CalPERS & CalSTRS Divestment

Is your pension funding pipelines?

FFCA’s founding campaign calls for divestment of the nation's two largest pensions–CalPERS (the California State Public Employees Retirement System) and CalSTRS (the California State Teachers Retirement System)–from fossil fuels. Together, these funds hold over $40 billion in fossil fuel investments–more than any other public pensions in the country. These investments directly finance the pipelines, refineries, and drilling sites that are warming our planet and poisoning California communities. They also put workers’ hard-earned retirement funds at risk by sinking them into a highly volatile, declining industry.

A decade of action for divestment

Over the past decade, FFCA has organized teachers, state workers, retirees, public school students, and allies across the labor and environmental movements to get our public pensions out of the oil and gas industry.

We’ve mobilized hundreds of teachers and state workers to urge the CalPERS and CalSTRS Boards to divest. We’ve organized demonstrations across California, from art actions to massive marches. We’ve teamed up with researchers and finance professionals to produce reports showing the pensions’ complicity in the climate crisis–and the financial risks of investing in a dying industry.

Thanks to FFCA activists’ efforts, fourteen cities in California have passed resolutions calling for our public pensions to divest, including Berkeley, Brisbane, Encinitas, Fairfax, Fremont, Mountain View, Oakland, Redway, Richmond, Palo Alto, San Luis Obispo, Santa Monica, Sunnyvale, and Watsonville.

In 2015, we successfully passed two laws requiring CalSTRS to divest from thermal coal and disclose climate-related financial risks in their portfolio.

In 2019, State Treasurer Fiona Ma stood with teachers and students in calling for CalSTRS to divest from fossil fuels. State Superintendent Tony Thurmond also announced his support in 2021.

In 2023-4, we mobilized a statewide coalition of over 200 organizations, unions, and faith groups to support SB 252, legislation authored by State Senator Lena Gonzalez that would have required CalSTRS and CalSTRS to divest from the largest global oil and gas producers.

Your union is your voice!

FFCA empowers unions and union members with the tools they need to demand divestment. Since 2014, we have trained and supported hundreds of worker leaders to take action for policies that are good for labor and good for the climate. Statewide unions like the California Federation of Teachers, California Faculty Association, AFSCME California, and the California Nurses’ Association have spoken out for public pension divestment. More than 25 local teachers’ unions have passed resolutions in support of CalSTRS divestment.

If you’re a California teacher or public worker, you can introduce a divestment resolution to your statewide or local union.

TAKE ACTION

Pass a divestment resolution

Your local union can help call on CalPERS to divest from fossil fuels.

LEARN MORE

Call on the CalSTRS & CalPERS boards to divest

Write to the CalPERS and CalSTRS Boards urging them to divest from fossil fuels now. Sign onto our default letter or write your own!

SEND A LETTER

Join the Divestment

We're organizing to gain union support for divesting CalPERS and CalSTRS from fossil fuels once and for all.

I'M IN

Progress & setbacks

The second Trump administration has created a difficult climate for divestment movements. Many institutional investors are wary of taking actions that could draw attention from the federal government.

But the past decade has also seen substantial progress toward sustainable pension investments. The financial data has become increasingly clear: fossil fuel investments are higher-risk and lower-return than fossil-free portfolios. Public pensions from Maine to New York City have ditched fossil fuels. Multiple long-range studies have confirmed that CalPERS and CalSTRS would have billions more today if they had sold off fossil fuel investments a decade ago.

As of 2026, neither CalPERS nor CalSTRS have divested from fossil fuels. But both have made substantial changes in response to pressure from members concerned about oil and gas investments. CalSTRS has moved about 20% of its assets to a lower-carbon fund–with no loss in performance. CalPERS has moved $100 billion into a “Climate Solutions Fund”--though more work remains to be done to make this fund meaningful, as it still contains oil and gas investments.