• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion

3

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion

3

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
NewslettersGreen, Inc.

Is The Tech Sector Going On Climate Strike? — The Loop

By
Eamon Barrett
Eamon Barrett
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Eamon Barrett
Eamon Barrett
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 17, 2019, 7:19 AM ET
fortune logo icon (green)
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

This is the web version of The Loop, Fortune’s weekly newsletter on the revolutions in sustainability. To get it delivered daily to your inbox, sign up here.

The Global Climate Strike is coming back; this time, with adults.

Six months ago an estimated 1.5 million school children around the world went on strike, walking out of schools and onto the streets to raise awareness of climate change. Another Climate Strike is in the offing for this Friday and employees from several major tech firms — including Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon— have pledged to join.

However, compared to previous tech-sector walkouts, the numbers are miniscule.

At the time of writing, just 300 Google employees have signed-up for a “local climate strike” on September 20. Compare that to the 20,000 staffers who walked out of 50 Google offices last November in protest of sexual harassment. Meanwhile Twitter accounts that claim to represent strikers at Microsoft and Facebook haven’t provided numbers for strike participants nor, indeed, have they provided motivations for striking.

It’s Amazon employees, acting under the group Amazon Employees for Climate Justice (AECJ), that are leading the charge here. Over 1,000 staff, mostly at Amazon’s corporate headquarters in Seattle, have signed-up to skip work on Friday. It will be the first walkout at HQ in Amazon’s 25-year history.

The AECJ has demands, too. In a blog post promoting Friday’s strike, the AECJ calls on Amazon to achieve net zero emissions by 2030, to stop customizing Amazon Web Service contracts that help fossil fuel companies accelerate gas and oil extractions, and to stop funding climate change-denying lobbyists, like the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

Those are largely the same demands the AECJ set out in April when it sent an open letter —signed by over 8,000 employees — to CEO Jeff Bezos, requesting shareholders to incorporate those demands into a resolution. The shareholders declined.

I predict a walkout of 1,000 or so of Amazon’s 40,000-plus Seattle employees will go largely ignored, too.

But don’t misinterpret my skepticism for contempt of the employee movement: it’s good employees want to pressure employers to tackle climate change — especially at Amazon, which is lagging far behind on basic sustainability goals when compared to other leading internet companies. However, with such low participation, Friday’s tech-sector Climate Strike won’t be as notable as headlines suggest.

Eamon Barrett
– Eamon.Barrett@Fortune.com

Carbon Copy

ROI is king. Investing $1.8 trillion in climate change adaptation strategies over the next ten years could yield a $7.1 trillion return. That’s the latest report from the Global Commission on Adaptation: an international think tank co-chaired by a supergroup of advocacy rock stars—Bill Gates, former U.N secretary Ban Ki-moon, and World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva. The five adaption strategies include investing in early warning systems, building more durable infrastructure and improving water management. Fast Company 

Sustainable signals. Over 80% of individual investors are interested in sustainable investing while 50% are actually acting and taking party in at least one sustainable investment. That’s the highest level recorded by Morgan Stanley’s biennial Sustainable Signals survey, up from around 70% in 2015. Interestingly, 64% of respondents said they expected lower financial gains from sustainable investments but 86% also agreed that good ESG practices can deliver greater long-term returns. Morgan Stanley

Burning bright. Despite its current wildfires, Indonesia was a rare bright spot in a report on the world’s efforts to cut deforestation rates in half by 2020, as per the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF). According to the NYDF, the speed of deforestation worldwide has surged 43% since 2014. In Indonesia, however, felling rates retracted 30% last year – led by good weather but, also, good policy. Widodo’s government is actively preserving forest and peatland, renewing a 2011 moratorium on development just last month. Eco-Business

Support grid. South Africa is mulling a proposal led by Cape Town think tank Meridian Economics to bail out the debt-struck state electric utility, Eskom Holdings, with an $11 billion green financing fund. The fund, backed by private funders and development finance institutions, would allocate capital to Eksom on the condition it closes coal power plants and invests more in renewables. A Meridian spokesperson said the deal would be the largest “global climate finance transaction” to date. Bloomberg

