Divest UChicago
2023 - Present
Divest UChicago aims to build infrastructure to support the fossil fuel divestment movement at the University of Chicago from an institutional perspective. We seek to build a broad coalition of student organizations, alumni, faculty, and other stakeholders; engage members of the administration in, open communication around divestment; and expand the reach of the campaign through work with media outlets and community organizations.
Fossil Fuel Divestment Campaign
Starting with Public Engagement (Divest UChicago's precursor) work last year, Divest UChicago has been strategizing for UChicago’s fossil fuel divestment campaign. To do so, we collaborate with the Environmental Justice Task Force (EJTF) and work with the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) and the Committee on Campus Sustainability (CCS). We learned about the historical context of divestment campaigns at other universities and UChicago, which we used to inform our process of updating the petition and outreach efforts of the campaign.
We worked in tandem with EJTF to discuss campaign strategy and petition demands, re-strategizing the divestment petition campaign with a focus on concrete and contextualized demands, accessibility, and broader outreach. Through this, we were able to update the campaign’s petition and launch a new website and social media outreach plan for broader community engagement
2023 Legal Complaint
Following the release of EJTF's (Environmental Justice Task Force) legal complaint regarding UChicago’s investment in fossil fuels, we crafted an email to administration members requesting a public response. We then wrote a template email for an auto-emailer tool used for a community-wide email-writing campaign targeted at several members of the
UChicago administration. Through our auto-emailer tool, over 300 emails were sent by students, alums, faculty members, and parents to members of the UChicago administration. This tool and these emails increased both public and administrative awareness of the campaign.
We collaboratively edited the press release regarding the legal complaint filed by the Divest UChicago coalition, before sending it out to an extensive media list. Across the campaign, we garnered media mentions in the Guardian, WBEZ, the Financial Times, the Hyde Park Herald, and the Chicago Maroon.
Art installation on the Quad to publicize the publication of the legal complaint.
Divestival, Spring (2023-2026)
For the past four years, Divestival has been successfully bringing together the UChicago community with live music and tabling in support of fossil fuel divestment and greater financial transparency for the University's endowment. The event had several speakers from undergraduate and graduate organizing groups, and four student bands (The Dirt Red Brass Band, Directrix, Puddlejumper, and Aag), along with a fundraiser coordinated by the Indigenous Students Association. In partnership with the Environmental Justice Task Force (EJTF), Divest helped plan and bring the event to life, creating a space where students could learn more and take action.
PIRG Rally
Divest collaborated with Illinois PIRG and Community Action on the Safer Cleaner Energy Campaign, where members have been tabling, phonebanking, and volunteering to oppose the Peoples Gas Rate Hike.
