Banks, Insurance Companies. Asset Managers. Institutional Investors. The financial sector is funding, insuring and investing in the climate crisis, including our public pension funds. Managing more than $46 trillion in assets worldwide, pension funds are the world’s largest asset owners and among the biggest investors in fossil fuels. By funneling billions of dollars into this polluting industry, pension funds risk both the climate and the hard-earned retirement savings of our public workers.

The Colorado State Land Board, which is the second largest land manager in Colorado, derives 80% of its revenue from fracking and oil and gas lease sales. We believe the State Land Board needs to re-envision its mandate in order to move to a carbon-free future. The State Land Board recently announced a 29,000 acre oil and gas sale for May, which they approved at today’s Land Board hearing.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, April 8, 2020 Contact: Micah Parkin, micah@350colorado.org, 504-258-1247 DENVER, CO – Today, twenty-four Colorado nonprofits representing over 30,000 Coloradans and over 1,500 individuals submitted a joint petition to Governor Jared Polis calling for all fossil fuel activities known to release harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and air pollution to be ceased throughout the state for at least 30 days and until the pandemic is contained in Colorado.