Don't Award Greenwashing
CEO Hanna Malak and Board of Directors, American Red Cross Northern California Coastal Region
Wells Fargo has a bad reputation when it comes to climate. So we were shocked to learn that Wells Fargo was receiving an award as a "climate crisis visionary partner" by the American Red Cross of the Bay Area at their big gala in San Francisco on March 22nd.
A broad coalition of climate action organizations has been campaigning against Wells Fargo for years, because of their financing and underwriting of the fossil fuel projects that are exacerbating the climate crisis. Sure, they gave $73 million to help with "disaster preparedness, relief and community resilience." But that's small change compared to the money they invest in the very things that make disasters more frequent and more severe. Wells Fargo is the world’s fifth-largest funder of fossil fuels (2016-2023), providing more than $296 billion in lending and underwriting to the fossil fuel industry -- the very fossil fuel companies that are responsible for the worsening climate chaos around the world and here in California. The climate pollution they help create makes disasters like wildfires, hurricanes and floods more frequent and more severe.
Wells Fargo isn't even on a path to reduce their climate impacts. In fact, they've started going back on previous commitments. They recently scrapped their goal of net zero emissions across their financed portfolio by 2050. Last year Wells Fargo withdrew from the global Equator Principles, which provide for minimum standards on risks to the environment and local communities in countries where they finance fossil fuel extraction projects.
The Red Cross does so much important work in helping the victims of climate disasters. Join us in calling on the Red Cross to do the right thing here: rescind the award to Wells Fargo, and consider the overall impact to people and planet when evaluating future potential award winners.
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To:
CEO Hanna Malak and Board of Directors, American Red Cross Northern California Coastal Region
From:
[Your Name]
Dear Mr. Malak and Board Members,
We call on the Red Cross to rescind the "climate crisis visionary partner" award given to Wells Fargo. We ask that you consider the impact to people and planet when evaluating future potential award winners. While we gratefully respect the work of the Red Cross, we are shocked by your award to Wells Fargo to recognize their “support of disaster preparedness, relief and community resilience,” when they have financed so many harmful fossil fuel projects even after the Paris Climate Accord. They know that fossil fuel use must be reduced to meet our climate goals, but they keep funding new extraction projects.
Wells Fargo is the world’s fifth-largest funder of fossil fuels (2016-2023), providing more than $296 billion in lending and underwriting to the fossil fuel industry -- the very fossil fuel companies that are responsible for the worsening climate chaos around the world and here in California. And they've gotten even worse over the last year, abandoning their net zero emissions goals and withdrawing from the Equator Principles.
The Red Cross does immensely important work to help the victims of wildfires, floods and storms. Yet here you are honoring major financers of the climate crisis exacerbating these same disasters. By giving an award to Wells Fargo, you are providing cover for their choices on climate.
We understand that Wells Fargo donates money to the Red Cross, but surely the harmful results of their other work must be considered when giving public recognition. The Red Cross should not be complicit in Wells Fargo's efforts at greenwashing their deplorable record on climate.
Sincerely,