As an institution that pledges to educate its students, Washington University in St. Louis should provide its students with an unbiased and accurate education. However, the influence of large industries, specifically coal companies, has shifted university interests to more closely align with these corporations.
Here are some examples that illustrate this assumption:
- The University’s Board of Trustees are responsible for the appointment of the chancellor, annual budgets, major capital expenditure, allocation of tenure and degree programs, as well as the management of the endowment and developmental programs. A number of corporate heads sit on the board such as Greg Boyce, the CEO of the Peabody Energy, largest privatized coal company, and Steven Leer, Chairman of Arch Coal Inc. Therefore, these individuals and representative companies are active in the decision making processes of the university.
- WUSTL’s endowment is $5.35 billion, a considerable portion of which is being used directly to hold stock in fossil fuel companies.
- The Advanced Coal and Energy Research Facility (ACERF) was built on campus in March of 2015 and promoted as an opportunity for a more sustainable world. It is associated with the Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization (CCCU) and the International Center for Advanced Renewable and Sustainability (I-CARES). Both ACERF and CCCU are cited as primarily funded by Arch Coal, Peabody Energy and Ameren Corp. The advisory committee of I-CARES hosts all three of the CEO’s of these companies, determining the research conducted and funding of projects by the center.
This single industry’s heavy hand in WUSTL’s alternative energy research leads to the conclusion that these efforts are to accomplish goals set out by primarily coal companies. In order for this injustice to be resolved, the fossil fuel industry must lose fiscal and political power. Washington University should take a stand to fight this current injustice and refuse to support companies whose actions are destructive and unethical.
Photo credit: Ishak Hossain