On Earth Day 2024, our Climate Advocacy Program Manager, Leigh Evans, engaged in an solo action outside of Portland, OR’s downtown Chase branch.
Standing outside the branch with a smile and a melting-ice-cream-cone-birthday-hat to keep cool in the era of global warming, Leigh wore a sign that read: “Today is my 30th birthday, and I feel like I don’t have a future. Because Chase, my bank since I was a teenager, is the #1 bank worldwide funding the fossil fuel projects destroying our world. My birthday wish is for Chase to change; to invest in my future and stop destroying it.”
Leigh handed out 40+ flyers to passerby with information on the banks funding fossil fuels and how to take the powerful action of moving your money away from these banks.
One particularly inspiring moment happened just before packing up: a concerned grandmother who passed by earlier came back around to voice her curiosity. It turns out she had been planning to open an account for her granddaughter at Chase soon. After learning that Chase is the #1 US funder of fossil fuels, she expressed gratitude for this knowledge and being presented with more ethical options. With excitement, she said she’d be sharing the information with her granddaughter, who cares deeply about social causes.
Leigh then went into the Chase branch and handed out flyers to the security guard as well as the account manager who sat down to discuss the issue. Leigh was able to express concerns to the account manager, who agreed to send the message up the ladder.
Leigh’s goal for next time is to have a more Effective Climate Conversation with another account manager, being sure to ask lots of questions and listen deeply.
A little further south and two days later, a number of THIS! folks participated in a beautiful vigil action at Wells Fargo headquarters in San Francisco. Board Member Ralph King, volunteers Raylin and Pat Ferris, and CCC members Maureen Stubblefield and Michelle Merrill can be seen in the slideshow of powerful images below.
We encourage everyone to get creative and participate in the kinds of actions that energize you! You can do a birthday action like Leigh did, organize a conversations flash mob, join a non-violent direct action group, or commit to talking more about climate change with those around you (just to name a few).
If you’d like to learn more about moving your money or would like to help others take this action, you can spread the word about our free Office Hours program, supported by knowledgeable and friendly Third Act volunteers who are happy to assist.
Lastly, you may have young people in your life who, like Leigh, are feeling the weight of climate change’s impacts on the future of this planet. People who deal with anxiety and depression around this issue are not alone. To learn more about tools that can help, you can sign up for our free quarterly workshop, Anxiety into Action: Helping Young People Cope with the Climate Crisis.
It will take all of us, doing what we can both individually and together, to turn the tide of this crisis. Individual actions like Leigh’s can be very powerful, but it’s even more powerful when we come together in big numbers. Learn more about the Summer of Heat direct action campaign, which is bringing together people together all summer long to put collective pressure on these banks and demand that they stop investing in the destruction of our world.
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