When I was developing the set of Climate Solutions resources I did not at first appreciate the role that our money plays in the Climate Change drama. It is a complex one, one with two faces. It has the power to do good but it also has the power to do enormous harm. Most of us, when thinking about money, consider the choices we make in terms of what we purchase (so called consumption) but we don’t often think about the other things that we do with our money. It is these other things that I want to focus on here; I will leave the topic of consumption for another day.
If we want our money to be a force for good in the Climate Change drama what then do we need to pay attention to? Most of us will have a bank account, if we are lucky we might have a savings account too. Many of us have some sort of pension scheme that we contribute to either personally or through our employers. We also want to protect the assets that we own, our homes and their contents, our cars (if we have one) so we take out some sort of insurance policy. All of these things involve money, money which the institutions that provide these services use to invest in businesses of many shapes and sizes. It is the collective power of those investments that can have a huge impact on Climate Change. When I first looked into this I was horrified to learn that some of my choices were unwittingly contributing to investment in fossil fuels!
Yet it is not so difficult to flip this coin on its head and ensure that your money is a force for good. There are an increasing number of institutions which are moving investment away from fossil fuels and focusing on supporting green energy and sustainable businesses. There are also a growing number of organisations that can help you make informed choices. To find out more take a look at my latest infographic and find the next simple step to take on your Climate Journey.
To receive your own, high quality copies of the Climate Solutions resources Subscribe here
Climate Concepts 