Faqs
What is Oil Kills?
We are an international uprising to end fossil fuels, an unprecedented coalition of civil resistance groups from over 10 countries across Europe and North America.
We are taking nonviolent collective action at airports – a key pillar of the fossil fuel economy – to demand an end to oil, gas and coal by 2030.
What does Oil Kills want?
We demand that our governments work together to establish a legally binding treaty to stop extracting and burning oil, gas and coal by 2030 as well as supporting and financing poorer countries to make a fast, fair, and just transition.
This can be accomplished by endorsing the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative and seeking a negotiating mandate to establish the treaty.
Why do we need to phase out fossil fuels?
Burning fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas – is by far the largest driver of global heating, accounting for over 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90% of all carbon dioxide emissions.
We have already passed 1.5°C of global heating from pre-industrial times and are expected to pass 2°C in the 2030s. The catastrophic effects are increasingly being felt in poor countries and communities across the world. Innocent people already face unlivable conditions. Drowning in their homes. Overheating in the streets. Starving as crops fail.
Burning more fossil fuels will kill hundreds of millions of people and tip us into societal collapse. We urgently need all countries to phase out the production and use of fossil fuels.
Why 2030?
The call for a rapid phase out of fossil fuels is backed by climate science, by global equity considerations, by international law and by global public opinion.
The 2030 target date refers to wealthy developed countries in the global north who bear the greatest responsibility for the climate crisis, but who are not cutting emissions in line with their fair share of the global effort. Those with the broadest shoulders should bear the heaviest burden – that means rich countries who contributed most to the climate crisis must phase out soonest and must pay to support poorer countries achieve a fast fair and just transition.
Why should richer nations support and finance poorer countries to transition?
The truth is that all countries must phase out fossil fuel extraction as quickly as possible, but some countries have more of a challenge than others. Poorer countries, who are least responsible for climate change and most affected by it, are often highly dependent on fossil fuel extraction. They will only be able to phase out fossil fuel extraction as rapidly as needed if they receive international support. If the transition isn’t fair and globally coordinated, it will be politically impossible to achieve. A fast, fair and globally coordinated transition is needed.
Why target airports?
Airports are a key pillar of the global fossil fuel economy that is driving us towards climate and societal collapse. By taking nonviolent direct action at airports, we are disrupting business as usual on an international scale that can’t be ignored. We aim to confront the collective denial of governments that are failing to take adequate steps to address the climate crisis or to protect the public from its inevitable consequences.
Many groups have taken aviation as their target before us. Go see our friends at Stay Grounded.
What is nonviolent civil resistance?
Civil resistance is a powerful way for people to nonviolently demand their rights, freedom, and justice. When people wage nonviolent civil resistance, they use tactics such as strikes, boycotts, mass protests and disruption to withdraw their cooperation from the state. We are willing to take part in nonviolent direct action, day after day, week after week, until our demand is met.
We take all possible steps to ensure that no-one’s safety is compromised by our actions.
Why destroy summer family holidays?
In normal times disrupting family holidays would be completely unacceptable. But we have to recognise these aren’t normal times. Last year holidaying families had to run from the flames in Greece carrying their children in their arms. We’ve seen Canada on fire and Pakistan under water. In 2022, there were 61,000 excess deaths across Europe due to the extreme heat. Large parts of the world are becoming uninhabitable. We all deserve safety for our families, which is why we are demanding urgent action from our governments, something that can only be done if they are forced to talk about it.
Will there be arrests?
Probably, yes. Throughout history ordinary people have taken action to prevent greater harm when they recognise that the state is acting immorally. In failing to act against entrenched fossil fuel interests and continuing to support the fossil fuel economy our governments are directly harming our families and communities as well as people across the world. Therefore we are asserting our legal right and moral duty to act.
Why a Fossil Fuel Treaty?
Governments and fossil fuel producers are waging war on humanity. Even so-called climate leaders have continued to approve new coal, oil and gas projects pushing the world closer to global catastrophe and condemning hundreds of millions to death. We need an emergency international response to save lives.
Treaties can be a fast and effective way to deal with global threats – they have been used in the past to tackle global threats like nuclear weapons, landmines and ozone destroying chemicals. Many of these were negotiated remarkably quickly – the Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty was negotiated in just two week-long meetings. Treaties can also impact on countries that haven’t signed them. For instance, the U.S. never signed the Mine Ban Treaty yet still phased out anti-personnel mines.
We are asking our governments to endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative and seek a negotiating mandate to establish the treaty.
But we already have COP?
It has taken 30 years for the climate negotiations to mention the words “fossil fuels” in a process that is now corrupted by the world’s biggest oil powers. Since COP28, many countries – including the US, UK, Australia, Canada and Norway – have approved new fossil fuel projects despite supporting “a transition”. We can’t wait any longer.
The link between oil, gas and coal, and human lives is now crystal clear: Oil Kills.
Sign a treaty.