Half-naked students dripping in oil stormed the corridors at University College, London on Tuesday - all in the name of climate change.
Protesters labelled UCL’s relationship with oil industry giants, Shell and BP, as “incestous”, and made their point clear by covering themselves in mock-oil. Approximately 35 students filled the hallway outside the meeting of high profile UCL Council members, forcing a number to be escorted in by security staff.
Organisers say this action comes as university management have failed to organise an ethical review of UCL’s investment portfolio and claim all channels of communication with the campaign have ceased.
Academics are also involved in the campaign and in an open letter to the council state: “UCL’s academics show a strong consensus on the effects of climate change, taking it into account in their research and making constructive proposals for how we can respond to and overcome it as a society.
“UCL is giving money to further this positive research yet chooses to invest in the fossil fuel industry, the root cause of climate change. This shows massive disrespect to their own staff, to the future of their students, and to all those around the world suffering the effects of climate change,” they added.
Harry Kelleher, a UCL student at the protest told The Huffington Post UK: “Divestment is attractive as it will encourage actual change. An event like this will raise awareness.”
Guin Carter, a second year Politics and Economics student, thinks the university has no case against divestment, saying: “This stunt was for student engagement and showing the councillors that students do really care about the hypocrisy of the uni.”
“UCL is clearly going against their ethical investment guidelines. This is a fight that we cannot afford to lose. We hope that more students across UCL and the world will take a stance against climate change.”
Fossil Free UCL organised the event to follow-up to November’s "die-in", which saw the same group protest against the university’s alleged millions investment in the fossil fuel industry.
A university spokesperson told HuffPost UK: "UCL is committed to an investment policy that is guided by ethical considerations.
"We are currently engaged with the Fossil Free UCL campaign, who have asked us to consider a number of investments under the terms of that policy, and this is process is ongoing, specifically through careful consideration of our investments by the university’s Ethical Investment Review Committee. "