The Great Power Shift

Because the fossil fuel industry is making $12 trillion from our taxpayers money, every year. That’s $1400 per person worldwide! Meanwhile most of us are now struggling to pay for basics like energy bills, food, rent, and more due to exploding costs of living:

• In the UK, energy bills are 52% higher than before the pandemic
• In Nigeria, Pakistan and Haiti, food prices have doubled
• US housing prices have risen 45% since 2020

This is because when fossil fuel rates spike, the cost of everything, everywhere follows. Coal, oil and gas prices are unstable and swing wildly with every war, supply shock and geopolitical tension.  The ongoing war in (West Asia) Middle East has hit our wallets even harder. When the Strait of Hormuz closed in February 2026, oil prices jumped past $100 a barrel. Gas prices increased by 30%. As fuel prices rose, fertilizer costs surged too. Food prices followed, leading to an increase in grocery bills. Even mortgage rates went up. Meanwhile oil companies have made €81.4 million in extra profits every single day since the war began.

Fossil fuel dependence is the root cause of both the climate crisis and the cost of living crisis, deepening inequality globally. The time to change ‘business as usual’ is now!

Fossil fuels drain our money in many different ways at once with their bill landing directly in our pockets, our taxes and on our health :

• Higher energy bills. Coal, oil and gas prices jump with every conflict and supply shock. When they increase, everything follows: heating, cooling, transport, groceries. Unlike any other energy source, fossil fuel prices can double overnight.
• Our taxes fund the industry causing the harm. Governments handed $725 billion in direct fossil fuel handouts in 2024 alone, money that could have funded schools, hospitals and clean energy instead.
• Fossil fuels make us sick — and we pay for that too. Burning fossil fuels causes severe air pollution. Those healthcare costs come straight out of our pockets and public health budgets. Ending fossil fuel subsidies would prevent 70,000 premature deaths every year.
• Extreme weather is getting more expensive. Fossil fuels drive the climate crisis — which leads to droughts, floods, cyclones, heatwaves. Extreme weather now costs the world $16 million per hour. In the US alone, 27 climate disasters in 2024 cost $182.7 billion — paid for by taxpayers.
• We spend more just to stay comfortable. As summers get hotter and winters more extreme, our heating and cooling costs keep rising — with climate change expected to add an estimated $88,000 in lifetime energy costs for a child born today.

This is not a series of separate problems. It is one system built on fossil fuels, extracting money from ordinary people at every turn and transferring it to Big Oil executives.

Yes, and it already is bringing down costs for many people around the world.

The sun and wind are free. Unlike coal, oil and gas, they don’t need to be extracted, shipped and burned every day. Once built, the price is stable, predictable and keeps falling. In 2024 alone, renewables helped the world avoid $467 billion in fossil fuel costs:

• In Spain, renewables made wholesale electricity almost a third cheaper than the EU average in 2024.
• EU households generating their own solar energy save €260–€550 per year on bills.
• In Rural Minnesota, US, a community cooperative is on track to cut electricity rates by 42% over ten years.
• Across Asia, Africa and the Americas, community-owned solar energy is powering homes that fossil fuel systems never reached. Read the stories.

Renewables aren’t the expensive option. Staying dependent on fossil fuels is.

Because the fossil fuel industry is spending trillions making sure we stay dependent on them.

Between lobbying, political contributions, false advertising and disinformation, Big Oil spent 27 times as much as climate groups from 2008 to 2018 to block action. And governments reward them: fossil fuel subsidies hit a record $7 trillion in 2022. In 2023, G20 governments spent three times more on fossil fuels than renewables – $535 billion versus $168 billion.

This is a political problem. The technology exists. The economics are clear. We must tell our governments to stop rewarding polluters and start investing in affordable, renewable energy.

Uruguay is proof that this works. In 2008, the country was in an energy crisis with no wind or solar farms. Within a decade, the government has built 98% renewable electricity. Energy costs halved. 50,000 jobs created. Prices became stable.

The fossil fuel industry has billions of dollars. We have something more powerful: billions of people. Here’s what you can do right now:

• Sign the petition above, if you still haven’t!
• Share your story. How is the cost of living affecting you and your family? Talk about it, post it and tag us @350.org and #GreatPowerShift on Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky LinkedIn, and YouTube.
• Spread the word. Share this page with your friends, family, neighbours and colleagues. Download and share our sticker sheets, posters, artwork and tote bags.
• Start your own petition or local campaign. Start here and we’ll help you find the tools, the people and the strategy to make it count.
• Work with us. Are you a journalist, researcher, organizer or campaigner working on this topic? Get in touch – we’d love to collaborate.