News / Extinction Rebellion
Bristol rebels plan to target Clifton company
Bristol rebels are gearing up for a protest in Clifton on March 2.
It will conclude a global week of action to hold the insurance industry to account for its role in the climate crisis.
Extinction Rebellion (XR) are joining a network of social movements and NGOs from the Insure our Future campaign to demand an end to fossil fuel insurance, saying it is “the Achilles heel of the industry.”
is needed now More than ever
The campaign, supported by major organisations including Greenpeace, ClientEarth, and the Rainforest Action Network, states that “except for a few laggards,” they have succeeded in pressurising insurers into dropping new coal projects.
This latest week of activity, running February 26 to March 3, will focus on the oil and gas industries, with actions taking place in over 30 countries around the world.
The Bristol protest will target Tokio Marine at 27a Regent Street in Clifton.
The company, one of five fossil fuel insurers with offices in Bristol, insures Brazilian offshore oil projects which threaten coastal ecosystems and communities, and coal power plant projects across Asia.
The Bristol XR group has active in the global Extinction Rebellion community since its instigation in 2018
It operates in 45 countries and in 2022 collected an estimated $475m in premiums from fossil fuel companies.
XR Bristol’s peaceful protest will demand the company take immediate action to stop insuring new fossil fuel projects “that are driving climate breakdown.”
The climate action group state that without insurance many new fossil fuel projects would not be able to operate.
They say this puts the insurance industry in a “uniquely powerful position to have a positive impact on the future of the world.”
The XR ‘Dirty Scrubbers’ will be in attendance at the protest, with the intention of cleaning up Tokio Marine
The protest will take place at 11am on March 2. The theme is ‘children whose futures are in peril.’ Protesters are asked, if they can, to bring bunting made from baby clothes, which will be passed on to good homes following the action.
Spokesperson for XR Bristol Kathy Fawcett said: “The insurance industry has a vital role to play in protecting us, but instead it’s choosing to deepen the crisis we face.
“Tokio Marine and other companies, by continuing to enable fossil fuel extraction, are guaranteeing a dangerous future of wildfires, floods and droughts – and all the crop failures and social unrest that will accompany them.
“These insurers have a choice and a clear moral duty here. We’re already living with the effects of past pollution, and we need action now to protect our children’s future. Later is just too late.”
This piece of independent journalism is supported by the Bristol24/7 public and business membership.
All photos: Extinction Rebellion Bristol
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