On February 22, a group of approximately twenty students led by members of DivestSLU and the Earth Action Organization (EAO) gathered in front of the Student Center to protest the Board of Trustees’ semiannual meeting. Chanting slogans like “system change not climate change,” and bearing hand-painted signs, the students marched from the doors of the Student Center past the library and down to the Chapel, turning towards Dean Eaton.
Upon their return to the Student Center, they ascended the stairs to where the Board was meeting in the Hannon Room. The activists continued demonstrating until President Fox invited the group in.
Inside, the group gave an impromptu speech on the importance of addressing causes and symptoms of climate change. Upon questioning, one individual (who asked not to be named) said, “In light of the U.N.’s Annual Report on Climate Change, action has never been more important than now. Though the Board of Trustees may not see it, we as students know the grim reality of climate change in regards to our ecosystems, our wildlife, and our future.” Currently, St. Lawrence University has millions of dollars of its endowment invested in fossil fuel companies, making it complicit in the lateness of climate action.
This is not the first time action has been taken by students on this topic. Last year, a protest was organized as well, and DivestSLU has presented to the Board on the importance of divestment from non-green energy before. However, the Board declined to do so, citing the financial viability of dirty stocks and complications in negotiations with the investment company.
The divestment movement has picked up steam in recent years as the immediacy of climate change becomes more and more apparent. Originally student-led, institutions like the University of Glasgow and Stanford University as well as geopolitical bodies like Burlington, Vermont, Washington, D.C., and the country of Ireland have all voted to embrace the Divest movement. Recently, Middlebury College voted to divest $55 million from fossil fuels.
On campus, DivestSLU (also known as the Divestment Club) works to increase awareness and action on environmental issues such as divestment. In addition to protests, the group screens movies, invites speakers to campus, and organizes political campaigns such as letter-writing. They meet every Monday at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Center’s Crandell Room.
EAO is another student-run organization that works to promote sustainable living and ideology on campus. EAO organizes events such as trash clean-ups, terracycling, and phone-banking. EAO meets every Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Crandell Room. The two groups work in tandem with other organizations such as the Green House and Seed to Table for events such as Earth Day.