Responsible banking for the future of our children

Remember getting your first bank account? Your parents probably helped you, and you likely didn’t have any opinions about it, much like the family toothpaste. For me, my mom helped me open an account with RBC and it seemed much the same as any bank.

But when we recently helped our son open his first account recently, things were different. We did it at a credit union instead, and made sure he knew we were doing this because the big banks were undermining his future by pouring hundreds of billions into fossil fuels.

This is probably a new way of thinking for many: to consider banks as core actors in the climate crisis. We usually think about big oil companies and the politicians who promote pipelines. But fossil fuels stay in the ground until financing happens, and that’s where banks get involved.

In fact, our seemingly boring Canadian banks are among the biggest funders of fossil fuels in the world. According to a 2020 report, RBC has poured more than $178 billion into fossil fuels since the Paris Agreement was signed, making it the fifth-largest fossil banker globally.

Together, the big five — RBC, TD, Scotiabank, BMO, and CIBC — have financed more than $610 billion in fossil fuels since the accord, the exact opposite of what climate science is telling us to do.

Canadian banks are backing projects facing significant Indigenous opposition, such as the Coastal GasLink pipeline, the Line 3 pipeline and the Dakota Access pipeline. They are also active in oil and gas projects around the world such as in Suriname, the Permian Basin, Argentina, Norway and the U.K.

In sum, our banks are pouring gasoline on the climate crisis, putting our kids at risk. As parents, we need to tell them to stop, or, at the very least, not enable their bad behaviour by giving them our business and our money.

All of Canada’s banks talk a good game about being responsible actors. They say they are investing in sustainable business. They donate to environmental causes. In the case of TD they even say that they are committed to “net-zero” emissions by 2050 in their lending.

But they say anything other than they are going to immediately stop financing new fossil fuel projects and respect Indigenous rights, which is what our planet needs.

Unlike other banks around the world, with the recent addition of Desjardins, none of Canada’s big five have even committed to getting out of the worst fossil fuel: coal.

For all these reasons, parents across Canada need to contact their bank. Tell them you will consider moving your business unless they change. Better yet, go to your local credit union and help your child open an account there. Perhaps that will be a stepping stone toward your family leaving the big banks behind, and a good step toward a healthier planet for our kids.

Matt Price is with For Our Kids, a national network of climate-concerned parents and grandparents working for change. The organization is participating in a day of action on banks this Friday.