MCFly writer Claire Woolley reports on the “Fossil Fre”e European Tour event at the University of Birmingham 31st October 2013.
This autumn, the Fossil Free campaign travelled to Berlin, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Birmingham and London to inform and inspire anyone concerned with climate change and the moral implications of educational institutions funding fossil fuel industries. As a prominent climate author and co-founder of 350.org, Bill McKibben led proceedings, accompanied by a wide range of students, activists, faith campaigners and other speakers.
The Birmingham leg of the tour was hosted by the University of Birmingham and organised by the University’s People and Planet Society. This ‘lecture’ began in a way nothing like an average lecture, with the ground-breaking artist Filastine performing their refreshingly unique brand of protest music. Far from the likes of Billy Bragg and his singer-songwriter contemporaries, Filastine’s work employs a range of unconventional instruments (even a shopping trolley at one point) to create powerful, ominous music. Reinforced by visuals showing dark, grainy scenes of oil extraction, environmental degradation and the resulting abject poverty, the effect was to create a strong enough sense of doom to unsettle even the most fervent climate change sceptic.
Bill McKibben began his talk by outlining a number of recent events which exemplify the real-world impacts of climate change, including America’s record droughts in 2012, floods across England in the same year and the warmest May on record that summer. McKibben’s charisma and light-hearted anecdotes lifted the atmosphere in the room somewhat before drawing focus to more serious business; in particular the business of numbers. In his article Global Warming’s Terrifying New Math, McKibben outlines three important numbers:
- 2°C , the increase in temperature at which world leaders and scientists are almost universally agreed that catastrophic changes will be experienced
- 565 gigatonnes, the limit of additional carbon dioxide which can be added to the atmosphere without causing an increase in temperature above the agreed 2oC
- 2,795 gigatons, the volume of carbon dioxide ‘locked away’ in known fossil fuel reserves. That is, 5 times more than the decided 565gt limit
After illustrating and discussing the significance of these numbers (with a little help from beer-related visuals), McKibben moved on to discuss the significance of our universities in this issue. UK universities collectively have £5bn invested in fossil fuel companies, equating to £2000 per student, with Cambridge, Oxford and Edinburgh being among the largest investors.
On to the good news; McKibben told the audience the story of the divestment campaign in South Africa (which helped progression toward the ending of apartheid), and the rapid spreading of the Fossil Free movement in the United States during the year since its genesis. In this time, over 40 US institutions, comprised largely of universities and churches, have responded to the call to withdraw their funds from damaging activities.
On this decidedly promising note, Giles Goddard (Canon of St. John’s, Waterloo and associate of Operation Noah) took to the stage to discuss the issues of climate change within the Church. Goddard spoke eloquently about issues of economic morality within the Church, including his own church investing in Fairtrade and cutting funding to certain construction companies guilty of selling their machinery to be used for demolishing residential areas in Gaza. He went on to describe the Church’s involvement in fossil fuel industries as “funding the opposite of creation” and urged those of any or no faith to call for disinvestment as a means of keeping that excess 2,230 gigatonnes of CO2 in the ground.
Goddard was followed by Alice Swift, a student of the University of Birmingham and an active member of the People and Planet society. Swift spoke of her time spent with those in some of the poorest parts of the world who are suffering as a result of actions of more developed nations. Swift discussed the People and Planet society’s objections to their institution’s chosen destination of funds and called for the withdrawal of funds from damaging activities, which was met with a keen round of applause.
The event ended on a positive, inspiring note with McKibben wrapping up proceedings before some short thanks from People and Planet organisers. Filastine took to the stage to play the audience out, most of whom stayed behind to sign various petitions, purchase Fossil Free merchandise or talk about getting involved.
The Fossil Free tour culminated on 1st November in London, on the opening night of the Shared Planet weekend, a weekend filled with debates, workshops and skill-shares. This is one of many future events intended to inspire and empower those of all ages and backgrounds to demand better from their authorities (whoever they may be) and to ensure their own money is not being spent on activities which promise to damage all of our futures.
To find out more about Fossil Free and get involved, visit gofossilfree.org
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