Why we are the trillionaires we need

Recently, we asked climate activists how they would theoretically support the climate with their money. 

We asked them: How would you help the climate with $100? They had some great, impactful answers. Some said they might plant wildflower seeds, donate to environmental organisations, buy a composting system or invest in reusable bags and packaging.  

We added a few zeroes, thinking of the sort of sums we might save in our super. With $100,000, many people felt that pooling this sum into a grassroots organisation or collective could have a tangible impact, for example to reinvigorate ecosystems, secure land for First Nations custodians, or start native plant nurseries. 

Then we asked: How would you help the climate with a million bucks? Now, things got really pointy. A million bucks is a lot of money. Maybe you could buy land of your own to rewild, start a climate tech company, implement city-wide initiatives or set up community-level clean energy production. Maybe you could even leverage it to influence government policy. 

Dial that up to a billion, and people start to think globally – solar, nature access and green walls for people everywhere, delivered at scale, supporting climate and human health and wellbeing (whereas spending it on rockets to Mars just doesn’t, Elon). 

And finally, we asked: How would you help the climate with a trillion dollars? Or even a few trillion?  

This kind of money can feel a bit like imagining stars in space or sand grains on a beach – it’s difficult to picture how many dollar coins that is, or how many zeroes. The answer is 12. One trillion is a million million. One billion $1 coins piled up would reach three times higher than the International Space Station. 

Our climate activists were left picturing how this could look, and how much it could do. It’s impossible to imagine. Who on earth even has that sort of money?  

The answer?  

Together, we do.  

$4.46 trillion is the approximate value of all of Australia’s superannuation savings combined. If you have a super account, some of it’s yours. Because it’s all held in investments, it all has a voice. Put together, that voice is deafening.  

The climate crisis demands systemic change, but systemic change starts with individual decisions, multiplied. Your own super balance might seem like a small piece of the puzzle, but Australia's $4.46 trillion superannuation system is one of the largest pools of capital in the world. Where that money flows matters. 

Harnessing super to drive change 

Leveraging superannuation investment can influence change by directing more capital towards specific sectors, for example renewable energy, sustainable infrastructure and social housing – which can all help accelerate Australia’s transition to a more productive and resilient net-zero economy. This can support sustainable growth and has the potential to create over 600,000 new jobs. 

But it’s not just about investing in great things. It’s about what NOT to invest in. By divesting – shifting money away from fossil fuel industries – their size and power weakens, and so does their voice.  

There are regulatory challenges - among them benchmarking that tends to emphasise shorter-term outcomes and may not adequately reflect the longer-term value creation inherent in sustainability-focused investing. But imagine what would be possible if more people directed their money away from fossil fuel companies hidden in their super. 

That’s the vision for Future Super. We’d love more super funds to protect their members’ money from volatile investment in fossil fuel companies and put it to better use, just as we have always done.  

As our video shows, your slice of this capital pool already has a voice. Your super is your climate legacy. Choosing sustainable super is one of the most powerful climate actions you can take – and instead of donating that $100 to a worthy cause, you’re growing it for your future. A future worth retiring into is the best investment there is.