There are some days when being proud of UNC’s sustainability initiatives is easy. Watching my peers pedal across the brick paths on Tar Heel Bikes and easily composting organic material through a residence hall program makes me proud of our school’s commitment to being green.
But sometimes I’m frustrated by decision-makers’ hypocrisy or lack of action taken by the town government.
Though the town has installed more equitable road infrastructure since recent cyclist deaths, statistics show that Chapel Hill has a terribly high bike-car collision rate.
And though former Chancellor Holden Thorp committed UNC’s Energy Services to cease burning coal by 2020, the power plant is not on track to reach this goal. Worse, UNC’s Board of Trustees have thus far been unwilling to seriously consider divestment from coal companies that create massive environmental health risks.
On campus, UNC’s current framework to fund energy efficiency initiatives and renewable energy installation through the Sustainability Seed Fund and the Green Revolving Fund is impressive, but governing bodies should be similarly willing to take a stance for divestment.
The Board of Trustees must seriously consider the broad economic, moral and public relations ticking time bomb that comes with being invested in coal companies.
If I am confident about anything, it is that UNC’s student leaders in sustainability and activism will remain steadfast in their campaigns.
