Global Divestment Mobilisation is over! We’ve seen loads of exciting actions and events happening across the UK and the world, check out these daily updates for a flavour of the fun…
Sunday 14th May
Credit: Kristian Buus
Sunday saw the final action of Global Divestment Mobilisation in the UK – an Oily Cashmob in the British Museum! Actor-vist collective BP or not BP hosted a ‘Who Wants to Pay a Billionaire’ gameshow inside the museum to highlight the outrageous subsidies BP receives from the UK government, and the small amounts they pay to our cultural institutions in sponsorship.
Saturday 13th May
Credit: Larissa Alves
Saturday saw a bonanza of creative actions across the UK – from Bradford to Sheffield to Glasgow. In London, there were rallies across 14 different boroughs, chasing a giant fossil fuel monster across the capital, while in Bradford, Fossil Free West Yorkshire brought an ark to the council offices to highlight the flooding risk and call on the pension fund to divest.
Friday 12th May
Actions targeted pension funds in Liverpool and Cambridge, while Art Not Oil revealed new research in their infographic on BP’s funding of cultural institutions.
Thursday 11th May
Students at Imperial and UCL have been working on some fossil free art on their campuses, calling on their universities to follow the lead of Kings College, SOAS and more – and divest from all fossil fuels.
Wednesday 10th May
On the day of Barclays’ AGM, people have been protesting at bank branches across the country,
Barclays are the main investor in fracking in Ryedale, North Yorkshire — Ryedale locals also went to the AGM itself to hand in a 70,000+ strong petition and demand they divest from fracking.
Wednesday also saw ‘climate emergency’ action at Huddersfield University, and a panel discussion on divestment featuring Hilary Benn MP at Leeds University.
Tuesday 9th May
Tuesday saw film screenings and info evenings around the country. MADE (Muslim Action for Development and the Environment) organised a film screening of Leonardo DiCaprio’s ‘Before the Flood’ followed by a panel discussion about faith and divestment for their network of young Muslims.
Monday 8th May
On Monday, exactly one month ahead of the General Election, the Divest Parliament campaign announced that 50 MPs and ex-MPs have now signed onto the divestment pledge! Check out this coverage for the announcement in the Guardian, and share the good news on Facebook and Twitter.
Meanwhile, divestment campaigners across the country have been out in force – hitting the streets and mobilising in their communities. Fossil Free Cambridgeshire, for example, have been talking to council workers across the county, building support for their campaign.
Credit: Imogen Anderson
Monday also saw faith campaigners taking action – Christian Climate Action staged a ‘Marriage of Inconvenience’ between the church and fossil fuels outside Church House, calling on the Church of England to ‘end the engagement’ with fossil fuels and divest.
Saturday 6th May
Saturday saw divestment actions happening across the country – from Sheffield to Reading, Brighton to Leicester. In Bradford, Fossil Free West Yorkshire organised a divestment flash mob at the council offices and announced that the West Yorkshire pension fund has taken exciting first steps towards going fossil free.
Ahead of the Barclays AGM on Wednesday, Leicester Friends of the Earth held a ‘Festival of Renewable Energy’ outside Barclays Bank to protest their investments in fracking.
Friday 5th May
Global Divestment Mobilisation kicked off in the UK with an action at a proposed fracking site in Lancashire. People affected by Cuadrilla’s plans to frack in the area came together to highlight the destruction effects of fossil fuel extraction, and call for divestment. Elsewhere in the UK, people took action at Barclays branches to highlight their investments in Yorkshire fracking company, Third Energy.
“Living in Lancashire, we see first-hand how fracking affects our community, and we’re worried about the impacts of noise, air and water pollution on our farming, tourism and health… It is very disappointing to see trusted institutions like universities and local councils keep on investing in companies causing harm to our community, and others across the world.” – Nick Danby, Lancashire resident
On Friday, it was also announced that more than a quarter of local Quaker meetings have voted to divest from fossil fuels, joining the national Quaker organisation who were the first UK institution to go fossil free. Share the good news on Twitter and Facebook.