To limit the warming of the planet to 1.5°C, global emissions must be cut by 45 pct. by 2030. Fossil CO2 emissions represent the bulk of total global emissions, accounting for approximately 91 pct. of global emissions. To avert dangerous climate change, most fossil fuels must therefore be kept in the ground. Yet, the financial system keeps driving and supporting the production and consumption of fossil fuels at levels wholly incompatible with the Paris Agreement.

The world’s 60 largest banks have invested more than USD 5.5tn in fossil fuels since the Paris Agreement was adopted in 2016, while global development banks and G20 countries over the past three years have provided an average of USD 30bn annually in international public finance for oil, gas, and coal. Importantly, though, there are early indications of also going into clean energy projects.

KR Foundation has supported interventions that aim to shift both public and private financial incentives and means (such as investments, a downward shift in this trend, and public money flows are increasingly subsidies, taxes, regulation, etc.) away from fossil fuel production and consumption and onto a pathway compatible with the Paris Agreement.

In 2023, KR Foundation grantees have worked to contribute to two overall aims:

• Coal: Public and private financial actors adopt policies that lead to a phase-out of coal-fired power plants while avoiding gas-fired power plants as replacement.
• Oil and gas: Phasing out investments in oil and gas production.

The fossil fuel industry is known to use an entire “industry of influence” (e.g., PR, lobbyism, advertising, sponsorships) to produce social and political license, mislead the public, and obstruct and delay climate action.

The existing economic paradigm, promoted by fossil fuel interests, is simultaneously causing climate crisis and preventing climate action.

KR Foundation supports interventions that strengthen the growing ecosystem of new economy organisations and promote an economic paradigm shift. This work is pursued in Denmark and internationally through the donor collaborative, Partners for a New Economy.

KR Foundation’s work contributes to the following outcomes:

1. Promote political and institutional change in alignment with a sustainable economy
2. Promote “new economy” narrative(s) and challenge the existing economic narrative
3. Network capacity and field building to strengthen collective power and impact

Global efforts are key in addressing the climate crisis. That is why KR Foundation is funding international high-impact projects focusing on the root causes of climate change. However, as one of the richest and most GHG emitting countries in the world measured per capita, Denmark can and should play an important role in driving the needed change towards a  thriving, low-carbon world.

In 2020, the Danish government, supported broadly by the Parliament, businesses, civil society, and citizens, adopted an ambition to reduce GHG emissions by 70 pct. by 2030 as Denmark’s fair contribution to achieving global decarbonization goals. This is one of the most ambitious climate goals in the world and it requires a massive collective effort that involves all parts of the Danish society. To support this effort KR Foundation, VELUX FOUNDATION and VILLUM FOUNDATION launched the 70by30 project in 2021, which allocated DKK 320m in support of the realisation of the Danish climate goal.

KR Foundation continues to support Danish civil society, primarily by funding projects that aim to increase public support and engagement in the green transformation and advance new economic thinking. We collaborate with other Danish foundations in support of these agendas to help accelerate ambitious climate action. KR Foundation’s work contributes to the following outcomes:

1. Improved policies
2. Strengthened base of support
3. Shift in social norms
4. Strengthened alliances

Fossil fuel companies spend millions of dollars each year on PR firms that help them improve their image in the eyes of decision makers and the public. The PR firms do not just help oil executives get favorable press, they also assist companies in reaching influential politicians and journalists, and aide them in engaging specific voting demographics, filmmakers, artists, and tech entrepreneurs. For instance, it is well-documented that PR firms are working with TikTok influencers to promote the fossil fuel industry to younger audiences6, and that they are crafting curricula for schools that soft-pedal fossil fuel dependency. These activities are largely kept hidden and are rarely reported on by the press.

Drilled is an international collaborative of investigative journalists focusing on climate accountability. With support from KR Foundation they will launch a series of investigative reporting projects focused on the PR industry’s work to in- fluence the media on behalf of the fossil fuel industry. Drilled is headed by journalist Amy Westervelt, who has more thantwo decades of experience with climate accountability and has received several awards. In addition to producing their own audio and print stories, Drilled will work with various partners to increase media coverage on the PR industry’s in- fluence and create educational materials that can help other journalists spot and deflect key PR tactics used to sustain fossil fuel dependency.

Human activity has compromised Earth's resilience, pushing it far beyond the "safe operating space" that ensures the livability of the planet for most species. Six of nine planetary boundaries (climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, synthetic chemicals including plastics, freshwater depletion, and nitrogen use) are deep in the red zone as a consequence of human activity. The many challenges of the 21st century, such as climate change and deteriorating social cohesion and mental health, are interconnected and systemic. They are not isolated issues but rather symptoms of an outdated economic system that overly relies on GDP growth as its sole measure of success, disregarding the well-being of the planet and its inhabitants.

Wellbeing Economy Lab (WELA) is a newly established independent science-based Danish think tank that will combine new economic thinking, systems thinking and a co-creational approach to public policy, aiming to contribute to the transformation of the economic system into a ‘Wellbeing Economy’. The project aims to enhance public awareness and bridge knowledge gaps regarding the causal links between the current economic system and the crises of the 21st century, in order to effectively advocate for a paradigm shift in Danish policy-making. WELA will do this by developing practical methods, tools, and policies that support a shift towards a Wellbeing Economy. This includes promoting alternatives to traditional GDP metrics, consistent data collection and monitoring, and models for evaluating policy impacts.