Indigenous Women's Divestment Delegation to Norway and Switzerland outside of Norges Bank before meeting with Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global, Spring 2017.
(Left to right) Wasté Win Young, Dr.Sarah Jumping Eagle, Michelle Cook,
Autumn Chacon, Tara Houska, with Delegate organizer, Osprey Orielle Lake.
To end the era of fossil fuel extraction, one of the leading drivers of the climate crisis, the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network, International (WECAN) employs a two-pronged approach focused on divestment advocacy and resistance to fossil fuel infrastructure and projects.
WECAN is dedicated to working with a variety of strategies and partnerships as part of the global fossil fuel divestment and resistance movements, with a focus on highlighting the power and role of women protecting water, land, climate and communities, while they resist extractive projects within their communities. We also focus on creating opportunities for advocacy, action and dialogue with financial institutions, insurance companies, and governments.
Education, advocacy and action for divestment and defunding of financing from the companies and institutions funding fossil fuel extraction and the associated infrastructure projects around the world is an effective, tangible, and ever-strengthening strategy for resistance and Earth and community protection.
We are organizing for strategic campaigns and targeted delegations to call for divestment; to stop pipelines, fossil fuel infrastructure, and extraction at the source; and to give voice to the impacts of extractive industries on women, children and communities.
Particularly, it is WECAN's aim to ensure that Indigenous, grassroots and frontline women have the opportunity to speak for themselves directly to the financial institutions, insurance companies, governments, policy makers and other institutions that are impacting their communities and territories. We have found this to be not only an effective strategy for gaining advocacy results, but also a vital and powerful process for women as they reclaim spaces to seek justice and speak truth to power.
Alongside divestment, we support, organize, and amplify fossil fuel resistance efforts seeking to stop fossil fuel pipelines and infrastructure. Since our founding, WECAN has initiated campaigns and taken action in solidarity with resistance efforts to stop fossil fuel development , such as the Keystone XL , Dakota Access and Line 3 pipelines.
Indigenous women leaders from across the US take action outside the White House to #KeepItInTheGround, also pictured, WECAN Executive Director - Photo via Emily Arasim/WECAN International
Given the severity of the climate crisis and existential threat to all of humanity, we are also highlighting with significance and respect that 80% of biodiversity remaining on Earth is in Indigenous lands and territories. Respecting Indigenous knowledge, ways of life, and Indigenous rights, including Free, Prior and Informed Consent and the right to say “no” to continued extraction, is thus not only the morally right thing to do, but also paramount to any effective sustainability strategy.
As part of our commitment to resistance efforts, we work to create opportunities for water protectors and frontline leaders to meet with government officials and offices to discuss the impacts extraction and pipelines have in their communities and territories. It is imperative that governments align their actions with the Paris Agreement and adhere to the 1.5° C guardrail. To do so, policymakers must immediately halt the extraction, expansion, and burning of fossil fuels, and uphold Indigenous and human rights while implementing a Just Transition to a 100% renewable and regenerative economy and social system.
In light of the intensifying climate crisis, dependency on fossil fuels and their extraction is a bad investment, and financial institutions have an opportunity to invest in renewable, regenerative energy, which has become increasingly cost effective and necessary as climate change escalates. By removing support from harmful projects and re-directing resources into climate solutions, financial institutions can be agents of positive change. Investment in sustainable and just technology now has a place in the emerging low carbon economy and there is no time to lose in making the transition.
Specifically, WECAN International is advocating for investment in a just transition to a democratized, decentralized, clean energy future with the voices of frontline communities, Indigenous peoples, and women highlighted in all decision-making in this transition. This is what is best for all of our communities, and this is a necessity in the fight for a livable world for future generations.
It is becoming increasingly clear that divestment and fossil fuel resistance are having an impact - and that if we stand together, we do indeed have the collective power to demand accountability from the governments, financial institutions, and corporations advancing and investing in pipelines and fossil fuel extraction projects, and instead build an Earth-centered, just transition to renewable energy for all.
