By helping thousands of people to switch to green bank accounts, we can stop banks funding new oil and gas.
We keep what we raise, even if we don't meet our target! So every pound you give will directly support us to...
In the last 4 months, we have:
Switch It Green exists to drive rapid, impactful change by tackling the source of fossil fuel and deforestation funding.
WHY BANK SWITCHING?
History shows us that banks respond to consumer demand and brand devaluation.
The highly successful anti-apartheid movement employed mass bank account switching to pressure Barclays into withdrawing its financial support from South Africa during the apartheid. The end of the apartheid is strongly attributed to the financial impact of the campaign. Their tactics included hundreds of thousands of students switching their bank accounts.
The same is possible for fossil fuels & deforestation. Mass account switching will stop banks from investing in destructive projects. Without loans, investment, and financial services from financial providers, oil and gas giants cannot make their expansion plans a reality.
CAMPAIGN SUMMARY
We are an action-focused campaign on a mission to empower thousands of people to take one very simple, highly effective action; to switch their bank account to ensure a safe future for us all.
We know that banks are set to finance enough new oil & gas reserves to blow our world's remaining carbon budgets 7x over. This means millions of lives at risk and devastation of our ecosystems.
We also know that banks respond to consumer pressure and brand devaluation.
For the last year, we've been building the foundations to educate, empower & mobilise the public to switch bank accounts, collectively, to stop banks from investing in polluting industries. We've built the Green Banking Platform, and are developing networks of people who are ready to take action, together, on a big scale.
It’s time to take things up a notch. You can help us achieve our maximum impact as we launch our switching campaigns with universities, healthcare providers, and faith groups.
OUR GOAL
To make it untenable for big banks to continue investing in destructive projects.
WHY THE GREEN BANKING PLATFORM?
Switching through the Green Banking Platform allows us to demonstrate the number of customers banks are losing over environmental concerns - forcing them to respond to our collective call for change and green their investment policies in order to retain customers.
On the Platform, users can find out what their current bank invests in, choose a green alternative, make the switch alongside thousands of others, and maximise the impact of their switch with our ready-to-go lobbying features.
WHY UNIVERSITIES, HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS & FAITH GROUPS?
People are likely to switch their bank once they know it is pouring money into harmful projects - but most people (83%) do not know what their bank is investing in.
We are focussing on activating key communities - who already feel strongly about climate change - to take the simple step of switching to a green bank.
We see this as the shortest, quickest route to high switching numbers.
OUR STORY
Switch It Green Co-Founders, Anna Chirico and Sophie Cowen, first connected over their shared frustration at climate inaction in 2020.
They could see that individual actions needed to be targeted effectively, and be taken en masse to initiate real change. And they knew that in order to get key decision-makers to listen, they had to follow the money.
With Anna’s technical creative flair and background in industrial design, and Sophie’s experience in advertising, movement building and behaviour change, the pair knew they could build a platform and campaign capable of taking on the finance industry - and in turn the oil and gas giants.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
We have been grant-funded to reach this point. We are a small team with limited capacity - and fundraising is a full-time job!
We need your help to raise the funds to run our campaign activity over the next few months, to kick off the mass switching movement that has the potential to move markets and create lasting, positive change.
The first £10k will be match funded by a generous donor - so for every £50, you'll be donating £100!
This project successfully funded on 20th December 2023