The Bowdoin Orient

Have you ever seen a Chevron advertisement bragging about the company’s new investments in clean energy? How about a commercial claiming that BP is involved in coastal land conservation? Many large corporations have started Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts in order to improve their image in the eyes of consumers. But critics claim CSR efforts are misleading because they prioritize corporate image over addressing the root causes of social or environmental issues. 

Bowdoin appears to have adopted a public relations model similar to CSR when it comes to promoting its own commitment to the environment. The College works hard to cultivate a sustainable image, but falls short of making the large investments and institutional commitments necessary to address the root causes of climate change. 

Simply put, CSR helps a business look good in the eyes of consumers, usually at a low cost. Over the past decade, especially, businesses have been increasingly willing to donate substantial sums to foundations, start their own charities or even let their employees take time off to work with non-profit organizations. 

Dr. Seuss’ parable, The Lorax, about the environmental movement tells the story of the Once-ler who cuts down the forest of Truffula Trees to make “thneeds” despite the Lorax’s protests. “I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues. And I’m asking you, sir, at the top of my lungs.” But the Lorax’s protests are futile. No one listens to his pleas to protect the Truffula Trees because “business is business” and everyone is too busy making money from thneeds. 

Lorax-inspired pleas for the College to divest the endowment from fossil fuels have been similarly futile. Despite student activism pushing for divestment, the College has continued to say, “business is business,” and has swept the proposal off the table. However, the College did coincidentally reveal its vision for how it believes students should help protect the environment through the recent panel Reaching Day Zero: Living Sustainably at Bowdoin and Beyond, held in Kresge auditorium on March 25. 

During the panel, professors and administrators, moderated by President Mills, argued that students should protect the environment primarily through sustainable lifestyle choices and education. Unfortunately, the panel helped reveal that Bowdoin College encourages its students to pursue environmental education and make sustainable lifestyle choices rather than fight for large-scale climate action, a College position which does not adequately address the risk of climate change.  

Carbon Neutral by 2020. The mantra dots the Bowdoin campus, plastered on students’ computers and water bottles, displayed in College publications, and featured on the Bowdoin website. With all the talk this year about divestment and climate action, some might argue that Bowdoin’s commitment to carbon neutrality satisfies its stated commitment to safeguard the environment. 

Unfortunately, up to 60 percent of the carbon reductions under Bowdoin’s carbon neutrality plan do little to nothing to combat climate change. The carbon neutrality plan relies heavily on purchasing low-grade carbon offsets, few of which reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

To get serious about sustainability, Bowdoin needs to improve its investment in reducing its carbon footprint.

Bowdoin participated in [the South Africa] divestment campaign based on the demands of students, facultuy, the actions of other institutions, and our society’s outrage.

After Bowdoin College wrenched the fraternities out of student hands in the 1990s, the administration hatched an innovative plan to convert the old fraternity houses into "Social Houses." The administration lauded their new housing system as "the center of housing policy and residential life," supposedly creating an inclusive campus environment and encouraging students to use alcohol safely, out in the open.