shared with the newspaper.
The five states are responsible for more than two-thirds of all oil and gas licenses issued globally since 2020, with the U.S. alone accounting for half of the world total. President Joe Biden's administration increased oil and gas licensing by 20% over Trump-era levels, and issued a record 758 new extraction licenses in 2023, according to the analysis.
"The U.S. has become a petrostate and is still, even under President Biden, permitting new drilling," John Sterman, a climate policy expert and professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's business school, told The Guardian. "The developed countries don't show any significant efforts to limit drilling."
Sterman pointed to a "fundamental contradiction" between rich countries' international commitments and their ongoing fossil fuel expansion. "We can't keep going on like this," he said.
Revealed: wealthy western countries lead in global oil and gas expansion
Surge by world’s wealthiest countries – such as the US and the UK- threatens to unleash 12bn tonnes of planet-heating emissions.
By @olliemilman & @ninalakhani https://t.co/esY5IuIfi9
— jonathanwatts (@jonathanwatts) July 24, 2024
The industry's grip on U.S. politicians has made significant policy change in Washington difficult. In the past decade, fossil fuel companies have spent $1.25 billion on federal lobbying and more than $650 million on campaign contributions, according to OpenSecrets data.
The Conservative-led U.K. government issued a surge of North Sea licenses in the first half of this year, but lost power to the Labour Party following a general election earlier this month. It's not yet clear if Labour will be able or willing to rescind licenses already issued. Currently the U.K. is set to finish 2024 with 72 licenses for projects that would create 101 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions over their lifetimes—a 50-year high, according to the IISD analysis. Norway and Australia are also seeing major upticks this year.
Capital expenditure at the world's largest oil companies is up 60% since 2020, with $302 billion projected to be spent on well development this year, The Guardian reported. The fossil fuel expansion continues even though the reserves in rich countries are generally hard to reach, as more accessible reserves have already been tapped.
The expansion also comes in spite of disturbing climate news—2023 was hottest year on record, June was the 13th consecutive hottest month, and Monday was the hottest day, having broken a record set the previous day—and dire warnings from leading international institutions. No new fossil fuel projects can proceed if the world is to meet the 1.5° Paris agreement target, the International Energy Agency declared in 2021.
In December, at the United Nations COP28 climate summit, the world's nations agreed to transition away from fossil fuels, though the agreement was viewed by climate campaigners as weakly worded and ridden with loopholes.
Delegates from wealthy Western nations often present themselves as change-seekers in international climate negotiations, but the IISD analysis adds to evidence that such nations are in fact a big part of the problem.
"Fossil fuel corporations, and the governments that support them, will never stop unless forced to," Bill McGuire, a climate scientist at University College London, said on social media in response to the analysis. "Neither has any interest in the future of the climate, our world, or their own kids."
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