Harvard University president Lawrence Bacow has announced that the institution will divest from its fossil fuel holdings. The announcement came Tuesday, stating that the institution has already been cutting its investments in fossil fuels. Currently, Harvard University’s investment arm, Harvard Management Company, oversees the institution’s endowment of about $42 billion. The company has been steadily divesting its interests from fossil fuel entities. Today, the university has no direct investment in companies exploring further reserves of fossil fuels, according to Bacow. Related: Harvard’s new Science and Engineering Complex is an example of ‘healthy’ design Harvard’s final fossil fuel -related investments come from legacy investments in several private equity funds. Bacow says these indirect investments constitute less than 2% of the university’s total endowment. While the indirect investments will not end immediately, Bacow claims they are in “runoff mode” and will end when the partnerships are liquidated. The decision comes after many years of intense lobbying and protests . Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard, a campaign started by students at the university over a decade ago, declared the recent news a victory. “It took conversations and protests, meetings with administration, faculty/alumni votes, mass sit-ins and arrests, historic legal strategies, and storming football […]
Click here to view original web page at Harvard University pledges to divest from fossil fuels
