The students from the University environmental group ‘ecodemia’ erected a ladder and dropped the banner from the arches. The non-violent direct action was placed after an academic year of raised awareness of environmental issues on campus. The campaign was in part a response to Strathclyde University’s controversial ranking at 60 in the national People and Planet Green League Tables 2007, highlighting only a 20% energy use from the renewable sector and no significant recycling targets. The Green League information and results can be viewed at  http://peopleandplanet.org/greenleague. The table was initiated to ‘’applaud genuine progress and expose inaction” on environmental performance in the Higher Education (HE) sector.
The banner, states ‘Education Should Not Cost The Planet: Strathclyde University Take Environmental Action Now!’ Dan Glass, the students’ association environmental and ethical committee co-coordinator said:
‘Today’s public display serves as a reminder that students will not give up the fight at Strathclyde until the institution serves as a ‘place of useful learning’ NOT as a place of useless pollution!’

The People and Planet report stated that the UK Education Sector has lower environmental standards than industry. This contributes to human induced carbon emissions and climate change. Every year the higher education sector alone in the UK spends £3 billion pounds on goods and services, emits three millions tonnes of CO2 from energy consumption, uses 16 million cubic metres of water and uses nine percent of all UK office space.

The documents further reveal that whilst it is university academics who continue to warn us about the catastrophic effects of climate change and the current generation of students who expect to inherit the consequences, very little consideration is being paid by some university Vice Chancellors to the environmental impact of their universities.

According to Alex Hinde, the students’ association environmental and ethical committee co-ordinator, green policy has been passed, ‘green’ awareness weeks have been held and communication plans are in motion. Strathclyde University and Students’ Association has been seen by the students to be making some progress. He said:

‘Progress is being made, but far too slowly. Now is not the time for ‘feel good’ changes like changing the light bulbs unless the University’s financial support for the oil and gas industry is challenged. We have, and aim to work intensely with, workers unions on campus to move from being dependent on non-renewable energy sources to organise in a fossil free environment.’

The students from the protest make three demands:

1. A year long campaign to lobby the University to implement a plan to become carbon neutral by 2020 and to apply consulted CO2 cuts to all University and Union activities.

2. That all students have the opportunity to take an elective class in issues of generic and multidisciplinary sustainability issues across all faculties.

3. That the University introduce a targeted and consulted plan to completely divert financial investments and sponsorships from oil, gas and aviation companies which deny the reality of human-induced climate change and whom continue to profit off illegal wars and the destruction of the planet.

Ends
Ecodemia is a community aiming to embed basic environmental values in Higher Education. Ecodemia works with student, staff and faculty groups taking action to reduce the education sector’s carbon footprint and working to integrate ecological literacy into the curriculum.