89 - The future of fossil fuel divestment

Is it still a thing?

Why is it gaining momentum 💡

The fossil fuel divestment movement has become a cornerstone of the global push for climate action.

Institutions like universities, pension funds, and large asset managers are pulling their investments from oil, coal, and gas companies, citing climate risks and declining financial viability.

But what happens when these institutions divest? Does it truly impact fossil fuel companies, or is it more symbolic? Moreover, which sectors stand to benefit most from this shift in capital allocation?

A combined bar and line chart showing the cumulative growth of fossil fuel divestment from 2011 to 2024. The red bars represent the cumulative number of institutions committing to divestment, while the black line tracks the cumulative value of represented assets in billion USD. The chart indicates a steady increase in both metrics, with divested assets surpassing $40 trillion and institutions exceeding 1,600 by 2024. Source: Arabella Advisors, MSCI (2016), and divestmentdatabase.org.

Growth of Fossil Fuel Divestment Over Time

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