Actor Benedict Cumberbatch has exposed the pension deforestation of pension investments, in the latest Make My Money Matter campaign.
The campaign, devised by agency Lucky Generals, features the Sherlock actor as Benedict Lumberjack, a CEO who uses UK pension savers money to fund deforestation.
In the ad, Cumberbatch is wrapped in a towel enjoying a sauna as he thanks UK pension holders for their money which has been used to burn the world’s rainforests.
Make My Money Matter hopes the ad, directed by Sophia Ray, will bring awareness to the issue and encourage pension holders to “green their pension” by signing its campaign website.
The campaign launches ahead of the United Nation’s 2025 deadline to eliminate commodity-driven deforestation.
Make My Money Matter senior campaign manager Izzy Howden said: “Benedict Lumberjack shows us the dark truth that our money is being used to destroy the planet and the future we’re saving for.
“It has never been more clear: our pension funds are failing us. They should be protecting our retirement, but instead, they continue to invest our money in the companies causing deforestation and profiting from the climate and nature crises. We need urgent action now – before it’s too late.”
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Make My Money Matter has said that £300 billion worth of pension funds are invested in companies with a high risk of driving deforestation. Its 2024 Climate Action Report revealed that the UK’s pension industry is failing to tackle these links.
The report also found reported that major pension issuers such as Royal London, Scottish Widows and Standard Life, do not have a public deforestation policy.
This is echoed more widely in Global Canopy’s 2023 Deforestation Action Tracker, which found 75% of companies didn’t have a public deforestation policy. The Action Tracker takes a look at action on deforestation in more than 700 financial institutions worldwide.
According to Amazon Watch, the Amazon experienced its worst fire season in twenty years due to agribusiness, animal agriculture, and unprecedented droughts.
The ad follows on from last year’s offering which was fronted by the Crown actress Olivia Coleman as Oblivia Coalmine, which highlighted the pension industry’s ties to fossil fuel companies.
Lucky Generals Co-founder Danny Brooke-Taylor said: “It’s time to turn up the heat on the pension companies that invest our savings into the destruction of the rainforests.”
