Take one minute and write to RBC officials

This gives RBC a direct signal of our engagement, and therefore how much we are shifting their reputation.

Every letter matters! <3 <3

This action is a joint collaboration between UBCV and UBCO climate organizers.

(Insta: @climatejusticeubc + @rbcoffcampus_ubco)

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As part of the national action today (Mar 7, 2024), we join students at universities across Canada in holding protests on campus to call on RBC to stop financing the climate crisis, violation of Indigenous rights, and Israel’s apartheid and genocide of Palestinians.

Leading up to RBC’s AGM, we call on RBC to comply with the following demands:

Immediately end full financial support from the Coastal GasLink and Trans Mountain pipelines–which do not have consent from Indigenous peoples whose territories they cross, respectively the Wet’suwet’en Nation and the Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, and Stk'emlupsemc te Secwepemc Nations.

Allowing construction to proceed without their free, prior, and informed consent infringes upon their right of self-determination to decide what economic development takes place on their traditional territory, as upheld by international human rights instruments, including UNDRIP, Article 10.

These are illegal projects. RBC fund illegal projects.

The construction of these projects has already caused environmental destruction and deprived Indigenous peoples of their ability to perform traditional activities.

These projects also rely on the criminalization, intimidation and harassment of Wet’suwet’en land defenders by the RCMP Critical Response Group (C-IRG), a unit created specifically to protect resource extraction projects from Indigenous resistance. In addition to the use of assault rifles, snipers, attack dogs, sound canons, and helicopters on Indigenous elders and youth, the recent court case revealed deep racism and violence within the C-IRG.

The violence perpetrated on land defenders at the hands of the RCMP further demonstrates its apathy towards the perpetual violence and oppression of Indigenous peoples that RBC are complicit in by financing these projects. RBC also showed this when they segregated and policed Indigenous leaders and other racialized groups at their AGM last year (2023).

RBC’s commitments to equity, diversity and reconciliation will not make up for the harms it causes to Indigenous communities by pushing pipelines across their land and desecrating their territories in the process.

Immediately end full financial support for Palantir – which provides their Artificial Intelligence surveillance technology to Israeli security forces, to criminalize Palestinians in the West Bank.

Palantir provides an AI predictive system to Israeli security forces, to identify people in occupied Palestine. Palantir provides the same mass surveillance tools to law enforcement agencies and police departments, circumventing warrant procedures, and giving police access to vast amounts of information about individuals.

The most recent 13F-HR filed by RBC on February 14, 2024 disclosed ownership of 2,031,864 shares of Palantir Technologies Inc. (US:PLTR) valued at USD 34,887,105 USD as of December 31, 2023. The entity filed a previous 13F-HR on November 14, 2023 disclosing 1,345,561 shares of Palantir Technologies Inc.. This represents a change in shares of 51.00% during the quarter. The current value of the position is USD 48,846,011.

Yes, RBC has increased its shares of Palantir during Israel’s ongoing genocide, which has claimed over 30,000 lives as of writing this.

By funding Palantir, RBC is giving social license to violations of human rights in occupied Palestine and directly supporting Israeli apartheid.

Immediately divest from fossil fuel expansion projects and phase out support for all fossil fuel projects.

Immediately commit to making no new/future investments in fossil fuel expansion, domestic and abroad.

Between 2016-2022 (since the Paris Agreement), RBC has financed more than $252 billion in fossil fuel projects, which drive climate change and environmental destruction. In 2022, RBC provided fossil fuel companies USD 42.1 billion, making RBC the world’s biggest funder of fossil fuels.

Fossil fuel companies rely on RBC's loans and investments to carry out their projects. Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency has made it clear that the pathway to Net Zero by 2050 allows for no new fossil fuel exploration.

RBC is under investigation by Canada’s Competition Bureau for alleged greenwashing and misleading advertising practices. We understand that RBC has climate plans in place and makes some investments in renewables. These investments are massively outweighed by RBC’s investments in fossil fuels, the main driver of the climate crisis. RBC cannot claim to care about the climate crisis until they divest from fossil fuels.

Immediately leave both the UBC-V and UBC-O campuses. Students are not fooled by RBC’s deceitful marketing, nor do we want to be complicit in RBC’s dirty business.

Students are an important client demographic for banks. RBC invests heavily in building a positive brand perception with young customers via initiatives like RBC OnCampus.