Move Beyond Coal rallies against Greenwashing

Uniting staff and Church members at rally against banks continuing to lend to fossil fuel corporations and profiting from climate change

Move Beyond Coal

Uniting Climate are proud partners of the Move Beyond Coal campaign alongside organisations like School Strike 4 Climate. Australia is one of the world’s largest exporters of coal – the main cause of global climate change. Move Beyond Coal is a people powered movement pushing to change this. In particular, the campaign is calling out corporations bankrolling new fossil fuel projects. This has started with NAB and their funding for Whitehaven Coal.

The aims:

  • Stand with First Nations peoples – promote the self determination of First Nations people to care for their land and water and support them in standing against fossil fuel corporations.
  • No new coal and gas – follow the science and stop coal expansion now before phasing out coal by 2030 to meet our climate targets and keep global warming below 1.5oC.
  • Not another dollar for coal – banks and financial institutions need to stop funding coal and climate chaos.

Bank Summit Rally

On March 28, members of the Uniting Advocacy team and Uniting Church supported rally outside the AFR’s Bank Summit. They called out the banks’ continued funding of fossil fuel expansion. We heard from Dee and Naomi, survivors of the Lismore floods and Ethan, a young Wiradjuri climate and social justice activist.

Several activists bought tickets to address the executives about their lending practices. However, they had their entry blocked and their tickets cancelled at the last minute. Despite this, we made our voices and calls for no new coal and gas heard! The action was jointly organised by Move Beyond Coal and 350 Australia.

You can watch a clip from our team at the rally here!