After five days of occupation within its walls, the University of Montreal (UdeM) is set to present a plan by June to get rid of fossil fuels by 2025.
Posted yesterday at 6:05 p.m.
Since Monday, about thirty students have occupied the lobby of the Roger-Gaudry Pavilion in UdeM and pressured management to withdraw its investment in fossil fuels.
After they won the case, the camp broke up on Saturday: Rector Daniel Jude’s pledge to provide “only one or more shots of the total allotment before December 31, 2025” by June.
“I’m so proud of what we were able to do. By campaigning together, we were able to put together everything we dreamed of,” said Quentin Lehmann, who slept on campus all week with the flu.
The last few days have not been easy. Vincent Vaslin, an activist who started a hunger strike, was taken to hospital on Friday after more than four days of fasting. Even from his hospital bed, he refused to eat until he got confirmation from the university to take the oil out.
Quentin, who studies political science, said: “He is the most convincing person I have ever known. Another hunger striker, Catherine Ollet-Marero, ended her fast on Thursday, worried about her physical and mental health, he said.
In a letter to activists, the Rector also sought to make available “a percentage of the shares listed on the stock exchange held directly or indirectly in each sector of stock market investment”. This is another big demand of the activists: total transparency in the university portfolio.
“While I condemn the use of activities such as the occupation of university space or the hunger strike, I recognize the leadership of the student movement in implementing responsible investment policies within the university environment.” Letter.
He is scheduled to meet with activists next Monday to discuss their “respective positions”.
The proposals were initially rejected
On the third day of the occupation, the chief presented the first series of proposals to the protesters, which they rejected. According to them, these are not clear promises of a foray into fossil fuels by the end of 2025.
By 2020, those activities will total $ 98.2 million. UdeM spokesman Geneviève O’Meara said a stock exclusion plan had been in operation for several months.
With this project, UdeM will follow in the footsteps of the University of Quebec in Montreal and Concordia, both of which have already pledged to pull out of the oil.
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