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Prolific teen climate activist Greta Thunberg has blasted professional tennis player Roger Federer due to his connection with a bank that invests in fossil fuels.
Federer, who was defeated by plant-based athlete Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon finals last year, is an ambassador for Switzerland’s largest bank Credit Suisse – which has recently faced pressure from activist to break its relationship with the industry.
‘#RogerWakeUpNow’
Thunberg retweeted a post from 350 Europe stating: “Since 2016 Credit Suisse has provided $57 BILLION to companies looking for new fossil fuel deposits – something that is utterly incompatible with #ClimateAction. Roger Federer, do you endorse this? #RogerWakeUpNow
The 17-year-old environmentalist also called for an end to fossil fuel ‘madness’ in a recent article for The Guardian, saying failure to stop investment would be ‘a betrayal against life itself’.
‘A passionate advocate’
“I take the effects and threats of climate change very seriously, especially since my family and I arrive in Australia amid the destruction caused by the bush fires,” Federer said in a statement, according to the Express.
“As the father of four children and a passionate advocate of universal education, I have great respect and admiration for the youth climate movement.”
He also said he was ‘grateful’ to young climate activists, adding: “We owe it to them and ourselves to listen.”
Last month, Credit Suisse announced it will stop financing the development of new coal-fired power plants.
