EGREMONT — What immediately comes to mind when you think about the impact you have on the climate? Is it the flights you take? Or road trips in your car? Or maybe the food you eat?
What about your money? It’s less intuitive to think that personal finances are linked to the climate emergency. But your choice of bank, credit card and investment instruments could have an impact on the environment and also provide an opportunity to align your finances with your values. Let’s see how they are linked.
It’s well documented that major banks underwrite loans to support the exploration, infrastructure, and development of fossil fuels. Forbes points out that the world’s biggest banks have put $2.7 trillion into these industries since the 2015 Paris Agreement. According to the 2021 report Banking on Climate Chaos put out by the Rainforest Action Network, big banks bear direct responsibility for the greenhouse gas emissions threatening our planet. To learn more about the role of banks and climate read this stirring New Yorker article, “Money is the Oxygen on which Global Warming Fires Burn.”
Banking in your community can be a tangible option to help align your personal finances with your values. Local banks, cooperatives and credit unions prioritize community investments over global financial initiatives. They build community, invigorate local commerce and benefit local consumers and producers. If you decide to shift some or all of your accounts to a local bank or credit union, consult this toolkit prepared by the Climate Museum to learn more. You may also choose to take the extra step of writing to your previous bank to let them know it was their support of the fossil fuel industry that prompted the change. These individual actions can add up and help to leverage the power of our money to combat the climate crisis.
Another area where consumers can make an impact on climate is to use credit cards not linked to these same big banks. Most credit cards are backed by major banks. Simply put, the fees you pay become part of
bank’s coffers, which they then use to support fossil fuels.Fortunately, there are alternatives to these credit cards. Find some here on the GreenAmerica site.
The climate emergency is called, by some, the biggest crisis facing the world. It will take the combined efforts of informed individuals, communities and governments to do what they canto turn it around. By providing information about the links between banking and fossil fuels, it is our intention to help individuals make their own judgements and choices.
Let the Egremont Green Committee know if you would like to continue the discussion about the links between personal finance and climate. Future topics and conversations could include the insurance industry, investment advising, other personal actions related to finance, or zero waste consumption. Your thoughts and suggestions are welcome.
We’d love to hear from you. The Egremont Green Committee can be reached at egremont.green@gmail.com.
