Global Canopy partners on new deforestation advert endorsed by Jane Goodall DBE

Global Canopy, Make My Money Matter and Global Witness today release a new advert to raise public awareness of the link between investments made by pension providers and deforestation.

The animated video, ‘Saving Jane’, follows a saver’s lifelong dream of using her pension pot to visit a tropical rainforest in her retirement – only to discover that her hard-earned savings have been financing the companies tearing down the natural world she has long cared for.

Like the titular character, 86% of the UK public are not aware of the impact pension investments are having on the destruction of nature on a global scale. This is according to polling conducted on behalf of the three organisations, to coincide with the advert’s release.

Commenting on the advert Dr Jane Goodall PhD, DBE Founder – the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace said: “When I think about the Jane in that film, I feel sad and very, very angry…It’s truly terrible how much of our money is used in ways that we would never even think of.

“I urge all pension providers out there to remove completely any projects involving deforestation from their portfolios and instead invest in projects that help to protect and restore the beautiful places of our planet for future generations.”

Dr Jane Goodall PhD, DBE Founder – the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace

Deforestation is fuelling the climate and nature crises. If it were a country, it would be the third-highest emitter in the world.

Previous research by Make My Money Matter, Global Canopy and SYSTEMIQ revealed for the first time that for every £10 saved in a pension, £2 is linked to deforestation.

The advert calls on UK pension schemes to urgently publish deforestation policies – a critical step for financial institutions to understand their exposure to deforestation – and develop action plans to tackle deforestation in their portfolios.

Currently, two thirds of the UK’s top 20 workplace pension providers still do not have a public deforestation policy. On a global level, Global Canopy’s research reveals that three quarters of financial institutions with strong net-zero commitments are yet to publish a policy.

Over ninety percent of tropical deforestation is driven by agricultural expansion for a handful of globally traded commodities like beef, soy, palm oil and timber.

The advert focuses on the Sumatran rainforest in Indonesia, where only nine percent of the original tropical rainforest remains, with vast swathes lost to palm oil, pulp and paper production.

The Indonesian Borneo now risks the same fate: in recent years, deforestation for palm oil, pulp and paper has been massively concentrated in this area.

“Indonesia has seen – and still faces – tremendous forest loss driven by demand for commodities like palm oil, pulp and paper, used to make products all over the world,” commented Timer Manurung, Chair of Auriga Nusantara, an Indonesian non-governmental organisation that aims to conserve Indonesian natural resources and the environment.

“Our remaining forest-rich areas, like Kalimantan and Papua, are still under threat from the further expansion of plantations.”

“Global financial institutions must act responsibly in choosing where to direct their funds – today’s investments rapidly become tomorrow’s deforestation.”

Timer Manurung, Chair of Auriga Nusantara

Pension funds can achieve deforestation-free pensions by using the clear guidance that already exists. Global Canopy, Make My Money Matter and SYSTEMIQ’s interactive guide clearly sets out six phases the different types of pension funds need to follow.

‘Saving Jane’ ends on a hopeful note, showing viewers that their savings can instead be used to build a greener future for the forests in Indonesia and across the world, that remain under threat from plantations.

Deforestation is a solvable nature crisis, as financial institutions and companies have the tools and guidance available to act on it. In doing so, they can progress on both their net-zero and nature targets.

Pension funds are already publishing evidence of how they have carried out due diligence on portfolio companies, supported by guidance developed by Global Canopy and partners. And according to the Society of Pension Professionals, although more than three quarters (76%) of surveyed pension professionals are not yet engaging with their clients on nature related risk, 89% intend to do so in the future.

Images: © Rewriting Earth X Passion Pictures/Strange Beast.