On Thursday, the administrators of the UNM Foundation and the Office of Academic/Student Affairs met with Tom Solomon, co-chair of 350.org New Mexico, to discuss the University’s possible divestment from fossil fuel companies.
Fossil Free, a global campaign affiliated with 350.org, is working to convince institutional leaders to freeze new investments in fossil fuel companies and to divest any stocks within the industry within five years after their initial commitment. The group has led campaigns at major universities around the country.
Solomon’s presentation included a list of available fossil free investment options and suggested that the University begin divestment by freezing investments in primary companies such as Goldman Sachs and Quantum Resources. The policy to divest will ultimately be approved by the UNM Foundation and the Board of Regents. Jim Mackenzie, Solomon’s co-chair, said that 350.org hopes to present to the Board of Regents sometime in January. The Foundation still needs to be convinced that it’s a good investment, and after the meeting Solomon said some of them seemed hesitant because they have ties with the oil companies.
The Board of Academic/Student Affairs didn’t have many questions for Solomon.
“This was the most cogent version of this information I have seen,” said Regent Bradley Hosmer, who is also the chair of Academic/Student Affairs.
Earlier this year, UNM President Bob Frank said divestment is largely a symbolic act since fossil fuels are only a small part of the University’s investments, but that gesture is an important one.
The Fossil Free campaign on UNM’s campus is the most successful one yet, Solomon said. They have collected about 3,000 signatures on campus over the past two years, he said.
“If the Foundation were to divest, we would see an improvement in financial returns. Energy stocks have underperformed the market by 110 percent over the past five years,” Solomon said. “The fossil fuel industries, primarily oil companies, are spending about $213 million a year lobbying decision-makers from the U.S. and European Union to prevent putting a price on carbon emissions and to slow the necessary transition to renewable energy.”
Throughout human history CO2 emissions concentrated in the atmosphere have never been above 300 parts per million, Solomon said. Today they are at 400 parts per million and that number is expected to increase to 900 parts per million by the end of the century if we continue producing carbon emissions at our current rate.
“This will lead to climate warming of about 11 degrees. In order to avoid disastrous warming we must keep 80 percent of fossil fuel reserves underground. Oil, coal and gas companies are planning to sell all of these reserves for about $22 trillion, but if they do it will drive the warming of the planet to 6 degrees Celsius and literally threaten human civilization,” he said.
Solomon said perseverance is the driving force behind the campaigns so far on campus.
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“The student body is really interested in seeing this happen. We are asking UNM to go fossil-free and this is an action UNM can and should take to protect the future of both its endowment and its students,” he said.
Marielle Dent is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Marielle_Dent.
