Scientists Disrupt Lockheed Martin’s Sponsorship of Largest Climate Scientist Conference
A group of scientists and concerned citizens dropped banners at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) annual conference. Large banners draped over the main lobby read “Lockheed Bombs The Planet For Profit” and “No Science For Genocide.” Lockheed Martin is a main sponsor of the conference that brings over 25,000 earth and space scientists and advocates together.
Scientists Disrupt Lockheed Martin’s Sponsorship of Largest Climate Scientist Conference
Credit: Julia Keane, @juliakeanephoto on Instagram
WASHINGTON D.C. — A group of scientists and concerned citizens dropped banners at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) annual conference in Washington, D.C. Large banners draped over the main lobby read “Lockheed Bombs the Planet For Profit” and “No Science For Genocide.” Protestors chanted “AGU we see you, Cut Ties with Lockheed Now!”, “Planet Over Pentagon,” and “From Palestine to Congo, Climate Justice NOW!” Despite receiving applause and affirmation from hundreds of scientists in the main lobby, they were escorted out by security. Lockheed Martin is a main sponsor of the conference that brings over 25,000 earth and space scientists and advocates together.
The youth led campaign is demanding that AGU end all relationships with the Lockheed Martin Corporation. Lockheed Martin shares have increased $200 per share in the last year on account of their profits from manufacturing the F-35 fighter jets used by Israel and Hellfire R9X missiles used to bomb displaced families across Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria. AGU’s decision to partner with a company profiting from and facilitating the genocide in Gaza undermines its own positions in support of environmental protection, climate action, education, and inclusivity.
“AGU has no place partnering with a weapons manufacturer that is contributing to the global climate crisis, aiding in the elimination of academic institutions, and destroying the environment and communities everywhere its weapons are used,” Dr. Marisa Borreggine, PhD in Earth Science from Harvard University and member of AGU.
Israel has destroyed every university in Gaza and killed over 3,000 scholars, including leading Physicist and President of the Islamic University of Gaza Dr. Sufian Tayeh who was murdered along with his entire family. Israel has also deliberately destroyed agriculture, water infrastructure, used internationally banned white phosphorous against civilians, and bombed Gaza’s infrastructure, including hospitals and schools, into tens of millions of metric tons of rubble. These actions, among many other war crimes in violation of international law, are made possible by weapons and advanced technology that Lockheed Martin develops in collaboration with major science institutions like AGU and funding from American tax dollars and University endowments.
“The military industrial complex fuels the climate crisis. Engineers and scientists should be focusing their efforts on a just transition that benefits the planet and the communities which inhabit it. If Lockheed Martin and other weapons manufacturers stopped making bombs and focused on true climate solutions that’s one thing. You absolutely can’t have both. AGU needs to cut ties and stop greenwashing genocide,” Olivia DiNucci a Climate and Anti-Militarism Organizer based in Washington D.C.
“Palestinians have deep cultural connections with the plants, waterways, and agricultural practices of their ancestral lands. Severing those, whether by bulldozing familial olive groves, forcefully displacing people, or this latest escalation to outright genocide constitutes white supremacist colonial land-grabbing.” Linnea Norton, PhD Student in Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University.
“As an atmospheric scientist and climate organizer, the linkages between the climate crisis, military industrial complex, and genocide in Gaza are crystal clear. Since 2022, the United States has sent $2.3 billion abroad for international public finance for fossil fuels, while also sending over $17 billion on military funding to Israel since October 2023. What if we invested this money on just climate solutions at home, rather than fueling the flames for oil and genocide abroad?” Alex Ortiz, Climate Organizer, with Oil Change International.
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NOTES:
- Students and Earth System Scientists have started a campaign to pressure the American Geophysical Union (AGU) to drop Lockheed Martin as a sponsor: http://bit.ly/against_genocide, and follow this account for more campaign updates.
- For more information, contact: [email protected].