Download the report: 

https://www.wecaninternational.org/divestment-report

USA — As part of national and global efforts to stop fossil fuel expansion, halt the worst effects of the climate crisis, and support frontline communities, the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) has released the fifth edition of The Gendered and Racial Impacts of the Fossil Fuel Industry in North America and Complicit Financial Institutions calling on financial institutions to divest from fossil fuel companies and projects.

The report is being released in the lead up to the UN General Assembly and Climate Week in New York, where world governments and social movements are gathering. It is also released as part of the “Draw the Line” Global Week of Action, which calls for accountability and action from governments and the companies perpetuating the fossil fuel industry — one of the largest contributors to the climate crisis.

In the introduction to the report, the co-authors call for justice and accountability, “Environmental degradation and the warming of Earth’s atmosphere is occurring because corporations continue to sacrifice the health and safety of women in vulnerable communities—the extractive fossil fuel-based economy depends on expendable people and sacrificial lands and zip codes. This is unacceptable, and there must be accountability, justice, and remedies for these harms.”

The report spotlights seven case studies where fossil fuel companies’ oil and gas drilling, petrochemical and refining facilities, and LNG terminals and pipelines are threatening the health and safety of Black, Latine, Indigenous, and low-income communities in the United States. From increased cancer rates to higher risks of adverse maternal health outcomes and likelihood for depression, the report details the significant toll that fossil fuel pollution and infrastructure has on women in these communities.

In the report, Dr. Stephanie Malin, an Environmental Sociologist at Colorado State University, describes the compounding stress that women experience as a result of living near fossil fuel pollution and development, “Women are often at the forefront of environmental justice movements, and the community action here has followed that pattern. Women lead the movement, and they also take on much of that stress, as well as stress from concerns over risks like health impacts to their children. As primary caregivers, women are often in positions to notice those effects first.”

The report investigates the role that financial institutions, including banks, asset managers, and insurance companies, play in preserving and perpetuating negative gender and racial health and safety impacts through their support of fossil fuel companies and projects. From the LNG buildout in the Gulf South to the proposed Line 5 project in the Great Lakes, the report aims to bring attention to communities, and specifically women, impacted by the fossil fuel industry and the financial institutions responsible for financing, insuring, and investing in the industry.

About the Report

The report provides scientific evidence and frontline accounts of the harms women in marginalized communities face, including increased risks of cancer, reproductive harm, adverse pregnancy outcomes, and mental and emotional distress related to air, water, soil, light, and noise pollution aggravated by the fossil fuel industry. Health impacts resulting from fossil fuel-derived contamination exacerbate women's caretaking roles; when sickness and disability amongst children, elders, or other community members occur, mothers are more exposed to stressors and report more significant strain, burden, and distress than their male counterparts. The report analyzes complicit financial institutions and offers recommendations and steps forward for building healthy and just communities.

Roishetta Ozane, Founder of The Vessel Project, states: "We have to get back to the original reason we started this fight to stop fossil fuel expansion, and it is for people. Who are we saving this world for? If we aren't caring for the people, if we aren't making sure that the people have what they need, who's going to be left in that community to care for it? People are dying every day from fossil fuel pollution. Community members are constantly dying while folks are sitting in offices making decisions about that community. Women are at the brunt end of these deadly decisions.”

This report also acknowledges the crucial role that Indigenous women play as knowledge holders and leaders in their communities while highlighting the imminent threats the fossil fuel industry poses to women’s bodily autonomy and Indigenous rights.

Whitney Gravelle (Anishinaabe), President of the Bay Mills Indian Community, states: “Indigenous women have an overwhelming sense of anxiety about the real likelihood of a catastrophic oil spill that's going to happen in the Great Lakes because of Line 5. Such a spill would destroy Tribes and Indigenous peoples' way of life. And so, when our community thinks of Line 5, we are not just thinking of the harmful environmental impacts and not having clean water to drink and not being able to enjoy the Great Lakes as they are—we are quite literally thinking, my entire culture is going to be destroyed.”

The report highlights Vanguard, BlackRock, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, and Liberty Mutual as primary investors, financiers, and insurers of harmful fossil fuel companies and projects within the regional and project-specific case studies. All six financial institutions have voiced support for or acknowledged the importance of the Paris Climate Agreement and adherence to human rights standards via public statements or by signing onto national and international frameworks and initiatives. Yet, they continue to support companies whose operations disproportionately harm women and communities of color while also threatening human rights and furthering the climate crisis.

Patricia Garcia-Nelson (Oraricha Tribes of Mexico and the Chichimeca), Colorado Fossil Fuel Just Transition Advocate for Green Latinos, states: “There are communities that have been poisoned from fossil fuels for almost one hundred years at this point. One of the biggest impacts on women is the stress of the environment. And that, of course, impacts things like school and work. So there's definitely a mental health crisis that isn't spoken about. And so one of the things that I've tried to do in my work is trying to help women find ways to feel like they can do something to protect themselves and their families because we talk about what these chemicals do to our bodies and we're trying to change the rules but what can people do now?”

The report outlines some of the physical and transitional risks financial institutions incur by continuing to financially support fossil fuel companies. The report also provides recommendations for financial institutions, including committing to phasing out existing fossil fuel financing year-on-year from 2025 and adopting mandatory policies that uphold Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) and human rights protections in accordance with the International Bill of Human Rights and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. To implement steps forward, the report also advocates for investing in a Just Transition to a renewable and regenerative future that centers the leadership of communities and women most impacted by environmental degradation, pollution, and the climate crisis.

Osprey Orielle Lake, Executive Director of WECAN and co-author of the report, states: “The fossil fuel industry, and their financiers, are driving us further and further toward climate chaos, and frontline communities and women are bearing the brunt. Too many people are already dying from fossil fuel related causes. If we truly want to address the climate crisis, we must lead with climate justice, and that means acting upon the gendered and racial impacts of the fossil fuel industry. We are calling on financial institutions to be leaders by taking action to halt the financing of fossil fuels and instead invest in a Just Transition. We want no more sacrifice women, no more sacrifice zones, and no more sacrifice zip codes. The fossil fuel era must end, and the time is now to transition to renewable, regenerative energy and a healthy and equitable future for all.”

If you are interested in learning more about the report or connecting with spokespeople, please contact Katherine Quaid, katherine@wecaninternational.org.