MORE authors have joined calls for the Scottish investment bank Baillie Gifford to cut ties with the fossil fuel industry.
In August, climate activist Greta Thunberg cancelled an appearance at the Edinburgh International Book Festival due to the event being sponsored by Baillie Gifford.
She said she could not attend due to Baillie Gifford’s investments in the fossil fuel industry and said its sponsorship of cultural events amounted to “greenwashing”.
The group Fossil Free Books (FFB) has since issued a statement calling on the 12 book festivals currently sponsored by Baillie Gifford to urge the company to divest from fossil fuels.
Co-signed by respected authors such as Naomi Klein, Ben Okri, Max Porter and Rebecca Solnit, it read: “In August, at the start of the Edinburgh International Books Festival, hundreds of authors came together to ask Baillie Gifford to divest from fossil fuels.
“Now, as Fossil Free Books, we are urging all UK literature festivals currently receiving sponsorship from Baillie Gifford to call on Baillie Gifford to divest.
“These festivals often platform vital conversations and concerns about the urgency of the climate crisis.
“To address the material reality behind these conversations, we cannot allow fossil fuel investments to fund these events.”
However, the director of Borders Book Festival, Alistair Moffat, said that the calls amounted to “self-righteousness against complexity”.
“Two weeks ago, we had a schools’ day in Hawick for 1,300 primary school kids,” he said.
“Baillie Gifford paid for each of them to receive a book for free. These children aren’t investing in fossil fuels.
“The folk demanding that Baillie Gifford divest from fossil fuels are not interested in dialogue.
“They just say, ‘Get rid of them or we can’t come. You shouldn’t take the money.’ “It’s self-righteousness against complexity”.
Baillie Gifford states that only 2% of its clients’ money is invested in companies connected to fossil fuels, compared to an 11% market average.
