{"id":30092,"date":"2013-03-22T00:50:35","date_gmt":"2013-03-22T00:50:35","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2013-03-22T00:50:36","modified_gmt":"2013-03-22T00:50:36","slug":"will-your-city-divest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/350.org\/id\/will-your-city-divest\/","title":{"rendered":"Will your city divest?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We just sent out this email to our friends in the US. Not on our email list yet? Sign up here<\/a> to receive crucial updates from the climate movement. <\/em><\/p>\n

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Dear Friends,<\/p>\n

There are days when I get utterly preoccupied playing defense against the fossil fuel industry, trying to stop pipeline after frack well after coal port. It\u2019s necessary work — but there are also days when I remind myself we\u2019ve got to go on offense too.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s one of those days. We\u2019re launching the next phase of our fossil fuel divestment campaign, bringing it off campus to include city, state, and town governments; religious denominations, museums, foundations — anyone with an investment portfolio. If someone\u2019s investing in the destruction of the future, we\u2019re going to ask them to sell those shares.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how to get started. Our web-team has set up a new online petition tool that makes it easy for you to join up with a local campaign or start your own. These petitions will help you build up some local pressure, as well as start a local email list you can use for organizing (they\u2019re so easy to use, even I can figure it out).<\/p>\n

Click here to find or start a local divestment petition: www.GoFossilFree.org\/start<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Once you\u2019ve got a petition going, it\u2019s time to start organizing. Host a local meeting to get your group together, set up meetings with your key decision makers, make the case for divestment, and then figure out the type of pressure you\u2019re going to need to get a victory. You\u2019ll find some useful resources up on the GoFossilFree.org website<\/a> — and don\u2019t hestitate to get in touch if you need help.<\/p>\n

Click “Read More” to check out the full letter. <\/em><\/p>\n

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The first phase of this campaign, on American colleges and campuses, has exceeded everyone\u2019s expectations. Inside Climate said it was \u201cspreading like wildfire,\u201d and writing in the Nation, Harvard student leader Chloe Maxmin said it was \u201cengaging more students than any similar campaign in the past twenty years.\u201d The fourth college to commit to make their portfolio fossil free — College of the Atlantic in Maine — divested last week, which is way ahead of our wildest hopes. <\/p>\n

And truthfully, Phase 2 has been up and running quietly for a while: the City of Seattle has already announced plans to divest, and 6 conferences of the United Church of Christ have joined to urge the national denomination to do the right thing.<\/p>\n

But now it\u2019s going to get big fast, in no small part because a we\u2019ve got a very talented new staff member, Jay Carmona, who will be running the battle. She\u2019s worked in City Government, organized with our friends at Media Matters and Get Equal, and she plays to win. \u201cDivestment is targeting the one thing that those companies can\u2019t buy, which is their reputation,\u201d she told Yale e360 earlier this week.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m pretty fired up too. The best arguments for divesting if you\u2019re a city: \u201cwhy would we spend millions putting up seawalls and so on, and at the same time invest in the companies making it necessary?\u201d If you\u2019re a church: \u201cwhy are we doing business with an industry that\u2019s running Genesis backwards?\u201d If you\u2019re — well, if you\u2019re a human being: \u201cif it\u2019s wrong to wreck the climate, it\u2019s wrong to profit from that wreckage?\u201d<\/p>\n

I think those arguments will prevail. Not easily — but no one ever said it was going to be easy. Just exciting! You can get started right here: www.GoFossilFree.org\/start<\/a><\/p>\n

Many thanks,<\/p>\n

Bill<\/p>\n

P.S. An update on the Keystone fight in the Senate from our political director Jason: “<\/span>The vote on the pipeline could come today, tomorrow, or Saturday. Our work together is making an impact: offices report being flooded with calls telling them to vote no on KXL. A few Senators who were on the fence are now leaning our way — and we have everyone who called to thank for that.” We can’t let our guard down, but I’d say that’s good news. Our team will send another update in the near future!<\/span><\/p>\n

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MORE LINKS AND INFO<\/p>\n