Dunedin Event On Divestment Day

On Global Divestment Day 13th Feb, supporters of Oil Free Otago and 350 Aotearoa will meet in the Octagon at noon to deliver messages of support to the DCC on their divestment from fossil-fuels.

The group commends the council for taking a stand last May when the initial vote committed to adopt legislation on ethical investments. To finalise the process, legislation which resulted from May 2014 will be voted on in early March this year. When adopted, Waipori Fund investments will be shifted away from arms, tobacco, gambling, pornography, and fossil fuel extraction companies.

Supporters of Oil Free Otago and 350 Aotearoa will line up together at the DCC customer service centre to deliver "Valentine's" cards to the DCC to encourage their move to a fossil-free city. According to http://gofossilfree.org/commitments/ there are already over 30 cities around the world divested from fossil fuels or in the process like Dunedin.

Oil Free Otago spokesperson Annabeth Cohen says, “Dunedin is not alone: we’re accompanied by the Anglican Church of Aotearoa and Victoria University. Being that it is an international day of action, we expect a plethora of organisations and other city councils to announce their plans to divest as well.”

Founder of the global divestment movement, Bill McKibben who traveled to Dunedin last year said it best when he said, “If it’s wrong to wreck the climate then it’s wrong to profit from that wreckage.”

Cohen said, “divesting is about casting a vote of confidence with our money. We can have a clean and clear conscious then re-invest that money in our local economy and renewable energy. This let’s the global markets and governments know we want to be free from dirty fossil fuels.“

Petition Links: Active Petition (initial petition)

Event Links: Facebook, 350.org

ends

© Scoop Media