Divesting Harvard

HARVARD UNIVERSITY is the second oldest (Wm. & Mary) institution of higher learning in the United States, and the wealthiest in the world. Its incorporated endowment of nearly forty billion dollars is among the oldest incorporated entities in the western hemisphere. The people who manage Harvard's money, which comes largely from wealthy alumni, are somewhat hidden figures; their names are not prominently displayed in any published lists. They tend to have one thing in common; connections to large corporate interests, and close ties to the fossil fuel industry. This might partially explain Harvard's close ties to the fossil fuel industry, aside from the fact that investing heavily in the oil and gas industry has been and remains a very lucrative way to the top of the financial pyramid. At the top of whatever it chooses to participate in is where Harvard wishes to be, and almost always is. nowadays, however, Harvard scientists, and just about every other intelligent being on the planet, is are acutely aware of the dire threat of climate change looming over its ivory towers, and, well, the obvious connection between fossil fuels, those who invest in it, and the contradiction between institutions whose stated purpose is to make the world a better, more intelligent places place while simultaneously investing in activities which have the exact opposite effect is becoming, and long has been, glaringly obvious. there is a growing movement, on campus and off, to change that, to force the venerable university to divest itself of carbon based economy, and to reinvest in sustainable resources. the problem is, this would cost money, take a rather long period of time, and costing money is not the favorite past time of the millionaires who run Harvard's finances. After all, as its Board of directors points out, so noble is Harvard's mission, so generous it is in awarding full scholarships to those academically qualified but impoverished scholars in need, that any and all means to enhance Harvard's wealth is more than justified. doing damage to the planet, for whatever reason, is not justified, say the fossil fuel resistors. Harvard previously divested itself of any and all things associated with apartheid, and with Iran, say they. Walking around the campus of Harvard is a history lesson, a litany of America's finest, from teh dorm rooms of John Adams to John F. Kennedy, a monument to the people who truly made a difference. People at Harvard, student and faculty, know how to protest. A few years ago, when the University refused to give is custodial staff a pay raise, law school students staged as sit, in, brought in alumni Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, got the media cameras rolling, and, nest thing you knew, the janitorial staff was flush. So, odds are that over the next few ears the Crimson will indeed rid itself of its carbon based portfolio, and try something more morally redeeming. Options are many.