Students are less than impressed by Queen’s Responsible Investing Report, arguing the University isn’t doing enough to divest from fossil fuels.
Queen’s Backing Action on the Climate Crisis (QBACC) has begun a new campaign to topple Queen’s fossil fuel investments, arguing it’s time Queen’s invested according to its values. In April 2023, Queen’s released its first Responsible Investing Annual Report, detailing changes to the University’s investments that QBACC argues are insufficient.
“If you’re investing in companies like Enbridge that are building through Indigenous lands with pipelines, then that’s not aligned with Queen’s values of truth and reconciliation,” said Siena Margorian, ConEd ’24 and QBACC co-president, in an interview with The Journal.
According to the report, Queen’s is aiming to reduce the carbon footprint of their investments by at least 25 per cent below the global market index’s emissions before 2030. It’s faster than the rate global markets are decarbonizing, but Margorian believes more could be done.
“The problem with the decarbonization plan at 25 per cent, this global benchmark, which isn’t very ambitious in the first place, is [Queen’s] continuing to invest in fossil fuels,” Margorian said.
Queen’s Pooled Endowment Fund is nearly $1.4 billion, and its Pooled Investment Fund is valued at $500 million, according to the report. The funds are managed by an investment committee appointed by the Board of Trustees. The only student on the committee is Rector Owen Crawford-Lem.
QBACC calculations estimate approximately $32 million dollars of the Queen’s Pooled Endowment Fund is directly invested in fossil fuels. QBACC is petitioning for divestment and is planning a rally for students in April.
As of December 2022, Queen’s carbon footprint level was 12 per cent below the global benchmark, according to the report.
The report details how Queen’s will require companies it invests in to report their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standing, requiring companies to explain their actions and commitment to sustainability.
Queen’s holds investments in British Petroleum (BP) and Exxon Mobil as of December 2022, according to their Endowment Holdings Report. In the December Board of Trustees meeting, Todd Mattina, chair of the investment committee, fielded questions from trustees about whether the use of the ESG questionnaire was effective.
Trustee Victoria Remenda questioned how the investment committee is translating the answers from the questionnaire to their investment decisions. She asked if the committee is using any benchmarking for “what they’re actually doing.”
According to Margorian, Queen’s has no policy for when an investment doesn’t align with their climate portfolio. During the Board meeting, trustees questioned if the low-carbon investment plan was an example of greenwashing—when an organization markets themselves as sustainable without actually being sustainable.
“There is no pushback that Queen’s has in response to these questionnaires. It’s a little bit of greenwashing,” Margorian said.
Tags
Divestment, environmental sustainability, pooled investment fund, QBACC
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