Learn more about several of our WECAN Divestment and Fossil Fuel Resistance advocacy and action programs below - which have led to significant divestments, policy changes, investigations and international media visibility.
Divestment Advocacy
Advocacy Workshops with Financial Institutions
For more than 7 years, WECAN has been organizing high-level engagements with financial institutions to advocate for a rapid transition off of fossil fuel financing, while advocating for policies that uphold human and Indigenous rights frameworks, and a Just Transition and community-led solutions and investments.. This includes high-level workshops for international financial institutions that focus on policies and practices regarding due diligence on human and Indigenous rights implementation, deforestation, fossil fuel extraction and infrastructure, and how financial institutions can align with the 1.5C target of the Paris Climate Agreement— with the critical understanding that the Paris Agreement is insufficient to fully meet the scale of the crisis and does not address climate justice.
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Workshop engagements have been held with representatives from BlackRock and the Equator Principles Association. The Equator Principles Association (EPA) is a consortium of 138 financial institutions in 38 countries that have adopted the Equator Principles (EP), a risk management framework used for “determining, assessing and managing environmental and social risk in projects and is primarily intended to provide a minimum standard for due diligence and monitoring to support responsible risk decision-making.”
The workshop engagements, which WECAN organizes and facilitates with BankTrack, offer valuable insights on the significant impact of extractive industries on local and Indigenous communities. Several key issues discussed include the links between financing for deforestation-risk commodities and climate change, the impact of fossil fuel extraction and infrastructure in Indigenous communities, the operationalization of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) as outlined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the impacts on women and girls in extraction zones, Just Transition frameworks, and how sustainability and human rights policies are necessary to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. All workshops highlight the importance of human and Indigenous rights protections, and addressing the need for transformative approaches to financing given the escalating climate and biodiversity crises, and health impacts from extractive industries to communities.
The workshops also center and uplift the voices and experiences of frontline community leaders who provide perspectives concerning on-the-ground impacts of financing projects in their communities and territories. Please see resources below for recent workshop engagements:
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2023 - Workshops with the Equator Principles Association
Hosted by WECAN and BankTrack, the workshops examined two primary topics. The first set of workshops focused on how financial institutions can better engage with impacted communities as part of their due diligence processes. The second set of workshops focused on the key challenges associated with market-based solutions and opportunities for other pathways forward, including frameworks for a Just Transition and community-led solutions. Learn more in the press release here.
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2022 - Workshops with the Equator Principles Association
Hosted by WECAN and BankTrack, the workshops examined two primary topics. The first set of workshops focused on climate impacts, fossil fuels and impacted communities. The second set of workshops focused on deforestation, biodiversity and impacted communities. All workshops highlighted the importance of human and Indigenous rights protections, particularly the role of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), and featured frontline leaders from impacted communities. Learn more in the press release here.
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2021 - Indigenous Women Leaders and Partners Hold Workshops with BlackRock Representatives
BlackRock representatives met with Indigenous women leaders and partners, as part of two workshops organized by the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), to present information on aligning with the Paris Climate Agreement and addressing human and Indigenous rights issues and policies. Learn more in the press release here.
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2021 - Workshops with the Equator Principles Association
Hosted by WECAN and BankTrack, and other partners these workshops provided a round table educational dialogue on how financial institutions can become better aligned with the goals of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. We worked with several partners and are honored that the second of three workshops, focused on Indigenous rights, with the leadership of Divest, Invest, Protect and the Indigenous Human Rights Defenders and Corporate Accountability Program (IHRDCAP) housed at the University of Arizona School of Law, and WECAN. Please learn more about these workshops in our press release here.
We are continuing further advocacy workshops with financial institutions as a key strategy for advocating for climate justice, Indigenous rights, human rights, ending the financing of fossil fuels and deforestation , while pushing for investments in decentralized, clean energy and community-led solutions.
