This guest blog post was written by Adler University President, Raymond E. Crossman
This spring, Adler University divested fossil fuels from its investment portfolio. Our impetus to divest did not come from student protests as it did on many other campuses. Instead, we recognized an opportunity to further align our University’s actions with our mission and values.
All told, it took only weeks to complete our financial planning and to bring a proposal to our Board of Trustees—which was approved immediately and unanimously. I was extremely proud of our trustees’ resolve, but not surprised. Our community expects our investment and financial practices to be consistent with our values; our University’s investment policy has long prohibited investment in tobacco, firearms, ammunition, and military weaponry.
That said, as President of a university focused on social justice, I understand that it often takes decades—sometimes centuries—for injustices to resolve. Usually, long before demonstrations and legislation, murmurs rise to public consciousness over time, as people wonder whether they’re on the right side of history.
Social justice moves at too glacial a pace— until it doesn’t. Consider the trajectory of same sex marriage in the United States. People struggled for 40 years to make it legal, but it wasn’t until the last decade when there was a critical mass of support to get marriage equality recognized by the Supreme Court. The time is right for climate change to reach its tipping point in the public consciousness, and higher education is crucial to getting it there.
Right now, according to 350.org, only 27 U.S. colleges and universities have divested. That’s out of 4,500 nationwide. This number is even more surprising when you consider that virtually every institution of higher learning professes values of social responsibility.
Time is not on our side when it comes to climate change. We must change minds and practices. Each new institution that commits to divest helps builds momentum until we find the majority firmly on the right side of history.