Could fossil fuel divestment help beat climate change?

Norway's move out of coal is a powerful symbol of the growing strength of movement

Divestment protest
(Image credit: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images)

The campaign calling for the widespread withdrawal of capital from major fossil fuel polluters secured a significant coup this summer, as Norway's parliament ordered its sovereign wealth fund to divest from companies whose main business is burning coal.

There is more than a hint of irony in the move, the New York Times says. The fund, which at $890bn is the world's largest sovereign investment vehicle, was created from money Norway earned by being a global oil exporter. A large slice of the country's economy continues to rely on the production and export of oil and gas.

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