Divestment Report: Gendered and Racial Impacts of the Fossil Fuel Industry in North America and Complicit Financial Institutions
Since 2021, WECAN has released the annual divestment report, The Gendered and Racial Impacts of the Fossil Fuel Industry in North America and Complicit Financial Institutions, which addresses the disproportionate gender and race-specific health and safety impacts as well as human and Indigenous rights issues of fossil fuel extraction and infrastructure in the United States and selected parts of Canada— interlocking issues that have been sorely neglected in the discourse regarding fossil fuel extraction. The report spotlights the role that a specific set of financial institutions, including banks, asset managers, and insurance companies, play in preserving and perpetuating negative gender and racial impacts through focusing on eight case studies in North America.
Learn more about the most recent edition of the report here.
Indigenous Women's Divestment Delegations
The Indigenous Women's Divestment Delegations is a partnership between the Divest Invest Protect program (DIP) and the Women's Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) International. Michelle Cook, Dine' (Navajo) human rights lawyer and Founder of DIP and Osprey Orielle Lake, Founder of WECAN International, are the Co-Directors of the Indigenous Women's Divestment Delegations.
The central goal of the Indigenous Women’s Divestment Delegations, organized by WECAN International with the leadership of Indigenous women and their directives, is to provide a platform for Indigenous women leaders to meet face-to-face with representatives of European and U.S. financial institutions, insurance companies, and credit-rating agencies, to expose injustices, and directly share with these entities - and the public, press, and government representatives - exactly how their fossil fuel investments violate human rights and Indigenous rights, while also driving climate disruption. Ultimately, these Delegations and future Delegations seek to put pressure on institutions to divest funds from fossil fuel extraction and infrastructure immediately, as well as to systematically change their policies regarding Indigenous and human rights and the climate crisis.
Norway, Switzerland, and Germany have been key focus areas of Delegations, due to the fact that these countries are home to some of the largest institutions financing extraction across North America and around the world. Delegations have also traveled to Washington D.C. and New York City in the U.S. for key meetings, events, and actions.
The program has organized and facilitated six delegations of Indigenous women leaders and has engaged over a dozen national and international banks and financial institutions in five countries, as well as participating in consultations with various banks to improve their ESG guidelines and implementation processes, including participation in in-person meetings and the revision process of the Equator Principles Association guidelines, which involves over 90 banks globally. The program also filed a “Specific Instance” with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) regarding Credit Suisse and adverse impacts to Indigenous peoples and the environment.
The educational component of this program involves 1) extensive research and monitoring of financial institutions 2) hosting educational webinars for investors and 3) organizing and facilitating strategy meetings and webinars for Indigenous women to gain knowledge about financial operations and instruments; divestment advocacy; and the companies, banks, and actors impacting their lands and rights.
Indigenous Women’s Divestment Delegation representatives and allies outside of Credit Suisse on Indigenous People's Day, following a delegation meeting with the bank - Photo via WECAN International
The Indigenous Women's Divestment Delegation on 55 Wall Street, the original New York Stock Exchange, making the historical connections between patriarchy, colonization and capitalism - Photo via Teena Pugliese
Indigenous Women's Divestment Delegation Confronts Credit Suisse at Shareholder Meeting
Fossil Fuel Resistance Advocacy
Since our founding, WECAN has initiated campaigns on the ground and taken action in solidarity with resistance efforts to stop fossil fuel extraction and infrastructure including the Keystone XL, Dakota Access, and Line 3 Pipelines. Please see below our most current advocacy to directly stop fossil fuel pipelines, expansion, and production. In addition to the following advocacy, we regularly support immediate and urgent fossil fuel resistance efforts across our networks and platforms.
The end of the fossil fuel era is here, and we will continue to stand with frontline leaders in this struggle!
Line 5 Pipeline
Members of the Indigenous Women's Treaty Alliance, Indigenous leaders, and allies rally at an event to shutdown and stop the Line 5 pipeline operating in the Great Lakes Region. Photo courtesy of the Indigenous Women's Treaty Alliance
WECAN has initiated several on-going campaigns in an effort to stop the damage to land, water, food, and communities across the Great Lakes region due to Enbridge's deteriorating Line 5 pipeline and proposed pipeline expansion under the Straits of Mackinac.
Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline was originally built in 1953, and continues to operate nearly 20 years past its engineered lifespan. Already this pipeline has spilled over a million gallons of oil. Now, Enbridge is proposing to expand the Line 5 pipeline, despite the strong opposition of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and other Tribes. The new Line 5 pipeline expansion and re-route would threaten local aquifers and waterways, Treaty Rights, and global climate; along with increasing the incidents of violence and human trafficking of Indigenous peoples due to the influx of pipeline workers and man camps as a result of extraction projects in and around tribal and vulnerable communities.
The Great Lakes span 4,530 miles of coast and account for 21 percent, one-fifth, of the world’s surface freshwater. More than 30 million people rely on the Great Lakes for drinking water—10 percent of the U.S. population and 30 percent of the Canadian population.
Since 2022, WECAN has been very honored to facilitate the Indigenous Women’s Treaty Alliance, a group of Indigenous women leaders from the Great Lakes region, to advocate for the retirement of the Line 5 pipeline and to stop the proposed expansion through a series of extensive media campaigns, the facilitation of on-going high-level meetings with government agencies, and the amplification of public comment periods and beyond. Please click here to learn more about the Indigenous Women's Treaty Alliance and WECAN's ongoing efforts to stop Line 5.
Mountain Valley Pipeline
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WECAN takes action during a rally to stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Washington D.C. in 2022.
Photo Credit: Ashley Guardado/WECAN International
The Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project is an incomplete fracked gas pipeline project that is steamrolling its way over life-giving water and land across 303 miles, from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia. A diverse movement of landowners, Indigenous leaders, and climate activists and groups, including WECAN, are mobilizing to ensure the pipeline is stopped. Alongside partners, we work in coalition to halt the development of the MVP. WECAN contributes to national actions such as public comment advocacy, letter writing, and attending on-the ground resistance to amplify public pressure.
The MVP is years behind schedule, billions of dollars over budget, and missing multiple federal authorizations. The pipeline has already brought destruction to the Blue Ridge Mountains, and communities impacted by the proposed pipeline are continuing to unite and call for solidarity and support. WECAN continues to partner with groups to advance campaign efforts aimed at the U.S. government and financial institutions to stop MVP permanently.
Line 3 Pipeline
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Water Protectors lead the Stop Line 3 mass action held during the Treaty People's Gathering in Minnesota, June 2021.
Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN International
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Giniw Collective, Honor the Earth, and WECAN representatives meet with U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor regarding the Line 3 pipeline in Minnesota, August 2021.
The Line 3 tar sands pipeline was built in Minnesota on Indigenous lands without consent from local tribes, public officials, and without full process on necessary permitting. It runs from the tar sands of Alberta, Canada, to the shores of Lake Superior, crossing more than 200 bodies of water and 800 wetlands. Line 3 is projected to release 193 million tons of greenhouse gas into the atmosphere every single year. That’s as much as the twelve largest power plants in the United States combined.
Throughout 2021, WECAN was on the ground at Line 3 and participated in digital and in-person actions, facilitated ongoing engagement with the Army Corps of Engineers with Indigenous leaders, wrote articles, organized letter campaigns to the Biden Administration, met with the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, and much more.
The fight to stop Line 3 is not over! Even as the pipeline construction is now completed, and currently poisoning local wild rice beds and waters, the call for a Federal Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) continues alongside supporting Water Protectors who are still fighting litigation. WECAN will be continuing this vital advocacy effort for justice and accountability.
Divestment & Fossil Fuel Resistance Collaborations
WECAN joins divestment partners and collaborators outside the Glasgow Finance Alliance on Net Zero (GFANZ) Reception in Glasgow during COP26 calling for no more fossil fuels and greenwashing. Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN International
People vs Fossil Fuels
The People vs Fossil Fuels coalition is urging President Biden to meet his climate commitments. The Coalition is calling for President Biden to use Executive Authority to:
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Stop the Bad — Stop approving the fossil fuel projects fueling climate chaos. Protect the Black, Indigenous, Brown, AAPI and working-class communities that are disproportionately harmed.
