25 signatures reached
To: Coventry City Council
Coventry to Divest from Fossil Fuels, Reinvest Locally
We are asking Coventry City Council to pass a motion calling on West Midlands Pension Fund to divest al holdings from fossil fuels. Coventry City Council is one of the seven local authorities in the West Midlands Pension Fund (WMPF). Birmingham City Council voted in 2017 to divest from fossil fuels. We now want Coventry to show climate leadership and do the same.
Why is this important?
Burning of fossil fuels is destroying life on earth. Every day 200 species are extinct. This is unlike anything since the dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago. West Midlands Pension Fund is profiting from climate change by investing in five fossil fuel majors which use their influence to stop governments taking action on climate change. These companies spend under 3% of their capital budgets on renewables. They plan to increase production of oil and gas. Meanwhile the CO2 pollution is causing catastrophic wildfires, flooding, crop failures, and ice sheets are melting. Years of WMPF trying to pressure these companies as a shareholder has yielded virtually no action. It is time for WMPF to send out a clear message that enough is enough and divest all fossil fuel holdings and reinvest in local infrastructure and the green economy.