![]() ![]() ![]() Some climate experts argue that while fossil fuel companies derail many efforts to reduce emissions, some of them nevertheless must play a role in any transition to a low-carbon future. “Divesting from all fossil fuel companies turns the climate problem into something that seems like a simple problem, and in fact it’s the opposite.”ĭivestment as a strategy, however, is not without its critics. Tuesday’s announcement also comes at a time of heightened climate activism, with young people around the world-led by crusading Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg-set to walk out of school in a coordinated climate strike Friday, ahead of the United Nations Climate Action Summit. Students at the university have a history of successful divestment campaigns, agitating for the pulling of funds from apartheid-era South Africa and, more recently, private prisons. “Each time they’ve added a little bit more.” “The UC has taken cautious steps,” said Emily Williams, a PhD student in geography at UC Santa Barbara active in the campaign. UC had previously divested from coal and tar sands, and committed to becoming carbon-neutral by 2025. “The students were the first early warning system for us,” he said. “We have developed a more comprehensive, custom list,” he said in an email to CalMatters.Īt the meeting, Baccher also credited student activism for raising his awareness about the issue. Divestment will not be limited to those companies, however, UC spokesman Stett Holbrook said. UC is shedding about $150 million in investments in the top 200 publicly-traded fossil fuel companies from its endowment, Baccher said at Tuesday’s board of regents meeting. One unanswered question: exactly how the university will define a fossil fuel asset. Students with the group Fossil Free UC stage a protest. “We believe hanging onto fossil fuel assets is a financial risk,” chief investment officer Jagdeep Singh Bachher and Richard Sherman, chair of the university regents’ investment committee, wrote in an opinion piece published in the Los Angeles Times. “This is the biggest single commitment by any educational institution in the world and it represents a true watershed.” UC officials, however, said they made it for financial reasons. The decision - which coincides with a worldwide strike planned for Friday and the Trump administration threatening California’s auto emissions standards - caps a multi-year campaign by students and faculty who argued the university had a responsibility to address climate change. In what is already shaping up to be a banner week for climate policy watchers, the University of California on Tuesday announced it will divest its $83 billion in endowment and pension funds from the fossil fuel industry, a move that could send ripple effects throughout higher education nationally. Climate leadership means saying NO to the fossil fuel industry and its money, and taking the No Fossil Fuel Money pledge is a core part of that commitment.The decision caps a multi-year campaign by students and faculty who argued the university had a responsibility to address climate change. We need leaders that reject the influence of fossil fuel money and plan for a just, climate-safe, renewable energy future for everyone, not just the few. In exchange for their cash, these companies continue to receive billions in subsidies and friendly laws that benefit polluters instead of people. Fossil fuel companies spent more than $260 million in campaign contributions and lobbying Congress in the 2016 cycle. Overcoming the climate emergency is the great moral imperative of our time.ĭirty fossil fuel money is corrupting our political system and blocking bold action on climate change. The costs are borne by our families and our communities, destroying the American dream of shared prosperity and justice. The climate crisis is already harming Americans today - from extreme weather to higher food and energy bills to increased public health threats. ![]()
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