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Build the Good — Declare a climate emergency. Repair the harm caused by environmental racism and Build Back Fossil Free, delivering jobs, justice, and clean energy for all.
Fossil fuel pollution and climate disasters are already disrupting millions of lives. We deserve a world beyond fossil fuels: a world in which workers’ rights, community health, and our shared climate come before corporate profits. WECAN is a part of the overall coalition efforts as well as a member of the grass tops working group. Learn more about People vs Fossil Fuels here.
Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty
The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty is an initiative to phase-out fossil fuels and fast-track climate solutions inspired by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Based on 3 pillars:
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NON-PROLIFERATION: Preventing the proliferation of coal, oil and gas by ending exploration and production.
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GLOBAL DISARMAMENT: Phasing-out existing stockpiles and production in line with Paris 1.5C goal.
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PEACEFUL TRANSITION: Fast-tracking solutions and a just transition for every worker, community and country.
Osprey Orielle Lake, WECAN Executive Director is a member of the Steering Committee for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, and we are honored to continue amplifying the tenets of the treaty as we urge governments to sign on.
Learn more about the Fossil Fuel Non Proliferation Treaty here.
Stop the Money Pipeline Campaign
The Stop The Money Pipeline Campaign is part of WECAN's "Divestment and Just Transition" programming. In light of the intensifying climate crisis, dependency on fossil fuels and their extraction is a bad investment, and financial institutions have an opportunity to invest in renewable, regenerative energy, which has become increasingly cost effective and necessary as the climate crisis escalates. Learn more about the Stop the Money Pipeline Campaign here.
Insure Our Future
Insure Our Future U.S. is a campaign led by environmental, consumer protection, and grassroots organizations holding the U.S. insurance industry accountable for its role in the climate crisis. We are part of the global Insure Our Future campaign, which promotes a rapid shift of the insurance industry away from fossil fuels to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy. Learn more about our recent advocacy and campaign updates here.
Divestment & Fossil Fuel Resistance Actions
Standing for fossil fuel divestment at the Wells Fargo headquarters in San Francisco. WECAN Executive Director speaking at the action - Photos via Jane Richey
Standing for fossil fuel divestment at the Wells Fargo headquarters in San Francisco. WECAN Executive Director speaking at the action - Photos via Jane Richey
At this time, WECAN International is engaged in various campaigns and collaborative efforts and actions demanding governments, financial institutions, and corporations end their support and financing for dangerous fossil fuel projects. Below are a few selected actions since 2022.
National Day of Action to Stop Dirty Banks!
On March 21, 2023 we organized and took action with people across the United States for the National Day of Action to Stop Dirty Banks!
WECAN was on the ground in San Francisco and Juneau to tell Wells Fargo that if they don’t move out of fossil fuels, we’ll move our money out of their banks. See the livestream from the action here in San Francisco. See the full photo album here.
To avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis, we must immediately and rapidly decrease emissions and that means ending the era of fossil fuels. Financial institutions must heed the calls of science and our global climate justice movements and divest from fossil fuels and invest in people and the planet!
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WECAN at the 2023 National Day of Action to Stop Dirty Banks action in San Francisco. Photo Credit: WECAN International
Stop the Willow Project in the Arctic
On March 4, 2023 WECAN was on the ground with Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic (SILA), Alaska Wilderness League, and People vs Fossil Fuels in Washington D.C. for a rally to pressure President Biden and the Department of Interior to deny the Willow Master Development Project – a massive oil drilling development in Alaska’s western Arctic that threatens local communities and wildlife, and the global climate. Watch the livestream of the speakers here.
Willow was approved by the Biden Administration in 2023 and is projected to lock us into another 30+ years of fossil fuel extraction at a time when we need to immediately phaseout fossil fuels. Willow would emit 278 million metric tons of climate pollution over the next 30 years. That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 74 coal plants — one-third of all remaining U.S. plants. It is far past time to stop extraction and protect communities and ecosystems.
