Protesters applaud points made during a Divestment Day protest outside of the Hannah Administration Building on Feb. 14, 2020.
The University of Michigan is the first Big Ten school to commit to freezing new investments in the fossil fuel industry after the Association of Big Ten students unanimously voted to demand their institutions to freeze and eliminate investments in the fossil fuel industry.
This means they plan on not making any additional direct investments in fossil fuels as the university goes over their investment policies.
Regent Mark Bernstein made this announcement at their Board of Regents meeting Thursday.
“To put it simply: fossil fuel investments are frozen, a direct and tangible step to divesting from fossil fuels entirely,” the UM Central Student Government said in a Facebook post after the meeting.
The Board said they credit the work and activism of students groups on campus, such as U of M Climate Action Movement, who have committed to demand their institution stop these investments.
In response, DivestMSU sent a letter to the Board of Trustees Thursday night, requesting a meeting regarding MSU’s investments in fossil fuels.
“We are thrilled that U of M made this decision, and are proud to stand in solidarity with the Climate Action Movement,” DivestMSU said in a statement. “ ... We're hoping that MSU will follow in U of M's footsteps.”
This announcement came as part of U-M President Mark Schlissel’s commission on carbon neutrality created in 2019. The commission expects to issue a final report in the fall, according to U-M’s The University Record.
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