Since last year the Divest Nobel campaign has been working to make the Nobel Foundation divest from fossil fuels. With a waiter action in October, a protest featuring a Nobel coin in December and a flooding of Stockholm’s Old Town in May this issue is certainly on the radar of the Foundation.
But no decision will happen by itself – we will need many to sign our petition, write letters and join actions to get us there.
During this years week of announcements we wanted to show up at multiple events to meet people and share our concerns.
Medicine prize – Divestment is the cure
Fans of the Nobel prize gathered on Monday outside the Nobel Forum where this year’s Medicine laureate was announced. With a doctor examining the planet – plagued by fossil sickness – focus is put on the fact that the Nobel Foundation still invests in fossil fuels.
Chemistry prize – Fossil contamination warning
On the Wednesday it was time for action again. An area outside the Royal Academy of Sciences was symbolically sealed off to protect from fossil fuel contamination. Warning banners was visible and leaflets distributed.
Literature prize – Novels change titles against climate change
We gathered outside the Swedish Academy and was joined by remixed novels from Nobel winning authors, demanding an end to climate change and fossil fuel investment. Check out all the remixed titles here.
To halt climate change and create a 100% renewable future we’ll need millions of people. Respected institutions, like the Nobel Foundation, can help create room for the global movement that we need. When the Foundation divests from fossil fuels, thereby cutting ties with coal, oil and gas extraction, the moral message becomes much stronger than just words.
It’s wrong to earn money from risking our planet and our future. It’s wrong to throw gasoline on a burning climate crisis. Only when we isolate the industry that’s been driving climate change, we can also move forward towards a sustainable society.
It’s time for the Nobel Foundation to divest – for the greater good of mankind. Please sign the petition if you agree.