Invest with the best

In tandem with the urgent need to decarbonise the global economy, the movement to divest from the fossil fuel industry has grown rapidly in recent years. In Australia, divestment commitments have been made by local councils, charitable trusts, universities, super funds, and the ACT government.

Waiting for a miracle: federal resources minister Matt Canavan,
a proponent of “clean coal,” listening to prime minister Scott
Morrison at last year’s Liberal National Party convention in Brisbane.

While this progress is remarkable, only a minority of institutional investors have so far adopted a comprehensive policy of divestment from companies extracting or using carbon-based fuels. At the moment the spotlight is on UniSuper, the industry superannuation fund covering the university sector, which continues to include unsustainable investments in its standard portfolios.

With most national governments falling far short of the commitments needed to reach the goals set out in the Paris Agreement, the case for divestment has only become more urgent. Investing in such corporations is not a defensible option for institutions, like universities, that expect to endure for centuries.

Read the Inside Story by John Quiggin - “Invest with the best.”