Strathclyde University has partnered with product and service provider for fossil fuels industries, the Weir Group, for the new Glasgow City Innovation District.
The University of Strathclyde has £42.4 million going into different investments, 9% of these funds are being invested into fossil fuels.
Despite this, the University of Strathclyde Strategic Plan 2015-2020 states “Financial and Environmental Sustainability” as an objective and a commitment to reduce carbon emissions by 25% by 2020.
Sara Cowan, Vice President of Volunteering and Development at the Strathclyde Union, says, “As much as it seems exciting for Strathclyde to be involved in an innovation district in Glasgow, I panic seeing that our university is so supportive of the fossil fuel industry. The university’s strategic goals say they want to cut their carbon footprint, yet they act like a partnership with a fracking company is something to celebrate?”
A group of Strathclyde students called Divest Strathclyde, have been campaigning for the university to stop investing in fossil fuels. The group “calls for ethical investment, which would help local economies and in the long term generate higher return than fossil fuels.”
Divest Strathclyde says “The Partnership is deeply disturbing. Not only are they channelling students into a corrupt and dying industry, they are putting their very future at stake by supporting an industry determined to warm this planet well above 2 degrees.”
Strathclyde Student Parliament passed a motion on 21 January 2019 to campaign for the university to divest from fossil fuels, and has now resolved that the Strathclyde Union will support this campaign and organise for future divestment campaign training to support student activist development.
Strathclyde Union says they are “ready to support Divest Strathclyde students with any campaigns and actions that they may want to take to address their concerns about the university’s investments.”
By Niamh Mcdonald
