Divest Whittier Law School From Fossil Fuels

“At what point does a man turn into a monster? I don’t believe that it’s when he does horrible things, but when he accepts that he’s able to do them, and that he does them well.”
― John Greenleaf Whittier, Poet, Quaker, Abolitionist, and Whittier College and Whittier Law School's namesake.

With the dire threat of climate change upon us, fragmented approaches to sustainability like recycling simply no longer give a twenty-first century educational institution the moral authority to boast of being sustainable. When we are invested in fossil fuels, we're not green. Having the capability and expertise in investing in fossil fuels, does not make our conduct any less monstrous.

Of the thirteen colleges nationwide that have already made commitments to divest from fossil fuels, five are in California: Foothill-De Anze Community College Foundation, Peralta Community College District, Pitzer College, San Francisco State University Foundation, and Stanford University.

Further, five California cities have also made commitments to divest: San Francisco, Berkeley, Richmond, Santa Monica, and Oakland. (As well as San Francisco County!)

Our prayer is that the Whittier College Board of Trustees recognizes that our institution's noble commitment to sustainability is disingenuous if it includes investments in fossil fuels. Whittier College and Whittier Law School have an opportunity here to lead by joining the pioneering schools first to divest from fossil fuels. We all know this is the right side of history, so let's get on it already.

Media inquiries:

Curtis Morrison
Vice President, Whittier Law School Environmental Law Society
J.D. Candidate, Class of 2016, Whittier Law School
[email protected] 502.403.9498