Around 30 Ohio State students and community members attended a protest and sit-in Friday held by the Ohio Youth for Climate Justice to demand the university divest from fossil fuels.
The group rallied to urge the Board of Trustees and University President Kristina M. Johnson to invest in renewable energy, Isabella Guinigundo, co-communications director of Ohio Youth for Climate Justice, said. The protest took place in front of Bricker Hall and later moved from the building’s grand staircase to outside the president’s office.
“We know that the world is burning,” Guinigundo, a second-year in women’s, gender and sexuality studies, said. “President Johnson and the Board of Trustees are using our tuition money to throw fuel onto that fire.”
The protest began with a land acknowledgement — listing the Native American tribes that have ancestral and contemporary claims to the land that Ohio State lies on — led by Catherine Adams, a first-year in environmental policy and decision making.
“Our demands are simple: We want the Ohio State University to completely divest from all fossil fuel projects immediately and reinvest in renewable energy and pay reparation to indigenous communities that the university has profited from,” Adams said.
Guinigundo also called for Ohio State to allocate funds to Appalachian and Black and brown communities, which she said will likely be most affected by climate change and the fossil fuel industry.
Protesters gathered in front of Bricker Hall with gravestone-themed signs, which they said represent the death of the climate, “mother earth” and their future, chanting for Ohio State to “get their money out of this mess.”
The protest continued as 25 protesters occupied the staircase of Bricker Hall with bullhorns and signs, chanting to Johnson and the Board of Trustees. Gary R. Heminger, former chairman of the board and CEO of Marathon Petroleum, is on the Board.
The protesters eventually entered the building and reached Johnson’s office, but University Police directed them to stop using the bullhorn because they were “disrupting business.” Protestors were further instructed to back away from the president’s door to comply with fire hazard protocol before the crowd left the building.
University spokesperson Ben Johnson said in an email Ohio State created a plan in 2008 to become carbon neutral by 2050.
“Ohio State is dedicated to sustainability, combating climate change, and creating a carbon neutral university,” Johnson said. “We welcome student, faculty and staff participation as we develop innovative solutions for our campus, the state and the world.”
Yasmine Skalli, a first-year in computer science, said in a speech outside Bricker Hall that Ohio State should aim to completely cease investments in fossil fuels, following the example of the University of Michigan and Harvard University.
“It seems we must follow in our rivals footsteps,” Skalli said. “The university’s commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2050 will fall flat as long as they continue to finance the expansion of fossil fuels now and into the future.”
