Nearby Petitions

Colleges & Universities

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  Université Catholique de Louvain - désinvestissons !

  Nous sommes aujourd'hui face à un défi tant pour l'humanité que pour le reste de la vie telle que nous la connaissons. Il s'agit d'un défi à la fois terrifiant (car les enjeux sont gigantesques) et formidable, car si nous réussissons la transformation de notre société celle-ci peut véritablement mener à une révolution dans notre manière de vivre et de penser pour aller vers un monde plus juste, plus beau, meilleur. Il est temps de montrer par tous les signaux possibles que les alternatives existent, et qu'il faut créer une nouvelle économie, qui ne sera pas synonyme de moins de bien-être, bien au contraire. Désinvestir des énergies fossiles c'est tourner le dos à un passé destructeur et ouvrir les bras à un avenir où le travail sert à construire, pas à détruire ! Les arguments pour le désinvestissement sont éthiques, scientifiques et économiques. -> Le réchauffement climatique est causé par l'homme et il est nécessaire d'agir pour le limiter au seuil maximum fixé de 2°C (voire même de 1.5°C) afin d'éviter des conséquences catastrophiques dont nous pouvons dès à présent percevoir les premiers effets. En tant que pays développés, notre responsabilité est majeure. -> Arrêter d'investir dans les énergies fossiles ne va pas affecter la rentabilité des placements. Bien au contraire, puisque l'on parle de plus en plus de la « bulle carbone ». En effet, si l'on veut respecter l'Accord de Paris de 2015 (selon lequel le seuil maximal de réchauffement ne doit pas dépasser les 2°C), il sera nécessaire de laisser 80 % des réserves des énergies fossiles sous terre, alors même que celles-ci ont été découvertes, et la plupart du temps achetées par des organismes dans lesquels des personnes/ institutions ont investi. -> Les énergies renouvelables sont de plus en plus compétitives et aujourd'hui investir dans un portfolio sans énergies fossiles ne rapporte pas moins qu’avec. -> L'UCL a un rôle en tant qu'institution publique et nous, en tant qu'étudiant.e.s, mais surtout en tant que citoyen.ne.s, nous avons le devoir d'interpeller nos dirigeants, et dans le cas présent le Conseil d’Administration de l'UCL, sur la situation de dépendance dans laquelle nous nous sommes englués depuis trop longtemps vis à vis de ces énergies polluantes.

  101 of 200 Signatures

  Created by Louise Peltier
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  Divest Southern Illinois University from Fossil Fuels

  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 $50 billion 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.

  10 of 100 Signatures

  Created by Matt Ryg
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  Fossil Free Umeå universitet

  Umeå universitet är ett statligt universitet. Därför tycker vi att det är rimligt att universitetet agerar för allmänhetens bästa. Vi tycker att ett universitet bör representera ungdomar och symbolisera framtiden. Att investera pengar i och göra profit på fossila företag som Lundin Petroleum och Exxon Mobile anser vi är direkt skadligt för planeten och unga människors framtid. Dessa kampanjer är ett litet steg mot att försvaga en industri som har alldeles för stort inflytande i vårt samhälle och på vår framtid. Även om Umeå universitets kapital och inflytande nästan är försvinnande litet i ett globalt perspektiv så är en divestering ett praktiskt ställningstagande som förändrar normer och attityder som gynnar miljörörelsen. Tillsammans kan vi bilda opinion mot de fossila företagen. Vi hoppas verkligen att Umeå universitet ska hålla med oss och stödja kampanjen. Håller du med oss? Var då snäll och skriv under namnlistan tack. IN ENGLISH Umeå university is public and owned by the state. That's why we think it's reasonable that the university should act towards the best interest of the public. We think that a university should represent young people and symbolise the future. To invest capital in fossil fuel companies such as Lundin Petroleum and Exxon mobile is in our opinion a threat to the planet and to the future of young people. Campaigns such as this one take small steps towards weakening the fossil fuel industry which has far too much power and influence over our society and our future. The aim of the divestment is to change the norms of the society which would benefit from this and other environmental movements, even if the capital and influence of Umeå university is tiny in a global perspective. Together we can form public opinon that questions the fossil fuel companies. We certainly hope that Umeå university will agree with us. Do you agree with us? Please sign the petition.

  90 of 100 Signatures

  Created by Niklas Edeborg
• San Francisco Art Institute: Go Fossil Free!

  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 San Francisco Art Institute to immediately freeze any new investment in fossil-fuel companies, and to divest within five years from direct ownership and from any commingled funds that include fossil-fuel public equities and corporate bonds. We believe such action on behalf of San Francisco Art Institute will not only be a sound decision for our institution’s financial portfolio, but also for the wellbeing of its current and future graduating classes, who deserve the opportunity to graduate with a future not defined by climate chaos.

  10 of 100 Signatures

  Created by Alex Shepard
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  Divest Fossil Fuels SLU!

  Planeten värms upp av utsläppen som till störst del orsakas av förbränning av fossila bränslen. Är det fel att förstöra klimatet så är det fel att göra vinster på den förstöringen och fel att finansiera den! Som Lantbruksuniversitet har SLU en viktig roll för miljön och klimatet och ett beslut om divestering väger tungt i klimatdebatten! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We all know the connection between fossil fuels and climate change. An Environmentally friendly university like SLU has to lead the way not only in theory, but also in practice!

  416 of 500 Signatures

  Created by Sarah Aspenström
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  Fossil Free Stockholms Universitet

  Om världen ska klara de klimatmål som forskare enats om krävs att fyra femtedelar av all kol, olja och gas stannar under jorden. Detta betyder att offantliga summor pengar som fossilindustrin räknar som sina tillgångar, är pengar som inte får realiseras - en "fossilbubbla". Investeringar i fossila bränslen är både oetiskt, ohållbart och oekonomiskt. Och framförallt är det att sätta ungas framtid på spel! Vi studenter på Stockholms Universitet vill visa att vi ställer oss bakom en ansvarsfull placering av de pengar som finansierar vår utbildning! SU har tagit en del steg mot att verka för hållbar utveckling. Vi vill uppmärksamma att även vart pengar investeras har stor betydelse för vilka värden skolan kommunicerar och vilka verksamheter den stödjer. Just nu finns en del av de pengar som SU förvaltar i just fossilindustrin. Denna fråga har uppmärksammats på flera andra universitet och högskolor i Sverige, och är en del av en större internationell kampanj. Vi vill se att SU går före i denna utveckling! Studenter kan och borde påverka sin skola i en hållbar riktning! Skriv på för att stödja kampanjen! Vill du bidra till utvecklingen ännu mer och engagera dig i Fossil Free Stockholms Universitet? Du hittar vår grupp här: https://www.facebook.com/groups/468295489937530/

  1,530 of 2,000 Signatures

  Created by Hannes Anagrius
• North Carolina State University: Go Fossil Free!

  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 North Carolina State University to immediately freeze any new investment in fossil-fuel companies, and to divest within five years from direct ownership and from any commingled funds that include fossil-fuel public equities and corporate bonds. We believe such action on behalf of North Carolina State University will not only be a sound decision for our institution's financial portfolio, but also for the wellbeing of its current and future graduating classes, who deserve the opportunity to graduate with a future not defined by climate chaos.

  50 of 100 Signatures

  Created by William Kiel
• Divest the University of Bath from the Fossil Fuel Industry

  The world has committed to keeping global warming below 2 degrees. To achieve this, over 80% of the proven fossil fuel reserves will have to stay in the ground (1) - we simply cannot afford to continue to invest in this industry. However, the arguments against fossil fuel investments are not just environmental. Economically, it is clearly unsustainable to rely on non-renewable resources. The price of oil is already volatile and is a significant source of financial risk (2) whereas, in contrast, low-carbon investments are becoming increasingly profitable (3). Divestment is a proven, powerful tool for people to collaborate and directly effect large scale change. It was, for example, a key strategy in the ending of South African apartheid and the stigmatisation of the tobacco industry, and will be a key player in the global transition to sustainable energy sources. The University of Bath has fossil fuel holdings totalling half a million pounds including over £100,000 in Shell alone (4). Our call is for the university to divest these holdings and publicly commit to never investing in them again. The activities of these companies are completely incompatible with the university’s own mission (5) and is at odds with much of the work on campus, from the research at the CSCT (6) and the IPR (7) to the discussions at the I-SEE (8). The campaign here at Bath is part of the wider Fossil Free movement – an accumulation of grassroots campaigns at a diverse range of respected institutions around the world, from Le Louvre museum in Paris to the University of Cambridge here in the UK. A quarter of universities in the UK have already committed to divesting, and Bath should be proud to join their ranks. Many of these forward-thinking universities had far more invested (9), so what we are demanding is not out of reach. The wider statement that the University of Bath will make when it divests will be significant and will extend far beyond the removal of the raw finances. In divesting from fossil fuels, the University will be: - Showing solidarity with communities already bearing the brunt of the effects of climate change, most of whom have contributed little to the problem; - Helping to reclaim our democracy from the power of fossil fuel lobbying groups (10); - Contributing to the stigmatisation of the fossil fuel industry: “the most far-reaching threat to fossil fuel companies” (11); - Influencing public discourse on climate change: leading the way for other UK universities and policy makers, too. It is time for the University of Bath to realise how incompatible a safe climate future is with these fossil fuel relationships, and to take meaningful action to go fossil free. This petition for a Fossil Free Bath complements Bath SU policy (12) voted through by 60% of students in early 2016. References (1) http://math.350.org/ (2) https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/mar/03/bank-of-england-warns-of-financial-risk-from-fossil-fuel-investments (3) https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/feb/13/renewable-energy-investment-fossil-fuel-divestment-investor-summit-climate-change (4) FOI (5) http://www.bath.ac.uk/about/values/ethics/code-of-ethics.html (6) http://www.bath.ac.uk/csct/research/energy-water.html (7) http://www.bath.ac.uk/ipr/policy-briefs/reports/climate-change.html (8) http://www.bath.ac.uk/i-see/ (9) https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/08/glasgow-becomes-first-university-in-europe-to-divest-from-fossil-fuels (10) http://priceofoil.org/fossil-fuel-industry-influence-in-the-u-s/ (11) http://www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk/research-programmes/stranded-assets/SAP-divestment-report-final.pdf (12) https://www.bathstudent.com/pageassets/policy-governance/2015-16-4-Fossil-Free-Bath.pdf

  1,519 of 2,000 Signatures

  Created by Garoe Dorta Perez
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  Call to switch to a sustainable bank

  Anthropogenic climate change poses a threat to humans and natural systems on a global scale. Temperatures are rising rapidly: nine out of ten of the warmest years ever recorded in human history occurred after 2000 [1], and global temperatures continue to break records in 2016 [2]. Sea levels are steadily rising, extreme weather events are expected to occur more frequently, and oceans are acidifying at a frightening rate. Species are threatened with mass extinction and humans are displaced from their homes [3]. It is clear that efforts must be undertaken to stop climate change sooner rather than later. At the end of 2015, world leaders got together for COP21 in Paris and agreed to “[hold] the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels” [4]. If we are to take this ambition seriously, then we need to put a strict limit on the amount of fossil fuels that can still be used. In fact, we effectively have a ‘carbon budget’. This carbon budget clearly shows that a large part of the currently operational coal mines and gas and oil fields cannot be exploited at all, if we do not want to exceed 1.5 or 2 °C global warming [5]. Wageningen University & Research is renowned for its high quality education and research programmes [6], as well as for its sustainable practices [7]. With regards to sustainability and corporate social responsibility, Wageningen University & Research states that its goal is “to take a leading role in the area of sustainable operational management” and the institute shows that it is working on increasing sustainability in many ways [8]. However, one aspect of sustainability that has not been considered sufficiently, in our opinion, is finance. As the world has sensibly placed a carbon budget on its emissions, it has become evident that current and future investments in the fossil fuel industry can be regarded as irresponsible and unwise. Wageningen University & Research indirectly contributes to these investments through their use of two unsustainable banks: ABN AMRO and Rabobank. These banks score particularly poorly on the aspect of climate change, as highlighted by EerlijkeBankwijzer [9]. They are responsible for substantial financial support to fossil fuel industries through loans and shareholding practices [10]. Investing in fossil fuel extraction, as ABN AMRO and Rabobank do, is absolutely incompatible with the internationally agreed upon limit of 2 °C global warming. Fortunately, there is a suitable alternative. Triodos Bank is the only bank in the Netherlands that does not invest in the fossil fuel industry [11] and is capable of taking on large institutions as their clients. Furthermore, we believe Triodos Bank’s mission and key values [12] are highly consistent with those of Wageningen University & Research. Through a personal meeting with a representative of Triodos Bank, Fossil Free Wageningen has become convinced that it is possible to make the transition to this sustainable bank. Wageningen University & Research now has the opportunity to be a frontrunner on truly all aspects of sustainability and to become the leading institution on sustainability that it aims to be. To embody our underlying values for sustainable development, we need all hands and heads. Together, we can make this transition towards a carbon neutral society. Therefore, we, Fossil Free Wageningen, and the following students, alumni, staff members, teachers, and professors, ask Wageningen University & Research to bring this university a step closer to being a fossil free university by committing to switching to a truly sustainable bank. References: [1] http://climate.nasa.gov/ [2] http://www.giss.nasa.gov/research/news/20160719/ [3] http://ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/syr/AR5_SYR_FINAL_SPM.pdf [4] http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2015/cop21/eng/l09.pdf [5] http://priceofoil.org/2016/09/22/the-skys-limit-report/ [6] http://www.wur.nl/en/About-Wageningen/Scientific-prominence-Wageningen-University-Research.htm [7] http://www.studentenvoormorgen.nl/uitslag-2016/ [8] http://www.wur.nl/en/About-Wageningen/Sustainability.htm [9] http://eerlijkegeldwijzer.nl/bankwijzer/ [10] http://eerlijkegeldwijzer.nl/media/60922/2015-11-praktijkonderzoek-undermining-our-future.pdf [11] https://www.triodos.com/en/investment-management/impact-investment/our-sectors/energy-and-climate/ [12] https://www.triodos.com/en/about-triodos-bank/who-we-are/mission-principles/what-we-stand-for/

  1,086 of 2,000 Signatures

  Created by Emiel Spanier
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  UiB ut av fossil energi - NÅ

  Klimaendringene er den største utfordringen i vår tid. I september 2013 offentliggjorde IPCC sin siste rapport, som slår fast at det er ekstremt sannsynlig at den observerte oppvarmingen i global temperatur siste halvdel av 1900-tallet er et resultat av menneskelig aktivitet og CO2-utslipp. En økning i global temperatur fører til endringer i natur og økosystem som truer vårt livsgrunnlag og annet liv på planeten. Tall fra Carbon Tracker Initiative viser at fire femdeler av verdens kjente ressurser av fossil energi må bli liggende i bakken hvis vi skal ha en reell sjanse for å unngå en global oppvarming over to grader. Den siste rapporten fra FNs Klimapanel IPCC viser at hvis vi fortsetter utslippene som i dag, vil vi ha en økning på over fire grader fra dagens temperatur. Skal vi holde oss innenfor togradersmålet må vi derfor kutte kraftig allerede nå, og utslippene må gå ned med omtrent fem prosent i året. OECD skriver i en ny rapport at vi må kutte radikalt nå, og fullstendig stanse utslipp innen 2050. Norge har vært heldige til nå, men vi ser at vår velferd er basert på utnyttelse av ressurser og menneskeliv i andre deler av verden. Samtidig som vi har tilgang på enorme energiressurser fra fornybar energi, utvinner vi olje og gass i et tempo som verken gagner oss eller verden i det lange løp. Å kutte i produksjonen handler ikke om at vi skal stanse oljeproduksjonen over natten, men krever at vi umiddelbart må begynne en omstilling til et fossilfritt samfunn. Universiteter og andre offentlige forskingsinstitusjoner har en enormt viktig rolle som premissleverandører for en slik omstilling. I følge de etiske retningslinjene for naturvitenskap og teknologi skal forskning være i overenstemmelse med menneskerettighetene, en bærekraftig utvikling og respekt for miljøet. I tillegg skal føre var-prinsippet anvendes der det er ”plausibel, men usikker kunnskap om en teknologisk anvendelse eller utvikling av et forskningsfelt kan føre til etisk uakseptable konsekvenser for helse, samfunn eller miljø”. Gitt tallene og scenariene fra FN, er det grunn til å stille spørsmål ved etikken rundt fortsatt forskning på teknologi som fører til mer utvinning og utslipp fra fossil energi. Universitetet i Bergen samarbeider med næringsliv på en rekke områder. Tette bånd til næringslivet har vært og er samfunnsnyttig på flere områder, men samarbeidspartnere må velges med omhu. UiB har i lang tid hatt en samarbeidsavtale med Statoil gjennom Akademia-avtalen. Avtalen står i kraft til 2018, men det sannsynlig at den vil bli forlenget forbi dette tidspunktet. For øyeblikket diskuteres det hvordan en forlenget avtale vil se ut. Dette er problematisk da samarbeidet forutsetter forskning som kan bidra til økt utvinning og en forlengelse av fossilalderen. Universitetet binder seg dessuten til positiv omtale av resultatene fra forskingen under avtalen, og setter dermed institusjonens uavhengighet i fare.

  945 of 1,000 Signatures

  Created by Ragnhild Dale