U. of Massachusetts to Drop All Fossil-Fuel Investments

The University of Massachusetts system announced Wednesday that its endowment will sell off all its holdings in oil, gas, and coal holdings, The Boston Globe reports. The board of the UMass Foundation, which oversees the $770 million fund, unanimously approved what system officials said was the first such full divestment from fossil fuels by a major public university.

Officials estimated that the endowment currently includes about $5 million in such stocks. The foundation agreed in December to drop coal investments, but campus green activists — part of a national surge of student advocacy on climate issues — pressed for full fossil-fuel divestment. University President Martin Meehan said the move sends a signal to the industry “that we need to find alternative sources and sustainable sources of energy.”