John -
We launched a BIG campaign in the U.S. targeting one of the most powerful U.S. insurance brokers: Marsh McLennan – a major linchpin in the proposed East African Crude Oil pipeline (also known as EACOP).
But while this facet of the campaign might be new, our colleagues at 350 Africa and 350 Europe have been working to stop this disastrous pipeline for years.
In this email, we’ll catch you up on everything the #StopEACOP team has accomplished over the last year and a half, but first:
To catch you up, French oil giant, TotalEnergies, is attempting to build the world’s longest crude oil pipeline right through the heart of Uganda and Tanzania.
If built, the pipeline would run through the basin of Africa’s largest lake, Lake Victoria, which more than 40 million people depend on for water and food production. It would cross more than 200 rivers and force 100,000 people from their land.1
Just one spill or leak could have catastrophic effects on these vital freshwater sources and the millions of people that depend on them.
While local communities and organizations in Uganda and Tanzania have been leading the charge against Total’s reckless project for years, speaking out in countries like Uganda and Tanzania can come with serious risks.
So, local campaigners sought international allies and supporters to help amplify their message, which led to the birth of the International #StopEACOP coalition in February 2021. Over 260 community and non-profit organizations from around the world urged the CEOs of 25 banks not to participate in loans that would fund this project.
Following advocacy efforts by the #StopEACOP coalition, the campaign celebrated a major victory when Barclays and Credit Suisse became the first major international commercial banks to confirm that they would not finance the pipeline.2 One month later, three major French banks followed suit.3
Total put out a call for insurance and brokerage services for the project and our movement immediately took action. We called upon leading re/insurance brokers to reject the tender and pledge not to support the project due to its impacts on the climate, environment, and communities.4
One month later, Axa became the first insurer to rule out the project and seven more insurance companies have followed since.5
The #StopEACOP movement celebrated another batch of victories when five banks including Deutsche Bank, Citi, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Morgan Stanley (and some major insurance companies) all said they wouldn’t fund EACOP.
This takes the number of banks who have rejected EACOP project loans to 20 and the number of insurers who’ve rejected to eight. The list of banks who’ve rejected the project includes seven of Total’s ten largest lenders.
After one of the most powerful U.S. insurance brokers, Marsh McLennan, announced they are trying to help get this pipeline over the finish line by finding insurance for the project, 350 U.S. launched a campaign calling on the CEO to drop their involvement.
So far, over 16,000 people have signed the petition, but your name is not on it yet, John.
There is so much more work to be done, but all of our progress thus far proves that together we can stop this project for good.
Thank you for being part of this crucial work. We couldn’t do it without you.
In solidarity,
Ellie May
Global Digital Campaigner
350.org
P.S. Lastly, if you missed yesterday’s StopEACOP webinar, you can watch and share the recording here.
1 - Stop EACOP
2 - Gem Wiki
3 - Stop EACOP
4 - Stop EACOP
5 - Stop EACOP
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