Climate Action Carleton is a student-led activist group founded in 2019. Both on and off the Carleton campus, Climate Action Carleton lobbies those who have the power to make impactful climate-related decisions that are essential for the future of Carleton’s students and the welfare of our community, country, and of our world. At Carleton we work to hold executive actors at Carleton like the Board of Governors, the President and the Chancellor, as well as CUSA, our student union, accountable for their actions and inactions.
In October 2020, Climate Action Carleton launched our divestment campaign, called #MakeMyDegreeFossilFree. #MakeMyDegreeFossilFree is a campaign to have both Carleton University and the University of Ottawa divest their Endowment Funds from the fossil fuel industry. Working closely with student organizers at the University of Ottawa, our goal is to have both endowments divested, and reinvested in sustainable and just alternatives, by 2025.
Emissions from fossil fuels are one of the main drivers of global warming. Worldwide, the fossil fuel industry is currently set to burn five times more coal, oil, and natural gas than our planet can handle. By divesting our endowments from the industry, Carleton University and the University of Ottawa would send a very clear message to industry and investors, the federal government, and to schools around the country that the fossil fuel industry is no longer tolerable. Moreover, it would help to put pressure towards enacting a just transition of Canadian energy — a transition that has become increasingly likely as the Canadian fossil fuel industry has collapsed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To accomplish this goal and to help push towards a transition, Climate Action Carleton is seeking support from all stakeholders at Carleton University including departments, workers unions, students, alumni and more. If you want to support our campaign and learn more, please find our open letter below (the link to our petition is attached therein). Thank you for taking the time to support our futures!