Friends of LittleSis,

For over a decade, LittleSis has helped build stronger student-led climate justice movements by investigating the people and corporations profiting off destructive industries. Our research has led to huge impacts – from University of Buffalo closing its biased, pro-fracking Shale Resources and Society Institute in 2012, to Harvard calling for billionaire David Rubenstein of the Carlyle Group to resign from the board just this year. As LittleSis’ new Senior Research Analyst here in the Climate Program, I’m excited to join this long history.

One area I’m particularly proud of is our commitment to supporting fossil fuel divestment campaigns on campus. This year, along with the Sunrise Project, we researched the fossil fuel ties of board members at over 20 universities and colleges across the country – that’s over 600 board members! We used this information to train student organizers on power research techniques and released the CorpU Field Guide to help them identify fossil fuel industry presence at their schools. Stay tuned, as we’ll be publishing findings from this study early next year!

Will you help us fight fossil fuel influence on campus?

Research like this brings university contradictions into stark view, helping campaigners cut through the greenwashing and develop more strategic messaging and targets. Campus organizing is an important site of resistance, challenging institutional leaders who are largely captured by the interests of oil, gas and coal corporations.

With your contribution, we can sustain our partnership with these and other groups building powerful movements to end extractive industries and corporate control!

Onward,

Lauren Parker, Senior Research Analyst