Fossil fuel ‘divestment’ campaigns are spreading across Australia as activists target what many think is the root cause of the problem: money. Tom Swann, a student at the Australian National University (ANU), is a founding member of one of Australia’s first divestment campaigns, Fossil Free ANU.
Swann argues that universities are essential to taking action on climate change. ‘We don’t think it’s appropriate that a university that likes to boast its green credentials and its world-class research on climate change and other environmental issues invests its student fees in the companies that are creating this problem,’ he said. ‘Our campaign started when activists from the Northern Rivers of NSW contacted us about a holding that the ANU had in a coal seam gas company called Metgasco…We set up a fake gas rig at the Uni and did a lot of leafleting and postering, and we got a commitment from the vice chancellor to sell their shares.’
For many though, this isn’t just about ethical and environmental considerations, but about financial considerations as well. According to project director James Leaton, up to 80% of the coal and gas reserves owned by fossil fuel companies will be “unburnable”, which means the companies will lose 60% of their value. He explained, ‘There is a focus on short-term returns which means most investors follow the market, assuming they can get out before any bubble burst. The sub-prime crisis and dotcom bubble show that not everyone can get out in time.’
He noted, ‘There is an a opportunity now to prevent the carbon bubble inflating further by limiting the capital flowing into developing more coal, oil and gas reserves.’ Leaton reported, ‘Mining companies like BHP Billition and Rio Tinto are already pulling back on thermal coal and can deploy capital elsewhere — shareholders should be encouraging this.’ He added, ‘Reducing exposure to pure coal operators should be considered. Challenging strategies which are pouring more capital into expensive export projects should be a priority. Capital should returned to shareholders if the company does not have a viable proposal.’
Swann commented, ‘Obviously divestment is not an end in itself. It is one tactic amongst many. But when you consider the scale and urgency of the problem and the fact that this is something people can do on their own campuses, in their own communities, and see tangible results, I think it is an extremely important tactic. These industries have to go out of business, or the planet is going to go out of business.’