Spring is in the air, a time of new beginnings and hope. If you pay attention to global news, you may be forgiven for wanting to look closer to home for some signs of positivity. It has been an unsettling start to the year.
We are clearly at something of a turning point in international affairs and business. As an archaeologist, I was trained to look into the deep past. Yet as a university Vice-Chancellor, my sights are trained firmly on the future.
Universities are in the business of securing the future. Come to our campuses or meet our students wherever they are, and you will be inspired by a group of people looking to build a brighter future, pushing themselves to learn and grow. The research and engagement
work of our world-class academics helps others to see beyond the horizon, uncovering the facts, however inconvenient or politically unfashionable, to show what is around us and what is still to come.
At times like this, when some governments and corporations seem to be retreating from their vital climate commitments, it could be a moment to despair. Instead, it should be a reminder that we all need to act to secure the future we want to see. It is perhaps
not surprising that global fossil fuel companies want to sell more oil and gas. Their shareholders are demanding higher returns – more money, more quickly. Those of us that have savings – universities included – can decide if we want to invest our money like
that. It’s one of the reasons why the University of Reading decided to divest from fossil fuel companies several years ago, and change our financial providers to those that shared our concerns about climate action.
Democratically elected politicians in the US and elsewhere may find it politically convenient to tell lies about climate change, looking to the next election. But even popularity can’t turn lies into truth.
At times like this, we need people, and institutions, that have a longer term outlook. Governments and companies come and go. Real communities, and solid values, persevere. I hope that our university, which has been around for a century already and which is
always looking to the future, is helping to keep that flame alive. Our students, our colleagues, and the community in Reading and Wokingham where we are rooted, are the holders of that torch. We are here for the long term, and are motivated by our values of
excellence, community, engagement, and sustainability – not profit or popularity. That’s an approach that has helped us become the Sunday Times Sustainable University of the Year. It is why we are investing millions into our Global Sustainability Leaders Scholarships,
supporting thousands of the next generation of talented green leaders – no matter their background, and across all degree subjects.
Our local community created us, and continues to shape us. The choices we make, for ourselves and for our civic institutions, shape our world.
Professor Robert Van de Noort is the Vice Chancellor of the University of Reading
