Columns

KEMPFF | Invest in Ithaca

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My life flashed before my eyes when I saw the 10-foot-tall, paper-mache capitalist. Last March, climate protesters held up the roads throughout Central Campus to campaign Cornell’s divestment from fossil fuels. I have to hand it to them; anyone who is willing to stand outside in Ithaca in March must be really committed. In just a few short months, word came from the bureaucrats in Day Hall (or wherever they work): Cornell’s seven billion dollar endowment would be effectively divesting from fossil fuels. This was not only a win for climate activists, but for anyone who cares about socially responsible investing.

BDS

Student Assembly Votes Against Resolution on Divestment Movement

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Student Assembly members voted Thursday to reject Resolution 36, which would “urge” Cornell to divest from companies “profiting from the occupation of Palestine and human rights violations.” The vote included 13 no, 14 yes and one abstention from S.A. members, as well as two votes by the community members that were against the resolution.

huawei

EDITORIAL: Cornell’s Hush-Hush Huawei Ties

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Thursday’s news that Cornell quietly took millions in research contracts from Chinese telecom firm Huawei is alarming enough. But the University’s refusal to provide details about said contracts makes for an utter transparency failure. Cornell must acknowledge the perils of working with a firm wedded to China’s autocracy — and reveal the nature of its Huawei ties. Public data from the Department of Education shows that Cornell took $5.3 million from Huawei in 2017 via two research contracts. That’s troubling.