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To: Interim President Kevin L. Clayton and the Board of Trustees

Lehigh University: Go Fossil Free!

Because it is unconscionable to pay for our education with investments that will condemn the planet to climate disaster, we call on Lehigh University to
1. immediately freeze any new investment in companies responsible for the extraction, refinement, and processing of fossil fuels, and any companies whose sole purpose is to support these aforementioned companies
2. completely divest within five years from direct ownership and from any commingled funds that include public equities and corporate bonds associated with the companies mentioned above
3. increase investments in renewable energy companies

Why is this important?

Climate change is accelerating.

We are witnessing the increasing impacts of a warming planet more and more consistently; in this last year alone our country experienced record-breaking heat, droughts, and hurricanes, which impacted hundreds of thousands of people and cost our country hundreds of billions of dollars. Hurricane Sandy alone caused $50bn in damages.
Experts agree that global warming caused by humans burning fossil fuels will continue to accelerate and intensify these tragic climate disasters. The scientific consensus is clear and overwhelming; we cannot safely burn even half of global fossil-fuel reserves without dangerously warming the planet for several thousand years.

As public pressure to confront climate change builds, we call on Lehigh University to
1. immediately freeze any new investment in companies responsible for the extraction, refinement, and processing of fossil fuels, and any companies whose sole purpose is to support these aforementioned companies
2. completely divest within five years from direct ownership and from any commingled funds that include public equities and corporate bonds associated with the companies mentioned above
3. increase investments in renewable energy companies
We believe such action on behalf of Lehigh University will not only be a sound decision for our institution’s financial portfolio, but also for the well-being of its current and future graduating classes, who deserve the opportunity to graduate with a future not defined by climate chaos. Additionally, the aforementioned actions are in alignment with the university’s commitment to service to others as discussed in the mission statement; just as graduates “are expected to live by a set of mature cultural and personal values, accept the virtue of work as a vehicle of service”, we expect these same ideals to be reflected by our administration.

Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA

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Updates

2013-09-26 09:30:48 -0400

25 signatures reached