Students clip cards in protest against Citigroup

On Wed., Nov. 7, a small group of students gathered on Beinecke Plaza to kick off a campaign against Citigroup, the largest banking conglomerate in the world. The students' concerns focused on unsound environmental practices that the company allegedly supports. The rally occurred in conjunction with more than 50 other rallies around the country that were coordinated by the Rainforest Action Network.

YOO SUN CHEONG/YH Students destroyed their Citibank credit cards on Wed., Nov. 7 on Beinecke Plaza to protest that company's "spotty" environmental record.

"I think a lot of environmentalists would say that Citigroup is the most environmentally damaging company in the world," said Billy Parish, MC '04, an activist in the Yale Citigroup Campaign. "The idea is to raise awareness. Money invested in banks such as Citigroup is often used to finance projects that harm the environment."

In addition to the rally, the group plans to set up tables outside dining halls in coming weeks to encourage students to destroy their personal Citibank credit cards.

"Citigroup has a pretty spotty record," Jack Dafoe, MC '04, another activist in the group, said. "For example, it has continued to be an intermediate financier to harmful projects such as the Three Gorges Dam in China. Other banks have backed out of that project because of its possible consequences."

According to the Rainforest Action Network, other Citigroup-funded projects include the construction of an oil pipeline in Chad and Cameroon, the deforestation of rainforests in Chile, and the creation of palm oil plantations in Indonesia.

Many activists, however, acknowledge the expectations placed on a corporation by shareholders who demand high profit margins. Corporations are often put in the position of having to mediate between competing environmental and consumer interests.

"We're not asking them to stop funding all fossil fuel projects," Dafoe said. "We just want them to consider the impact these projects have on the environment."

In defense of its operations in Chad and Cameroon, Citigroup has claimed that the World Bank is also involved in the projects and has sufficient safeguards in place to protect the environment.

Citigroup no longer supports the company accused of destroying the rainforest in Chile, as that company went bankrupt in the 1980s.

In Indonesia, Citigroup has emphasized that it does no new business with the company accused of clearing sections of the rainforest to build palm oil plantations.

In China, Citigroup has said it has never given money to the Three Gorges Dam project. Instead, Citigroup holds that it simply underwrote a bond offering by the China Development Bank and was assured that no funds would be appropriated for the controversial project.

While activists claim that Citigroup has yet to make substantive changes in its investment practices, recent media attention on the banking giant has prompted at least some formal policy clarifications. Citigroup recently released a statement outlining its corporate relationship with the environment. The statement includes vows to "identify, quantify, and control environmental and social risks as part of the risk assessment process in underwriting and financing projects."

The Yale Citigroup Campaign, however, does not believe these promises are a sufficient guarantee against future environmental atrocities. "The set of statements contains nothing concrete," Dafoe said. "They say nothing about whether they're going to balance their own growth with their treatment of the environment." Representatives from Citigroup were unavailable for comment.

A year ago, students campaigning against Citigroup's practices spoke to Iris Gold, Citigroup's vice president of environmental affairs. "We asked, `Can you prove to students that Citigroup is not funding projects that are harmful to the environment?'" Dafoe said. "She basically said that they can't." Gold did not return the Herald's phone calls.

Citigroup's most recent annual report reads, "We aspire to be known as the leader in global financial services [and] the company with the highest standards of moral and ethical conduct...taking a leadership role in every local community around the world in which we operate, and making each community a better place because we are there."

In a statement released on Wed., Nov. 7, however, Ilyse Hogue, the global finance campaigner for the Rainforest Actions Network, issued a starkly different statement: "[Citigroup] chooses to continue projects that warm the planet, destroy ecosystems, and trample the rights of the world's remaining indigenous peoples."

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