TEU votes to divest from fossil fuel

Divest from any companies that profit from fossil fuel extraction. That was the message yesterday from Tertiary Education Union representatives from around New Zealand to their union’s governing council.

TEU’s council will meet next week to vote on whether to adopt a fossil fuel divestment policy it has drafted with the support of 350 Aotearoa. But yesterday union representatives from nearly all New Zealand’s universities, polytechnics and wānanga supported the divestment policy.

“Climate change poses an unprecedented and unequivocal threat to our future,” saidJulie Douglas, a Senior Lecturer at AUT’s Management Department.

“If we are to avoid catastrophic climate change, we have to leave most of the world’s fossil fuel in the ground. We cannot ruin our chance of minimising and mitigating climate change by exploring for and digging up more coal and gas,” she said.

“Tomorrow is Global Divestment Day and our union plans to heed the call by continuing not to invest in any fossil fuel companies,” said Wayne Linklater, Director of Victoria University’s Centre for Biodiversity and Restoration Ecology.

“More importantly, we’re also calling on New Zealand’s tertiary education institutions to follow Victoria University of Wellington’s lead, and divest from companies that profit from fossil fuels.”

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