Fossil Free Research Campaign
What is Fossil Free Research (FFR)?
Fossil free research (FFR) demands universities to stop accepting research funding from fossil fuel companies. The FFR coalition includes students around the world trying to enact change at their universities.
Fossil fuel companies have historically provided much funding to universities to boost their public images and retain sway over the content of the research. This is especially problematic when it comes to climate and clean energy research, because fossil fuel companies have a financial interest in slowing the transition away from fossil fuels. This creates a conflict of interest for scientists, who may be compelled to alter the results of their research in favor of the companies that fund it. Even if the research is not directly tied to the climate, fossil fuel companies may still appear more benevolent to the public.
Climate change is too dangerous of an issue to risk relying on research warped by fossil fuel companies. Even subtle alterations to climate findings could slow the transition to a clean energy system, leading to more catastrophic global warming events. The FFR movement is an effort to protect science from the manipulation of fossil fuel companies and other polluters.
Examples of fossil fuel company influence at Duke:
Dozens of professors receive money from fossil fuel companies and/or foundations that promote denial of climate change. Based on publicly available data, this totals up to $11 million in funding from these companies since 2010, though the number may be much greater in reality.
The Duke Energy Initiative, which is a prominent program at Duke that promotes energy research, was initially led by a former fossil fuel company executive. The annual Duke Energy Week conference has also received sponsorships from companies like Chevron.
The Center for the History of Political Economy at Duke received a $5 million grant from the Charles Koch Foundation, led by the infamous Koch brothers. This money was used in 2021 to fund a lecture by Bjorn Lomborg, who is a leading promoter of theories that deny the existence of climate change.
More:
esteemed Duke Law professor Walter Dellinger represented multinational oil conglomerate Exxon Mobil in the Exxon Valdez case
Duke Climate Coalition created a report raising awareness of the university's significant funding from the fossil industry and the ways in which this funding is spent in ways conflicting with Duke's climate action commitments