Fossil-free Education
Forge the Future #48 - divestment continues despite the pandemic - activism works!
Welcome to Forge the Future, your weekly guide to all things climate.
This week saw several major education institutions finally caving to sustained pressure and starting to divest from fossil fuels. In the UK, Oxford University has committed to a net-zero investment strategy for its £3bn endowment, and will immediately divest from fossil fuels. Meanwhile, over in the US, Harvard has finally promised to reach net-zero by 2050, with a gradual phasing out of fossil fuels from its $40.9bn endowment (the largest in the US).
Morgan Stanley has also updated its investment policy, and will no longer fund Arctic oil and gas exploration or development, along with thermal coal projects. After the spate of recent announcements, that now leaves Bank of America as the only major bank still open to such projects - here’s hoping they too rule out such endeavours soon!
State of the Climate
CO2 levels this week: 416.16 ppm
This time last year: 414.44 ppm
NOAA predictions are suggesting that 2020 could well be the planet’s warmest year yet, eclipsing 2016. Last year was very close to the record, and if recent years are any judge, this is a trend likely to continue.
New data from the Copernicus program suggests that soil moisture is dropping in a number of key grain-growing areas across Europe, leading to fears that global warming could produce persistent droughts across swathes of the continent. In Germany, a lack of April rainfall has meant the Rhine is starting to become dangerously low. The river is a backbone of industrial goods transportation, and low water levels can stop traffic. In previous years, this alone has been enough to make a significant dent in the German economy.
Melting ice has revealed relics of an ancient Viking trading route. The route was discovered by the Glacier Archaeology Program, one of many groups worldwide studying what’s revealed as climate change causes ice and glaciers to recede and shift. The discovery is unprecedented, and would never have been found had the ice not receded in recent years.
In slightly more positive news, the lack of people and rubbish on Florida’s beaches has meant that endangered leatherback turtles have been able to nest far more successfully than in previous years. Lower levels of lighting have also likely helped the animals be less disoriented.
Visualisation of the Week
This week’s visualisation shows daily average coal use in the UK, as the coal-free electricity record falls once again. The UK has run for 18 days, 6 hours and 15 minutes without any coal power.
I’ve been pretty busy of late, heads down in the process of trying to start a climate-related company, and so I’ve not really had much opportunity to step back and take stock of Forge the Future in a while.
As a result, I thought I’d do something a little different this week, and instead of writing a longer feature, I’d like to ask for suggestions and feedback. I’ve kept the format of the newsletter fairly consistent for a good while now, so I’d like to hear what you think! Are there elements you particularly enjoy? Alternatively, are there bits you’d rather see less of? Is there anything novel you’d like me to incorporate? Any and all suggestions appreciated - drop a comment on Substack, reply to this email, let me know on Twitter - whatever works for you!
News Highlights
US vs the Climate
The Trump administration is developing plans to bail out the oil industry despite opposition from Democrats. The form the aid would take is still unclear, but plans are currently being drawn up.
Renewables made up 86% of all newly installed electricity capacity in the US in January and February, with no sign of oil nor coal.
The Trump administration is finalising its rollback of the Clean Water Act, which reduces protections for many small streams, rivers and wetlands across the US. In Hawaii this week, there was a small victory the other way, as the Supreme Court ruled that waste water discharging through half a mile of groundwater into the ocean still required permits, despite the arguments of the administration against it.
A new study suggests that methane emissions in the Permian Basin are likely over twice federal estimates. The total gas leaked or vented from the basin makes around the same contribution to global warming as all US residences.
A number of tribes are suing the Trump administration for distributing $4bn of emergency funds intended for native people to Alaska Native Corporations - for-profit entities that generate huge revenues from oil and gas developments.
A number of cities have had to redirect money away from key climate infrastructure such as sea walls, due to the pressing needs of the current pandemic. Obviously that takes priority, but there is a risk that projects will be cancelled entirely for lack of funds.
NYC’s pension fund officials are pushing for climate action. They are urging JP Morgan Chase to remove Lee Raymond, the ex-CEO of Exxon Mobil, from their board amidst concerns about his lack of understanding of climate change issues. The city’s comptroller is also urging Berkshire Hathaway, AIG and Liberty Mutual to divest from coal investments.
The SEC is proposing rules that would lock down shareholder proposals, in a move many say is designed to shut down activist shareholders petitioning for change.
Other News
Nearly half of all coal plants worldwide will be unprofitable this year, according to new analysis from Carbon Tracker.
Major German blue chip companies, including Thyssen Krupp, Bayer and E.ON are calling for any coronavirus-related state aid to be tied to climate action, amidst concerns that the climate will be put on the backburner during the current crisis.
The UK oil and gas industry could lose 30,000 jobs due to the combined effects of the pandemic and the oil price slump.
France is calling for the EU to bolster the price of carbon after the market crashed recently. They said that the current low price doesn’t reflect the environmental damage of carbon, and are pushing for a price floor to be instituted.
The MOSAiC Arctic expedition has to take a 3 week hiatus, with the main expedition ship leaving its current position frozen in the ice, as planned supply flights have been halted due to the pandemic. Whilst the delay is not ideal, it is preferable to complete abandonment of the expedition, which has been on the cards as the situation worsened.
Only a few hours after last week’s post, Sweden became the third country in Europe to become coal-free, after Stockholm Exergi AB’s Värtaverket plant was shut two years ahead of schedule.
Long Reads
Renowned sci-fi author Kim Stanley Robinson makes the case for printing money to save the climate.
A look at why Norway got behind EVs so early - nearly 60% of new cars in the country are now electric.
DeSmog dives deep into the links between climate deniers and those now spreading disinformation about COVID-19.
The End Times
That’s all I have for you this week. As always, thanks for reading, and if you’ve any feedback or suggestions for me, I’d love to hear them (you can reach me at oli@forgethefuture.com). If you feel like sharing this, I’d massively appreciate it!
Stay safe, and see you next week,
Oli