In its first two weeks, Bowdoin Climate Action (BCA) has collected 237 signatures for its petition advocating for the College to divest its endowment from fossil fuels.
Earlier this week, BCA leader Julia Berkman-Hill ’17 expressed confidence that the club will collect at least the 360 signatures required to submit the petition to Bowdoin Student Government (BSG), and create a student body referendum regarding divestment.
A referendum can be passed by signatures of either two-fifths of the student body or two-thirds of the executive committee of BSG, according to Berkman-Hill.
“We decided to go with the petition because it’s really important to us that the student body is on board with this idea,” she said.
While BCA is continuing to gather signatures for the petition, which is available on Blink, the group has taken a step back from its active campaign in light of the results of the presidential election.
According to Berkman-Hill, BCA plans to regroup and decide how to move forward in addressing President-elect Donald Trump’s plans for the environment, which include withdrawing from the 2015 Paris climate agreement.