Westpac is the first Australian bank to set a zero-deforestation target! This means the big bank will rule out loans to agriculture that would destroy Australia’s native forests to expand beef, dairy and sheep farming.
Every year, over 500,000 hectares of threatened species habitat is bulldozed – mainly for sheep and cattle grazing – pushing koalas and other iconic wildlife to the brink.
With the majority of deforestation in Australia financed by a bank, Westpac's announcement is a huge win for nature – and we need the other big banks to follow in their footsteps.
Write to ANZ, NAB, CommBank, Macquarie, Rabobank and Suncorp now and call on them to stop pouring billions of dollars into agriculture loans with no restrictions on land clearing, and to fund nature and climate solutions instead.
We've written an email to get you started. Personalising it is a great way to increase your impact.
Together we can hold all Australian banks to account and stop the financing of nature destruction, for good.
Banner image credit: Kerry Trapnell