Fossil fuels occupation update: Protesters plan ‘mass die in’

Protestors have now gained complete control of Charles Stewart House, as the occupation goes into its fifth day.

Protesters at Charles Stewart House have organised a ‘mass die in’ today.

The die in, due to take place this afternoon, comes as the occupation enters its fifth day.

Dr Chichilnisky, the Nobel Prize-winning economist, was meant to stay there the night before last – but fell ill. She had previously visited the occupation on Friday.

The Nobel Laureate had planned to spend the night with the occupiers of Charles Stewart House

The occupation started due to student anger after the University of Edinburgh revealed plans its plan to only partially divest from fossil fuel investments.

There have been regular demos and rallies outside the occupation since it started.

A previously held die-in (Photo: Rob Edwards)

Despite their big guest not making it, the occupiers were visited by Alison Johnstone MSP and former Rector and Green Party member Peter McColl.

Dr Chichilnisky said: “Divesting from fossil fuels is an imperative, and full divestment is the goal. This is what the University of Edinburgh can do and offer global leadership. Complete divestment is a global decision in the making. Most people would agree that the value of excellent fossil fuel companies like Exxon have been going down for a while.

“We just need to give it a little push so the world economy can finally enter the 21^st Century. We need to align profits with a clean environment. They are not mutually exclusive. Global Thermostat, my company, validates that point.”

Speaking to The Student, Dr Chichilnisky said: “It is a peaceful occupation to a deliver a message. The message is, fossil fuels have formed an important role in economic development, but we must now move on to clean energy.”

The occupation is going into its fifth day

She added: “I can see that people are a bit conservative, but in reality it is the case that fossil companies are decreasing in economic value, and therefore it makes business sense to fully divest.

“The University has not taken into account information about the trend in prices about fossil fuel companies. If they follow the trends, they will see that it makes sense to divest fully.”

When contacted for a comment, a spokesperson for the university said: “The University does not discuss the operational details of its security arrangements.”