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WECAN at an action in Washington D.C. to demand the Biden Administration stop the Willow Project in the Arctic. Photo Credit: Zizani/WECAN International
Protect Communities and our Climate: Rally to Demand BlackRock Stop Investing in Climate Chaos
As part of WECAN's efforts at Climate Week 2022, we co-coordinated an event at BlackRock demanding the asset manager stop financing climate chaos, fossil fuels, and deforestation, and adopt an Indigenous Rights policy. Watch the livestream of the action here!
Over 100 activists rallied outside BlackRock headquarters in New York City as frontline speakers from the Amazon to New York City spoke about the impacts of BlackRock’s investments. WECAN Executive Director Osprey Orielle Lake spoke during the rally, highlighting calls for the firm to adopt an Indigenous rights policy and to stop financing the worsening climate crisis stating:
WECAN and over 100 activists take action outside BlackRock urging the asset manager to stop financing climate chaos, deforestation, and fossil fuels.
Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN International
"The IPCC and IEA could not be more clear, we must end our global dependence on fossil fuels to protect people and the planet. As a leading investor of fossil fuels, BlackRock has a responsibility to listen to science, and implement policies that align with the Paris Agreement, respect human and Indigenous rights, and invest in a just and sustainable future for our communities and our planet. Business as usual must not and cannot continue, we need bold climate policies in the financial sector now." Learn more about the action in our press release here.
Stop the IRA Side Deal and MVP Action in Washington DC
In 2022, as part of their negotiations to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, US Senate and House leaders made a side deal with Senator Manchin to introduce a separate piece of legislation that would fast-track permit approvals for dangerous fossil fuel projects, like the Mountain Valley Pipeline. At the beginning of September the WECAN team joined actions in San Francisco and Washington D.C. to demand that all Members of Congress stop the Inflation Reduction Act's dirty side deal from going any further and to demand no more sacrifice zones.
On September 9, 2022 WECAN Program Associate, Ashley Guardado joined over 600 people under the banner, Appalachian Resistances Comes to DC for a rally outside the U.S. Capitol. The rally was led by frontline community organizers, Indigenous water protectors, and climate activists who traveled from all corners of the U.S. A full photo album can be found here. After weeks of advocacy, the MVP was removed from negotiations regarding the legislation. Check out a livestream of the action here!
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WECAN and over 600 people take action outside the White House urging congress to stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
Photo Credit: Ashley Guardado/WECAN International
Past Divestment & Fossil Fuel Resistance Action Highlights
See below for highlights of actions through out the years. If you would like a comprehensive archive of all WECAN convenings, events and actions, please see here.
Over 2,000 people take action as part of the Treaty People Gathering, shutting down a road near an area where Enbridge is planning to drill under the Mississippi River, in northern Minnesota, June 7, 2021. Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN International.
Stand with Indigenous Land Defenders Action
On June 29, 2022, WECAN took action with our colleagues in San Francisco to honor the lives of Bruno Pereira, Indigenous environmental defender, and British journalist Dom Phillips, who were found murdered in the Amazon rainforest, after conducting research and interviews into illegal mining and other activities in Indigenous territories. Osprey Orielle Lake, WECAN Executive Director was honored to speak during the action. Photos of the action are available here.
BlackRock Shareholder Meeting Action
On May 25, 2022 WECAN, allies, and nearly 100 activists on the frontlines of the climate crisis, including faith leaders and youth, protested outside BlackRock’s Manhattan headquarters demanding that BlackRock exclude companies expanding fossil fuel production from its active and passive funds. Ashley Guardado, WECAN Program Associate spoke during the event. Watch the livestream here!
People vs. Fossil Fuels Week of Action
From October 11-15, 2021, frontline leaders and allies led thousands of people to take action in Washington D.C. to demand that President Biden hasten the end of the fossil fuel era, and to highlight the damage done by fossil fuels, the climate impacts we are already facing, and the need for real solutions rooted in justice. There were 655 people arrested in acts of civil disobedience, calling for President Biden to uphold his commitments to climate and environmental justice. Explore the full Facebook photo album here.
