University of Toronto School of the Environment Guidelines on Funding and Partnerships with the Fossil Fuel Industry
In October 2021, the University of Toronto committed to divest its investment portfolio from fossil fuel companies by 2030. At the School of the Environment, we believe the same rationale should apply to our fundraising and co-sponsorship activities.
The School of the Environment has adopted the following principles to guide our department-level decision-making on funding and partnerships:
- The School of the Environment will not accept donations from fossil fuel companies–this includes donations for buildings and infrastructure, student scholarships, seminar series, and School-level activities.
- The School of the Environment will not enter into agreements for sponsorship with fossil fuel companies for events and initiatives at the School, including recruitment events.
- The School of the Environment will work to increase transparency about our funding, donations, and partnerships, while respecting the academic freedom of our faculty, colleagues, and students in their research and teaching.
These principles have been developed under the leadership of the current Director and Associate Directors and will be reviewed on an annual basis by the School’s leadership team. Together, these principles allow the School of the Evironment, as an academic unit, to dissociate from fossil fuel companies, while protecting the academic freedom of our faculty and students.
The University defines academic freedom as “the freedom to examine, question, teach, and learn, and it involves the right to investigate, speculate, and comment without reference to prescribed doctrine, as well as the right to criticize the University of Toronto and society at large.” (Governing Council and UTFA MOA, Jan 1, 2024, Article 5). Institutional funding agreements and partnerships can influence faculty members’ academic work in complex ways and may create real or perceived limits to academic freedom. By applying these principles to departmental funding agreements and partnerships, we seek to avoid such limits.
Academic freedom also means individual faculty members must be free to pursue their research—and funding for that research—as they see fit. Hence, these principles do not restrict individual faculty members within the School from engaging with or accepting funding from fossil fuel companies. The School will continue to administer faculty research grants regardless of their funding affiliation, and will ensure such choices have no bearing on consideration for tenure, promotion, or other academic support, recognition, honours, and opportunities. We recognize colleagues may have different perspectives on corporate engagement and the pathways for climate action.
The School of the Environment’s commitment to dissociate from the fossil fuel industry was made in consultation with faculty members within the School of the Environment, as well as collaboration and input from both undergraduate and graduate students. The School acknowledges the limitations of these principles, and we will work with the University of Toronto leadership to explore broader, university-wide policies on fossil free research.