On Friday 7th October, NQCC coordinated the Townsville event for National Divestment Day. We went to our banks and gave them the message that if they continue to choose fossil fuels, then we will choose a different bank.

Customers turned out across Australia on the 7th and 8th of October 2016 to demand real climate change action from their bank! ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, NAB and Westpac were held accountable to the fact that they promised climate change action but continued to fund the expansion of the dirty fossil fuel industry. Accounts were closed, cards cut up and more letters of warning from customers who are ready to move their money if the banks don’t deliver real climate change action.

Jordan and Jacob closed their bank accounts with NAB
because they aren’t happy to be customers of a bank
that invests in fossil fuel projects.

Courtney and Maree went to the Commonwealth Bank and handed letters to the manager, telling them they are putting their bank “on notice”. That means that if the bank doesn’t take better action on distancing itself from fossil fuel investments, Courtney and Maree will choose to move to another bank. They also wrote another letter, that applauded the efforts of Commonwealth Bank in withdrawing from it’s financial advisory role to the Adani Carmichael mega coal mine, but asked the bank to go one step further and publicly rule out investing in the project. So far, only NAB has made this commitment.

Ben went to Westpac and delivered the same two letters indicating imminent divestment.