'Reinvest in Earth': New initiative aims to mobilise $10bn of climate funding

A charitable initiative set up by two leading financiers has launched a new call for "pioneering individuals" to "Reinvest in Earth" by committing 0.25 per cent of their savings and investments each year to organisations combatting climate change.

Announcing a goal of raising a regular annual total of $10bn within the next decade, the Global Returns Project this week said it was looking to work with financial institutions to highlight the importance of offering their clients an easy opportunity to direct more of their savings and investments toward funding not-for-profit climate solutions.  

With financial institutions on board, the Global Returns Project calculates that if just three per cent of people with savings Reinvested in Earth, the target of raising $10bn a year could be reached within years.

"Funding not-for-profit climate solutions yields returns just like any other investment, the returns are externalised and shared, but they are real, identifiable, and global," said Global Returns Project Trustee and ex-fund manager, Yan Swiderski. "Financial institutions are ready and willing to tackle the Climate Crisis. Individuals can help them make this small change which will have a huge effect."

Under the scheme, reinvestors' contributions would be donated across chosen partner charities including Ashden, ClientEarth, Global Canopy, Rainforest Trust, and Trillion Trees.

Jasper Judd, Trustee at the Global Returns Project, said the initiative would provide investors who want to step up efforts to tackle the climate crisis with a means of having "a huge collective impact".

"We are blurring the line between investment and philanthropy by thinking more broadly about what returns we should be looking for and working with financial institutions to create a new normal," he said. "Our first step towards achieving our $10bn annual target will be to secure 5,000+ individuals with savings and investments to 'Reinvest in Earth' in 2021."  

The Global Returns Project is an initiative run by the Climate Crisis Foundation, which was founded in 2019 by ex-financiers Swiderski and Judd.

The initiative has been launched in the same week as a coalition of leading asset owners announced plans for new decarbonisation targets for their portfolios and the investor-backed CDP called on nearly 2,000 listed companies globally to set new science based emissions targets.

It also comes in the wake of the launch of the global Count Us In campaign, which calls on the wider public to commit to take steps to reduce their carbon emissions, including taking steps to "green your money" by using financial institutions and funds with strong environmental governance.

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