A
Call for Revised Energy Policy
To
the Editors:
It
is time that Oberlin College adopted an energy policy. As an institution
committed to the rigorous pursuit of knowledge, we can no longer
deny the enormous threat that climate change poses to our world.
As an institution committed to social justice, we cannot ignore
the way in which poorer countries and communities will experience
the effects of climate change more severely than the industrial
countries that have caused it.
There comes a point at which the possession of knowledge becomes
a responsibility to act. We have reached that point in our study
of the risks of climate change, and it irresponsible to ignore.
The Bush administration has and will continue to evade the issue,
but it is cowardly to use Washington’s inaction as an excuse
for our own.
Creating a policy at Oberlin may require certain short-term sacrifices,
but our willingness to endure these relatively small financial setbacks
and inconveniences is a measure, in my opinion, of the maturity
and decency of our institution.
I urge Oberlin’s students, faculty, trustees and administration
to respond to the unique challenge posed to us by supporting a campus-wide
energy policy.
–Alyson Dame
College junior
|