Muddying the waters Continuing its rollback of Obama-era environmental policies, the White House last week repealed a 2015 clean water act, which curtailed the seepage of chemicals into U.S. water supplies. However, some major agricultural unions support the repeal, saying the clean water act encroached on farmers’ property rights. New York Times

In The Loop

How Sustainable Start-up Rothy’s Found Success Turning Recycled Water Bottles into Fashionable Footwear Fortune

Energy Companies Have the Power to Act on Purpose Fortune

If Hospitals Made Efforts to Go Green, Health Care Costs Would Go Down Fortune

Nestlé Says It Will Achieve ‘Net Zero’ Emissions. But What Does That Mean? Fortune

Data Dive

7 million displaced

In the first half of 2019, seven million people were displaced by extreme weather events, such as Hurricane Dorian, which devastated the Bahamas earlier this month. As the New York Times explains, that number needs a little unpacking. While it’s the highest midyear figure recorded since 2003, when records began, it also includes people who, thanks to improved early warning systems, were evacuated ahead of impending natural disasters — such as the 3.4 million people in India and Bangladesh removed from harm’s way before Cyclone Fani struck in May. It’s a ray of hope that as climate change continues to intensify extreme weather events we can build better systems to mitigate disaster.

Scrapbook

Weekly summaries of corporate sustainable goals.

In 2015 the Coca Cola Company set itself eight key sustainability goals to achieve in five years. According to its latest report (2018) the company has seen declining success in its target for 95% of direct suppliers to be compliant with Coca Cola’s human rights principles; is on track to meet a 25% reduction in the carbon footprint of the “drink in your hand”; has stagnated at 59% in its efforts to achieve 75% recycling of bottles and cans; and has exceeded its goal of investing 1% of operating income into local communities.

 

This edition of CEO Daily was edited by Eamon Barrett. Find previous editions here, and sign up for other Fortune newsletters here.

About the Author
By Eamon Barrett
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Newsletters

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Newsletters

Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis
AIEye on AI
A FINRA for AI? The idea from Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis is gaining momentum. But is it any good?
By Jeremy KahnJuly 21, 2026
9 hours ago
Exclusive: Twin sisters built GlossGenius into the latest female-founded unicorn. Now they’re debuting AI for small businesses far beyond beauty
NewslettersMPW Daily
Exclusive: Twin sisters built GlossGenius into the latest female-founded unicorn. Now they’re debuting AI for small businesses far beyond beauty
By Emma HinchliffeJuly 21, 2026
11 hours ago
Photo: President Trump.
NewslettersMarkets
Iran calls for ‘full-scale war’ but behind the scenes a peace proposal might reopen the Strait of Hormuz—if Trump can stomach it
By Jim EdwardsJuly 21, 2026
17 hours ago
Shipping transits slow to a trickle as Strait of Hormuz faces “worst-case scenario” 
NewslettersFortune Gulf Brief
Shipping transits slow to a trickle as Strait of Hormuz faces “worst-case scenario” 
By Melissa HancockJuly 21, 2026
17 hours ago
United Airlines’ growth strategy is all about selling customers a better version of what they already buy
NewslettersCEO Daily
United Airlines’ growth strategy is all about selling customers a better version of what they already buy
By Phil WahbaJuly 21, 2026
17 hours ago
Yang Zhilin, co-founder of Moonshot AI, in Beijing, China on March 25, 2026. (Photo: VCG/Getty Images)
NewslettersFortune Tech
What will the White House do about China’s new open weight AI models?
By Andrew NuscaJuly 21, 2026
18 hours ago

Most Popular

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
1 day ago
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
Success
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
By Sydney LakeJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
Cybersecurity
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 21, 2026
7 hours ago
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
AI
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
By Jason MaJuly 18, 2026
3 days ago
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
AI
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
By Eva RoytburgJuly 21, 2026
11 hours ago
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
Success
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
By Emma BurleighJuly 21, 2026
12 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.