Outdoors People
- Dec 3, 2020
- 5 min read

What was your experience swapping? We asked, you told - divesting stories revealed!

This December, alongside Surfers for Climate and For Wild Places, Outdoors People for Climate Action is calling out for outdoors people to move their hard earned money away from fossil fuels by divesting their bank, super or both.

Along the way we've asked for you to tell your divestment stories. Below we share some of the testimonials we've received from people who've gone and done the deed.

Is your bank or super funding fossil fuels? Learn more and take the pledge to divest here.

Have you already divested both your bank and super? We really want to know. Fill out this super quick form here.

Sophie

"I was really surprised how fast and easy it was to swap my bank and super accounts. The research beforehand seemed quite daunting but it really wasn't! I would just advise people to take some time to narrow it down and then go with their gut!"

Hayden

"All it took was a few minutes to make one of the most significant impacts I can make as an individual. Every Australian that switches to a super fund which supports clean energy takes money straight from the fossil fuel industry and puts it towards the cleaner, greener future we all want to be a part of."

Les

"After being with my bank for so many years, the thought of changing banks was very daunting. However, once I made the decision to change banks, which was easier to do than I thought, it really feels like the ethical thing to have done."

Jakarra

"Fantastic! It was super easy and once I had researched where I was to reinvest, it only took a few hours to complete. It feels great knowing that my time and money isn't going to a place that continues to excel the climate and ecological crisis. When it came time to finding a bank to get an investment loan through it was tempting to go with one of the larger banks who offered a lower interest rate, but considering the impacts my money would have made over the course of that loan, it was much easier to accept a higher interest rate from a bank that was committed to helping the climate crisis, not contributing to it. After all, I want that house to be standing in a healthy world in 30 years time!"

Ryan

"Easy peasey! It's a small action we can all take, and as the song says, from little things, big things grow."

Damo

"Switching my bank and super was a simple way to have a big impact. It was much quicker and easier than I thought it would be and it felt like I was making an immediate difference."⁠

Ellie

"Scomo clearly isn’t doing anything for the climate so let’s take it into our own hands. We’re all inadvertently supporting fossil fuels if our money and bills are going to non-carbon neutral companies. I divested my Super while on a road trip - it’s so quick and easy. It all adds up and makes a positive difference to Australia’s climate."⁠

Vicki

"I reckon the best part of divesting for me is feeling like a weight has been taken off my shoulders. It has been such a relief to know that my money is no longer being used to support the stuff that's cooking our planet. I'm so glad I did it when I did and didn't delay any longer. And of course, I just wish I had done it sooner!"⁠

Ingrid

"I found divesting surprisingly easy - especially when it came to superannuation which I thought would be a pain. I chose Future Super and just had to provide a few details and they did the rest. Then, bam! three days later my money was no longer being invested in things that don't align with my values. I also chose Bank Australia which was also really easy to sign up to. I just had to change my direct debits and move my money over. I have to admit I get a little cheeky proud moment every time I get my Bank Australia card out at the shops now - that feeling that you're making conscious choices that are hopefully going to influence the trajectory of the planet. It's an unfortunate truth but in our world money is one of those things that speaks the loudest! Ultimately I feel that divesting takes minimal time but has a profound and long-lasting impact so...get around it!"

Rachel

"I used the excellent resources from Market Forces and using one of their templates I contacted my super fund asking them to exclude investment in fossil fuels. After the fund failed to address my concerns, I took my super elsewhere and am now with a fund that doesn’t profit from the climate crisis and actively supports climate positive businesses. I contacted the old fund to to tell them exactly why I left. Around the same time I also shifted to a bank that also actively pursues climate positive investment. I also bought shares in companies that are not linked to fossil fuels. I’ve never considered myself someone who is particularly ‘financially minded’, but it was a good opportunity to learn. The more I read, the more options and control I realized I had. It’s a small action, with huge impact. Despite the lack of a national plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, we can force our economy to begin to rapidly decarbonize through our investment choices."

Rebecca

"I bank with KiwiBank, and they manage my Kiwisaver too. They've made a commitment around not investing in, or allowing fossil fuel companies to bank with them, amongst a bunch of other ethical stances I support. I also appreciate they're NZ owned, as most of our banks are big Aussie ones. I've been banking with them for a while, and have always expressed how values were important to me in any of the feedback opportunities they've provided, so super stoked they made the commitment!"

Xander

"Yes after talking about doing it for years I finally got in done during lockdown with a little help from FriendlyJordies."

Michael

"I’ve been with Bank Australia for many years and my industry super fund abandoned fossil fuel industries years ago. It’s great to see so many people voting for the environment and climate through their banking and purchasing choices. Power to the people."

Louise

"It was relatively easy to divest my savings account from ING to Bank Australia. I could do it all from home, even in regional Australia. I hope that by investing a socially responsible bank it encourages all those who are motivated by the market to take steps away from investment in climate damage. Unfortunately, as an employee of the SA government I cannot choose my own super fund. But I did move all of my super into their Socially Responsible option, which is not perfect, but better than nothing!"

Anna

"I divested my super and it was super easy! When I arrived in Australia on a Working Holiday Visa I was automatically allocated a superannuation account - it wasn’t the best and it wasn’t very transparent regarding its investment choices. I just switched to Future Super who invest in sustainable energy - it took about ten minutes!"