Responsible financial services to address climate change

Responsible financial services to address climate change

By Michael Tolhurst

Have you ever got chills down your spine listening to someone talking about banking or superannuation? I have.

I got them last Wednesday at Climates’ discussion on responsible financial services to address climate change. The discussion was led by Bank Australia CEO, Damien Walsh, and Future Super Head of Engagement, Michael Bones. I got the chills partly because I’d never heard people in the financial industry talk passionately about positive action on climate change, but also because I realised the positive impact we can have through our financial decisions.

Previously, the main thing I’d considered when selecting my superannuation fund was finding one which had good financial returns and low fees. I assume that’s working well for me (I don’t know I haven’t checked recently). What I didn’t think of though, were the industries where my money was being invested. Right now my superannuation is most likely invested in mining companies digging up brown coal, the energy companies burning it as well as banks who finance the whole process. Whilst saving for my future I am simultaneously funding its destruction.

The same goes for my bank. My account is with one of the big four Australian banks. Which bank? Well not that one, but it is a bank that invests my money in coal mining and all sorts of other morally dubious activities. I didn’t feel great about that.

So what do we have that can affect change? Two trillion dollars. That is the amount of money Australians have collectively invested in superannuation. It is, of course, our money. I’d heard that before. What I hadn’t thought of though is that we can choose the types of places where this money is invested. That is what got me excited. The way we invest our money — money which every working Australian has — can build the type of future we want. I want to invest in industries which are looking to reduce our carbon footprint, not dig up more brown coal.

The more people who join, the greater our influence is. As Michael Bones suggested, ‘money talks when money walks’. Larger financial institutions notice when customers leave them for ethical choices. The larger the movement, the greater the pressure on these large companies to invest ethically. We have the power affect change through where we put our money.

I am going to invest in a cleaner future, and you should too.