To President Andrew Petter, SFU Administrators, Senate, and the Board of Governors:
We are in the midst of an existential crisis. Climate change is the greatest threat our society has to face yet. On September 27th, we—students, faculty, and staff of SFU—are gathering at Broadway-City Hall at 12:30 PM (3) and striking in solidarity with millions around the world (4). Our leaders and governments are not doing enough. They are failing our generation with hypocrisy and inaction, declaring a climate emergency only to approve new pipeline construction the next day. Our future is being stolen before our eyes; the generation that came before us has failed to take the necessary action to secure a livable and sustainable future. If we don’t take drastic action now, we won’t have a future.
In order to prevent long-lasting and irreversible changes to the planet’s climate, CO2 emissions must be cut by 45% within roughly ten years and reduced to net-zero by 2050 (1). If we are to achieve the goals set by the IPCC and limit global warming to 1.5°C, we must rapidly accelerate our transformation of society and infrastructure.
We appreciate the announcement from President Petter on the climate strike and supportive words for those who plan to attend. However, we ask that the President take his support even further in a way that matches the urgency of the climate crisis. Staff who wish to participate are required to use vacation time or unpaid leave, and faculty members and TAs are to cancel classes only if it “aligns with the academic principles of the program”. This is a barrier for certain members of the SFU community who wish to strike. We are privileged to live in a country in which citizens are relatively empowered to engage in direct action, yet we must also acknowledge that Canada has profited while those who have contributed the least to climate change are those facing the brunt of its impacts.
So we again ask SFU to grant academic amnesty to participating students, to cancel classes, and to take a stand with millions around the world. Companies like MEC and Lush have already announced that they will be closing stores across Canada on Friday in order to allow workers to participate in the strike (2). Just today, Emily Carr announced it’ll be closing it’s doors the day of the strike (5). If SFU acts now, it will underscore the urgency of the situation and indicate to millions worldwide that SFU is willing to foster students’ learning through not only through classroom learning but through community and social engagement that will shape our society’s future.
Friday’s strike will be historic and SFU will be judged by the actions it takes today. It remains to be seen whether the school will hold up to its claims of being “Canada’s Engaged University”. Let’s revitalize the radicalism and student action of the university’s beginnings.
“I am here to say, our house is on fire... I want you to act as you would in a crisis.”
-Greta Thunberg
In unity, the undersigned,
SFU 350
Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS)
Sociology Anthropology Student Union
Environmental Science Student Union
Political Science Student Union
SFU Backpacking Club
Simon Fraser Public Interest Research Group (SFPIRG)
SFU Ukrainian Students Society
1) IPCC 2018 report
https://www.ipcc.ch/2018/10/08/summary-for-policymakers-of-ipcc-special-report-on-global-warming-of-1-5c-approved-by-governments/2) MEC & Lush store closure
https://globalnews.ca/news/5936125/mec-closed-climate-strike/?utm_expid=.kz0UD5JkQOCo6yMqxGqECg.0&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F3) SFU climate strike
https://www.facebook.com/events/398690757509394/4) Global climate strike
https://www.facebook.com/events/659383604564246/5) Emily Carr Class Cancellations
https://www.straight.com/news/1305696/emily-carr-university-art-design-becomes-first-bc-postsecondary-school-cancel-classes?fbclid=IwAR28AfRct2VPQ_lDLHjrxZzARvIk_vL6YWrH3v93JKRos4Ds6jGgLrrfMzg