|
Dear Colleagues,
SFU350
is asking for faculty support in their call to SFU’s BOG to
further reduce the
carbon intensity of SFU’s investments. A
group of faculty has prepared an open letter to support the
students’ efforts, included
below. If you would like
to add your
name to the letter, please do so ASAP at: https://goo.gl/forms/oVYlPHrPcrXQT3VJ3
Please complete the form rather than replying to me directly. Note this open letter is for faculty only.
The letter will be made public and presented to the BOG’s Responsible Investment Committee on March 15. Please also consider forwarding this email to interested colleagues.
Michael Schmitt -- Michael T. Schmitt, PhD Simon Fraser University Department of Psychology 8888 University Drive Burnaby BC, Canada V5A 1S6 The SFU Burnaby campus is located on the unceded traditional territories of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, Musqueam, and Kwikwetlem Nations. mschmitt@sfu.ca http://www.sfu.ca/psyc/faculty/schmitt/lab/
Fossil Fuel Divestment – Faculty Open Letter to the SFU Board of Governors
To the SFU Board of Governors:
As SFU faculty, we support SFU350’s call for SFU to adopt a carbon footprint reduction target of 70% of its investment portfolio by 2030.1
We applaud the university’s first steps to reduce the carbon footprint of its investment portfolio, adopting a 30% reduction target, and more recently a 40% target by 2030. However, in light of the IPCC’s recent report, this target is insufficient: according to the report, a global reduction in emissions of 45% is required by 20302. Furthermore, Canada is one of the largest emitters per capita; to reduce emissions globally in a fair manner, Canada’s share of emission reductions is 70% of 2005 levels by 20303.
As recognized in SFU’s Strategic Sustainability Plan, “human-caused climate change is real and evidence of environmental degradation is widespread and obvious.” Sea level is rising, severe weather events are becoming more frequent and intense, and forest fires are becoming larger and more numerous. Left unchecked, climate change threatens to cause catastrophic devastation to human civilization, other species, and planetary ecosystems.
Now more than ever it is clear that the transition away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy is necessary if we want to limit warming to 1.5°C. As Canada’s engaged university, SFU has the opportunity to be a leading institution in the transition to a sustainable society by further decarbonizing its investment portfolio. By aligning its targets with science, SFU will be a role model for others, demonstrating to the world that drastically reducing carbon emissions is the way forward.
To quote again from SFU’s Strategic Sustainability Plan, “Taking action on the environment means significant change in both social and economic structures. Behaviours and expectations need to be aligned around the unified goal of a healthier planet. If we are serious in this endeavor, educational institutions must help show the way.”
1SFU350’s Divest SFU campaign is supported by students and faculty, and endorsed by the SFSS, GSS, SFU faculty association, Embark, and Change SFU. 2IPCC, “Global Warming of 1.5°C, an IPCC special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways”, August 2018. 3R. Gignac and H. D. Matthews, “Allocating a 2 °C cumulative carbon budget to countries,” Environmental Research Letters, vol. 10, no. 7, p. 075004, Jan. 2015.
|