Students call for change

UBC Okanagan students are calling on the school to enact climate action, social responsibility policies in investment, and cede more power on issues that affect their future.

At a recent Student Union Okanagan Annual General Meeting, members voted on resolutions that they think will help more positively shape the road ahead of them.

“The list of challenges facing students is pretty endless," Erin Delfs said in a press release.

"From affordability, to war and genocide, to pipelines violating Indigenous sovereignty in the province, and tangible effects of the climate emergency perpetuated by fossil fuel companies and the banks that fund them; everyone is struggling."

Deffs said the recent AGM however, offered some positivity as hundreds of students collaborated with each other to make the student union better.

One of the fruits of that collaboration was a call to remove the RBC off campus over its funding of the oil and gas sector.

"Over the past three years, students have been calling for the RBC branch to be removed from the UBCO campus and replaced with a more ethical and accessible credit union."

Students at the AGM also voted to pass three resolutions related to climate, sustainability and investment.

Prior to the AGM, the student union had an existing regulation recommending its finances align with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing criteria. At the AGM, students voted to codify this Regulation into a Bylaw, re-affirming and strengthening the students’ commitment to divestment from fossil fuels.

Students also passed a resolution requiring any new or renewed lease contracts with the student union be voted on by students at a general meeting, empowering students to cut ties with banks and other businesses that don’t align with their principles.

Another resolution passed calling on the student union to propose a new strategy to the BC Federation of Students to influence universities to adopt better investment criteria.