“This climate change is real, and they’re not doing anything to curb that by continuing to fund Big Oil,” one person said.
AUGUSTA, Maine — Activists say they’ve been meet with “dismissive action” as they urge leaders at the Maine Public Employees Retirement System to divest assets from the fossil fuel industry by 2026.
“We gave them five years, and it’s now year three and they have made no forward motion on it,” Linda Woods said.
Rallying in Augusta Thursday, a handful of MainePERS beneficiaries and members of Divest Maine held signs and shared messages as to why they believe the removal of ties to the fossil fuel industry must be done soon.
“It’s one of those problems that requires change at all kinds of levels of society, and this is one of those changes that has to happen,” Scott Budde, who works as an investment analyst, said.
Like many members of Divest Maine, Budde says he’s willing to meet with board members at MainePERS to discuss better investments avoiding ties to the fossil fuel industry.
But according to a recent divestment memorandum released in July, leaders at MainePERS outlined their willingness to shift investments to reduce but believe its current “passive” approach is best fit to be financially responsible.
“It’s frustrating,” Woods said, who worked for about 30 years as a teacher. “MainePERS is our pension fund and they do all their investing for us. We don’t have any say in what they put our money into.”
Activists at Thursday’s rally are also urging MainePERS to abide by a Maine law signed in 2021 which directs the Treasurer of State and the Board of Trustees of MainePERS to divest assets invested in the fossil fuel industry.
People like Woods, who testified in favor of the law when it was making its way through the Legislature, says she’s frustrated she’s still advocating years later.
“This climate change is real, and they’re not doing anything to curb that by continuing to fund Big Oil,” Woods added.
NEWS CENTER Maine reached out to MainePERS for comment on Thursday’s rally, but has not yet heard back.