"Dirty Money, Dirty Planet"

Last semester, UIUC Beyond Coal took huge steps forward in its campaign for coal divestment. After successfully petitioning to get a vote on the ballot referendum, students voted 6:1, 86% in favor of divestment from the filthiest fifteen dirty coal companies. It was a ton of work and so satisfying to get formal support from the student body. So what next?

Over the course of the year, co-presidents Peter Whitney and Drew O'Bryan have been continuing the initiative along with Beyond Coal's student activists. This year, an early meeting with the Board of Trustees gave a kick start to staying on track and focused. Reiterating the resolution that Beyond Coal is advocating, Drew reminded the Board of their power to act and failure to do so. The resolution being pushed for has four main objectives for the Trustees:

1. Forego any future direct investments in the “Filthy 15” coal companies effective immediately.
2. Establish a committee on socially responsible investment (SRI) within the Board of Trustees to monitor progress and address any future SRI issues, as is proposed in the Illinois Climate Action Plan.
3. Divest all direct and indirect holdings from the “Filthy 15” coal mining and utilities companies by the year 2017
4. 4. Construct a plan for reinvestment of a percentage of divested funds into renewable energy utilities and/or research.

For the first major event this spring semester, Beyond Coal is hosting a speaker panel and discussion this week-- "Dirty Money, Dirty Planet", Starting the Conversation on Coal Divestment. Join us this Tuesday, February 11 at 6:30pm in 213 Gregory.  Speakers from Stand Up to Coal and the Prairie Rivers Network (along with our Beyond Coal officers) will be providing their expert knowledge on the science of coal, the history and economics of divestment, and the frontline efforts in local communities to fight coal extraction. Check out the Facebook event and be sure to invite your friends for an awesome night with Beyond Coal!