Rockefeller heirs to stop investing in fossil fuels

The descendants of John D Rockefeller, whose oil business made him the first billionaire in America at the turn of the century, have announced they will no longer invest in fossil fuels and will move into clean energy instead.

The announcement was made yesterday by Peter O'Neill, head of the Rockefeller family and great-great-grandson of John D Rockefeller, who died in 1937. He was joined by Neva Rockefeller Goodwin, a great-granddaughter, says The Guardian.

After Rockefeller's death, a charitable trust was started in his name to safeguard his vast wealth. Currently, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund invests about seven per cent of its $860m assets in fossil fuels.

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Now the fund will divest itself of those assets, joining a coalition of philanthropic organisations which have pledged to shed a total of $50bn fossil fuel investments over the next five years. They include religious groups, cities, universities and healthcare funds.

Stephen Heintz, president of the Rockefeller fund pointed out that Rockefeller himself had – inadvertently – saved the whale by causing the decline of the whale oil industry with his cheap production of fossil fuels.

Heintz said: "John D Rockefeller, the founder of Standard Oil, moved America out of whale oil and into petroleum. We are quite convinced that if he were alive today, as an astute businessman looking out to the future, he would be moving out of fossil fuels and investing in clean, renewable energy."

The Rockefeller fund has been a major supporter of environmental causes in the past, opposed to fracking and to the construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline in Canada. These commitments have been an "uncomfortable fit" with its fossil fuel holdings, says The Guardian.