This month we’re focused on helping people like YOU in the CS community to make sure our money is supporting climate solutions instead of climate collapse.

The 60 biggest banks have given a staggering $4.6 trillion to the fossil fuel industry since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015. And their annual lending and underwriting to the industry have actually increased since then – clocking in at $742 billion in 2021 alone.

Cutting off the supply of money is absolutely critical to stopping the expansion of fossil fuels and reversing global heating.

This is why we encouraged people to sign the Banking on Our Future Pledge back in November after chatting with Bill McKibben. You can sign the pledge here and add your voice to let the banks know where you stand! It reads:

“If Bank of America, Chase, Citibank, and Wells Fargo are still funding climate-destroying fossil fuel projects in March 2023, I pledge to close my account and cut up my credit card. If I don’t bank at these institutions now, I pledge I won’t do so in the future.”

So the banks have been on notice for some time now. People have been warning them:

“If you don’t move money out of fossil fuels, we will move our money out of your banks.”

But they haven’t done that yet.

So on Tuesday, March 21st, 2023, thousands of people will move their money out of these banks and cut up their credit cards.

And Crowdsourcing Sustainability is proud to be a supporting partner in this action!

We started the month with an awesome panel on sustainable banking and investing which you can watch here if you missed it, or listen wherever you get your podcasts.

We’ll be sharing more on sustainable banking and investing in the coming weeks in the newsletter, podcast, and our community platform to help you understand the impact of your money, your organization’s money, and what you can do about it.

Next week’s newsletter will specifically cover cash, its impact depending on which bank you use, and what the most climate positive options are to move it into.

We’re also hosting a CS Community Divestment Hour on 3.21.23! Wherever you are in your divestment journey, this is an opportunity to ask questions, take the next steps that are right for you, connect, and celebrate the impact of our collective action with fellow community members. More details to come on this so keep an eye out!

Find or host a live event on March 21st, 2023 in your community

For those who want to make this pressure on banks more visible and raise awareness in your community, Third Act is organizing events across the US. Check out their map to see if there’s an event near you! And if you’re thinking about organizing one yourself, here’s their Day of Action Toolkit.

“Third Actors, partners, and allies across the country are staging public non-violent demonstrations and holding events to deliver a strong message to the banks funding climate destruction: if you don’t move money out of fossil fuels, we will move our money out of your banks.”

Divesting your money from institutions that fund the expansion and acceleration of fossil fuels is always a good thing to do, but when we do it together – when thousands of us demonstrate our commitment to investing in a livable future at the same time – the banks will take notice. When we act together, our power is magnified exponentially.

We know this may feel like a big, possibly scary move. So we hope that our conversations and resources this month get you feeling ready and excited to take this step together!