Comments made by the head of an advisory committee reviewing Brown’s divestment proposal garnered criticism — and a mass letter — from environmental experts and advocates.
James Kellner, the committee chair, asked whether pro-divestment advocates have considered the environmental benefits of companies on the table for divestment. He noted that some of the companies identified also work toward clean energy development.
An open letter to ACURM, the committee, signed by around 100 community members, many affiliates of the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, argues that such factors should not be taken into consideration when discussing divestment.
“We wholly reject the use of companies’ positive climate impacts as a means of outweighing the grave social harm caused by Brown’s investments in the Israeli occupation of Palestine,” the letter reads.
The letter also argues in favor of divestment through an environmental justice lens. Specifically, it criticizes the environmental consequences associated with Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, including carbon emissions and hazardous material from bombings.
“The carbon emissions of Israel’s bombing campaign in the first 60 days of its invasion was equivalent to burning at least 150,000 tonnes of coal … this is likely a “significant underestimate,” the letter reads.
“It is in IBES’s DNA to reject the slaughter of Palestinians and the desecration of Palestinian land,” the letter continues.
The letter is not officially affiliated with IBES. A representative from the institute did not respond to a request for comment.
Keller also did not respond to a request for comment in time for press.
Ryan Doherty is a section editor covering faculty, higher education and science and research. He is a junior concentrating in Chemistry and Economics who likes to partially complete crosswords in his free time.
