By Kate Brunette
Fossil Free AU has begun a campaign in response to the threat that the burning of fossil fuels poses to current and future AU community members along with people around the world.
We are excited to join more than 200 campaigns at universities across the country that are striving to divest their endowments from fossil fuels. Fossil Free AU is a diverse coalition of AU student organizations, faculty, alumni and community members committed to a sustainable and equitable future.
In this effort, we strive to honor AU’s strong commitment to sustainability and social responsibility expressed in our university’s mission statement and our university’s progressive action in previous divestment campaigns to end financial support for companies doing business with the oppressive regimes of Sudan and Myanmar. We hope this campaign can embody the mission statement of AU: ideas into action and action into service for a prosperous and just future for all.
Fossil Free AU is committed to an inclusive campaign that unites and engages the richness of our community from environmental science professors to aspiring student investors. We will advocate for a university free of investments in fossil fuels through our Undergraduate Senate, a student referendum and in consultation with stakeholders across them ideological spectrum.
Throughout this process, we are committed to a dialogue with the AU community to ensure all voices are heard on the issue. All students will have an opportunity to express their opinion on the issue on a ballot referendum in March and are welcome to pose questions, support and concerns before that time.
We understand that this is not necessarily a simple process given the complicated nature of a university endowment. With this consideration in mind, we are asking for a two-step process from our Board of Trustees. We ask the Board of Trustees to implement a negative screen for all new investments in fossil fuels by the end of the calendar year (meaning no new investments in fossil fuel companies) and to begin a meaningful conversation to fully divest AU’s portfolio from industries that threaten our future.
In this process, we reject the false choice between college affordability and sustainability. We believe that socially responsible investments can reflect our values while growing our endowment and ensuring that an AU education remains accessible for all. Having researched the relative success of socially responsible portfolios to a standard index, we feel not only comfortable, but confident, in advocating for a change in our investments that reflects our commitment to sustainability and social justice.
In this campaign, we strive to embody the AU values that we cherish and believe in: passionate civility, respect for all parties and relentless positivity. With a negative screen for new investments in fossil fuels, AU can continue to lead the sustainability revolution and ensure that the American Dream is green.
To learn more about this campaign, please explore our Facebook page at facebook.com/FossilFreeAu, our website at fossilfreeau.wordpress.com or email the campaign at FossilFreeAU@gmail.com.
Kate Brunette is president of EcoSense and a junior in the School of International Service.