Treaty People Gathering to Stop Line 3
In June 2021, nonviolent actions took place along the Line 3 route as part of the Treaty People Gathering, a mass mobilization of more than 2,000 people organized by Indigenous-led groups, communities of faith, and climate justice organizations. Water Protectors took action at several sites along the pipeline in the largest act of civil disobedience yet to stop Line 3. WECAN staff participated in the weekend long gathering and mass mobilization. Learn more and see a full photo album here.
Shutting Down Chase Bank in Washington D.C.
On January 10, 2020 WECAN joined dozens of protesters to occupy and shut down a Chase Bank branch for over two hours in Washington D.C. to kick off the "Stop The Money Pipeline" campaign. Held in parallel to Fire Drill Fridays with Jane Fonda, we were in Washington D.C. calling for JP Morgan Chase to divest from dirty fossil fuels. Watch a video of the action here. 11 dedicated activists were arrested at the Chase Bank shutdown, joining the nearly 150 people who were arrested on Capitol Hill during Fire Drill Friday. See more photos from the Stop The Money Pipeline action on Facebook!
Tell the World Bank: Stop Financing Fossil Fuels
WECAN International joined The Big Shift Global, SustainUs, Oil Change International, Urgewald and other allies at the "Stop Financing Fossil Fuels" rally outside the World Bank 2019 Annual Meeting in Washington D.C. , where we called for the World Bank to divest from fossil fuels, and uphold Indigenous and human rights, including the right to Free, Prior, and Informed Consent. Watch the full live stream here, to hear from all the speakers at the action, including Katherine Quaid (Cayuse/Nez Perce/Paiute), WECAN Communications Coordinator. Find more information about the action and collective demands in our joint press release here.
WECAN Representatives at the "Stop Financing Fossil Fuels Now" Rally outside the World Bank 2019 Annual Meeting in Washington D.C.
Photo Credit: WECAN International
Action at the Launch of the Principles for Responsible Banking
In September 2019, The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) released the Principles for Responsible Banking (PRBs), a set of principles to engage financial stakeholders in the development of sustainable economies. Prior to the release of the PRBs, WECAN International joined a civil society action and submission coordinated by our partners noting that requirements contained in the draft PRBs were wholly inadequate for them to be an effective and credible response from the banking sector to today’s massive challenges on poverty, wildlife loss, climate breakdown and human and Indigenous rights violations globally. You can read the full submission here.
Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation Divest Action in Juneau, Alaska
WECAN International was honored to join 350Juneau, Southeast Alaska Conservation Council, and other allies at the "Stand Strong for Climate" rally on September 10th, where we called for the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds (IFSWF) and United States member, the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation, to divest from fossil fuels, following in the footsteps of member countries like New Zealand and Ireland that are working to divest. Watch a livestream of the action here and Please see our full letter to IFSWF here.
Shutting Down Wells Fargo in San Francisco
WECAN International was honored to join Idle No More SF Bay, 350 Silicon Valley, and other allies to shut down the Wells Fargo Bank at their Headquarters in San Francisco 2019. We joined organizations and individuals for the culmination of the 'March for Fossil Fuel Freedom', a 34-mile walk from Palo Alto to San Francisco exposing "Oily Wells" Wells Fargo Bank, as one of the leading financiers of disastrous fossil-fuel industry projects on the planet. WATCH the full live stream of Osprey Orielle Lake's remarks during the 'March for Fossil Fuel Freedom' culmination event.
CitiBank Divest Action in New York City at the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
In April 2017 during the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, WECAN was honored to stand with our allies during an Indigenous-led action at the Citi Bank shareholders meeting in New York City. WECAN team members took part in the rally outside - while Casey Camp Horinek (Ponca Nation) and Kandi Mossett (Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nations) took part in the shareholders meeting and raised powerful calls for defunding of the fossil fuel projects violating Indigenous rights, human rights and rights of Mother Earth across the US and around the world. Click here to hear Kandi and Casey de-brief after the meeting - and - click here for divestment action coverage via Reuters.
Suggested Resources for Better Banking
Please see below for some suggested resources for better banking options: