31F-25: Referendum Q1 - Divest Harvard

UC Representative Dhruv Goyal, Elm Yard 16

Co-Sponsors:
Chloe Maxmin, Mather 15
Ben Franta, GSAS
Akhil Matthew, Dunster 14

Whereas the Harvard Undergraduate Council is the voice of the student body; and

Whereas the following referendum question was posed to the student body: Do you support Harvard
divesting its endowment from the fossil fuel industry in order to avert further environmental and human
rights crises due to climate change? ; and

Whereas this referendum garnered 72% support from 3556 students that voted in the UC Presidential
Election and thus surpassed the constitutional requirements of action from the council; and

Whereas the Harvard Undergraduate Council has the duty of acting on the results of the referenda; and

Whereas we are aware of the biased phrasing of the referendum question, but have elected to proceed
regardless;

Be it therefore resolved that the Harvard Undergraduate Council create a Divestment Task Force to be
appointed at the discretion of the Council President to work on this referenda; and

Be it further resolved that this Task Force produce a set of action items in collaboration with the leaders
of the Divest Harvard; and

Be it further resolved that this Task Force present a report to the Council detailing the steps to be taken by
the Council by February; and

Be it further resolved that this Task Force shall solicit input from student leaders of Divest Harvard and
work towards enacting the results of the referenda; and

Be it further resolved that the Harvard Undergraduate Council adopt the following position paper as its
formal position; and

Be it further resolved that the Harvard Undergraduate Council ensure the distribution of this proposal to
all relevant parties in the administration of Harvard University and its subsidiary organizations, including
all members of the Board of Overseers, the Harvard Corporation (President and Fellows), and the Board
of Directors of the Harvard Management Company; and

Be it further resolved that the Harvard Undergraduate Council shall partner with the Divest Harvard to
actively pursue its goals.


UC REFERENDUM Q1 - DIVEST HARVARD

Contents:
1 Background
a Student Leaders
b Campaign origins
c Progress prior to Referendum
d Work with Undergraduate Council prior to referendum
2 Overview
3 Analysis
4 Progress
a Updates
b Membership
c Media
d Peer Institutions
e Alumni
f Administration
5 Next Steps
a For Divest
b For the Undergraduate Council

BACKGROUND

Student Leaders: Chloe Maxmin, Eva Roben, Jono Rosenthal, Joseph Lanzillo, Alli Welton

Campaign Origins: Divest Harvard launched in August 2012. At the time, about a dozen other
schools had active divestment campaigns. The inspiration came from an article that Bill
McKibben, founder of 350.org, wrote in Rolling Stone over the summer in which he outlined the
scope and urgency of climate change. He mentioned the 1980s movement to divest from
apartheid South Africa and alluded to launching a similar movement, targeting the fossil fuel
industry. Boston area universities were initially a pilot for this campaign, but word spread
quickly. As of December 7, 2012, 153 campuses had active divestment campaigns. Unity
College in Maine and Hampshire College in Massachusetts have divested from fossil fuels.

Progress prior to UC referendum:
Collected over 1,000 signatures from students, faculty, alumni, and staff
Held an education panel on divestment as a tool for social change
Began outreach to student groups for endorsements
Wrote op-ed for The Crimson and external media outlets
Participated in the National Day of Action for Fossil Fuel Divestment

Work with UC prior to UC referendum: None.

OVERVIEW
Divest Harvard, a student-led initiative of Students for a Just and Stable Future (SJSF), is calling
on Harvard to divest from the top 200 publicly-traded companies that own the majority of the
worlds fossil fuel reserves and reinvest in socially responsible funds. An undisclosed fraction of
Harvards $30.7 billion dollar endowment is invested in large fossil fuel corporations, the entities
that fuel unprecedented climate change. The hallmarks of fossil-fuel induced climate change can
be seen: Hurricane Sandys damage to urban infrastructure, rising sea levels that threaten to
submerge coastlines and entire nations, and droughts that endanger the worlds food supplies.

These impacts have been accompanied by a rise in global mean temperature of 1 degree Celsius.
Soon, we will reach a global rise of 2 degrees Celsius - the internationally agreed upon limit at
which global climate change will become truly catastrophic.

Scientists estimate that by releasing 565 gigatons of carbon in the atmosphere, we will reach this
2 degree limit. Fossil fuel corporations already possess at least 2,795 gigatons of carbon in
reserve, ready to burn--five times what the planet can handle. And they are now releasing
roughly 30 gigatons a year, enough to reach the 2 degree limit in 15 years.

The sobering reality is that fossil fuel corporations will need to leave the majority of their assets
in the ground if we are to avoid truly catastrophic climate change. This has two major
implications: the first is that valuations of fossil fuel corporations are artificially high; the second
is that it will not be possible for a flourishing planet and a flourishing fossil fuel industry to both
exist.

This is why divestment is necessary. We are calling for an immediate freeze on new fossil fuel
investments and for Harvard to divest from the 200 companies within a period of five years. By
divesting, we can both take a crucial step towards avoiding catastrophic climate change and
protect the integrity of Harvards endowment.

Harvard is one of over 150 campuses across the country that has launched fossil fuel divestment
campaigns. Students are rising up and investing in our future.

ANALYSIS

To gather student support for divestment, Divest Harvard members solicited petition signatures
from Harvard community members to gain support for fossil fuel divestment. After acquiring
over 1,000 signatures, Divest Harvard was able to have a referendum on the UC ballot asking the
student body if they support divestment. The referendum passed with 72% support (2561 yes,
995 no). The referendum itself does not directly affect university policy, but it is a gauge of
student opinion.

The results of the referendum showed that students care about climate change and support
divestment as a way for Harvard to avoid contributing to increasing global warming. Harvard
was the first campus in the country to have a student vote on fossil fuel divestment, and now
other campuses are drawing inspiration from Divest Harvard and mobilizing to do similar votes
on their campuses. The results have also shown that students at one of the most prestigious
universities in the world support this movement, and this news is spreading throughout many
networks. Moreover, the fall 2012 UC elections was the first time in six years that Harvard
presented referendum questions on the UC ballot. This will hopefully set a precedent for future
student activism on campus.

PROGRESS

General Updates: Since the referendum, Divest Harvard has received significant press coverage
from The Boston Globe, The Nation, The New York Times, Campus Progress, WGBH, Radio
Boston, Huffington Post, The Guardian, and more. Divest worked for nearly a month to arrange
a meeting with President Faust, visiting Massachusetts Hall in person, calling the office, and
sending many emails. Divest finally learned that they will meet with the Corporation Committee
on Shareholder Responsibility (CCSR) at the beginning of next semester. Divest Harvard has
launched faculty outreach as well to continue gathering support.

Membership: Divest Harvard has expanded membership and outreach since the referendum.

Media:
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/9/21/group-wants-greener-fund/
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/9/27/harvard-dissent-climate/
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/10/2/divestment-harvard-oped/
http://news.whrb.org/2012-09-30.html
http://hpronline.org/harvard/does-divestment-work/
http://motls.blogspot.com/2012/10/harvards-divestments-israel-and-fossil.html
http://harvardrep.wordpress.com/2012/10/03/guest-post-by-chloe-maxmin/
http://environmentaljusticetv.wordpress.com/2012/10/02/endowed-with-a-choice-opinion-the-
harvard-crimson-3
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/10/4/harvard-letters-climate/
http://harvardrep.wordpress.com/2012/10/03/guest-post-by-chloe-maxmin/
http://ecowatch.org/2012/divestment-fossil-fuels/
http://itsgettinghotinhere.org/2012/10/17/making-history-with-divestment/
http://www.ecobrink.com/2012/10/17/fossil-fuel-divestment-in-higher-education/
http://www.firstheretheneverywhere.org/blog/2012/09/28/climate-change-divestment-and-
urgency/
http://ecoethics.net/2012-ENVRE120/PDF/20120919-DivestHarvard-Press-Release.pdf
http://www.thegreenmarketoracle.com/2012/10/students-advocating-divestment-from.html
http://grist.org/climate-energy/cue-the-math-mckibbens-roadshow-takes-aim-at-big-oil/
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/24203
http://www.greenconduct.com/news/2012/10/20/students-advocating-divestment-from-fossil-
fuels/
http://www.nextgenjournal.com/2012/10/climate-change-election-divest-for-future-fossil-fuels-
energy-environment-romney-ryan/
http://www.loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=12-P13-00043&segmentID=2
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/11/3/sexual-assault-referendum-ballot/
http://www.stuvoice.org/2012/11/12/chloe-maxmin-divest-for-our-future/
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2012/11/19-5#
http://350.org/en/media/harvard-vote
http://www.enewspf.com/latest-news/science-a-environmental/38476-harvard-students-vote-to-
support-fossil-fuel-divestment.html
http://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/elist/eListRead/Sudents_push_their_universities_to
_divest_from_fossil_fuels
http://rebootingthefuture.com/2012/11/17/climate-change-and-the-divestment-
movement.aspx?results=1
http://daily.swarthmore.edu/slog/2012/11/harvard-students-vote-to-divest/
http://host.madison.com/daily-cardinal/opinion/uw-madison-needs-to-cut-ties-with-the-fossil-
fuel/article_7185fa4a-32c1-11e2-b16d-0019bb2963f4.html
http://uc.fas.harvard.edu/index.php/2012/11/18/referenda-results/
http://ecowatch.org/2012/harvard-students-divestment/
http://www.treehugger.com/green-investments/72-percent-harvard-students-vote-divest-
endowment-fossil-fuel-companies.html
http://www.thenation.com/blog/171380/harvard-students-vote-72-percent-support-fossil-fuel-
divestment#
http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2226095/harvard-students-vote-to-ditch-fossil-fuel-
investments
http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/green/greenblog/2012/11/harvard_students_vote_to_suppo.html
?utm_source=HM&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=harvard-headlines
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/24303
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/11/25/univ-fossil-fuel-divsetment/
http://ciphermagazine.com/blog/?p=2082
http://thephoenix.com/Boston/life/148150-harvard-students-push-for-fossil-fuel-divestment/
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/11/27/harvard-stays-mum-divestment/
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/11/26/divest-practicality-concerns/
http://campusprogress.org/articles/students_push_for_divestment_from_fossil_fuels_at_universit
ies_across_/
http://www.treehugger.com/corporate-responsibility/100-more-colleges-join-fight-divest-fossil-
fuel-companies.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-business/blog/fossil-fuels-pension-divestment
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anne-butterfield/bill-mckibben-do-the-math_b_2201817.html
http://www.realitysandwich.com/harvard_students_vote_divest_fossil_fuels
http://bostonglobe.com/opinion/2012/12/02/mckibben/wBHoYGRaVkSfYjZCnQC7WM/story.html
http://cognoscenti.wbur.org/2012/12/03/divestment-jamie-henn
http://www.wearepowershift.org/blogs/72-harvard-students-vote-divestnow
http://gofossilfree.org/divest-harvard-wont-give-up-without-a-fight/
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/05/business/energy-environment/to-fight-climate-change-
college-students-take-aim-at-the-endowment-portfolio.html?pagewanted=all
http://radioboston.wbur.org/2012/12/05/fossil-fuel-divestment
http://www.takepart.com/article/2012/12/05/time-take-stand
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/12/7/university-leaders-divestment-advocates/
http://wgbhnews.org/post/gone-viral-campus-campaigns-divest
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/20121206/climate-change-activists-350-bill-mckibben-
divestment-fossil-fuels-universities-harvard-coal-oil-gas-carbon
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/12/7/coalition-responsibility/

Peer Institutions: Over 153 campuses have active divestment campaigns. Unity College and
Hampshire College have divested. Other schools are making significant progress towards that goal.

Alumni: Alumni outreach is underway. 20 alumni have already reached out to support the campaign.

Administration: Divest Harvard has met with President Faust during her office hours and with
Lars Madsen, President Fausts Senior Assistant.

NEXT STEPS

Next semester, Divest Harvard will focus on expansion. The group will begin the semester with a
teach-in to educate the student body about the urgency of climate change, why divestment is an
important tactic, and what Divest Harvard has been doing on campus. Divest Harvard will
continue faculty and alumni outreach, asking for vocal support for fossil fuel divestment. Divest
plans to continue gathering signatures and to deliver them in person to President Faust. Divest
Harvards leaders will meet with the Corporation Committee on Shareholder Responsibility
(CCSR) after winter break, a meeting arranged by the Undergraduate Council in communication
with President Fausts office.

These are steps that the UC could take to help support Divest Harvard:

Reach out to the Harvard Undergraduate Council Alumni Network for alumni support
Contact faculty allies to gauge their support of fossil fuel divestment
Advocate on behalf of Divest Harvard for meetings with administrators / key individuals
Publicize Divest Harvard events
Divest Harvard tab on UC website
Use mail-merge for large events