The News
University funding from fossil fuel companies could be playing a role in obstructing climate action, according to a new study.
Bias in published research resulting from studies funded by industries like tobacco and alcohol is well documented, but the potential influence of the fossil fuel industry on science is not as well understood. The new study reviewed existing research to show some bias in research funded by fossil fuels that, the authors suggested, could affect academia, and also shape climate litigation and policy.
Representatives from fossil fuel companies “fund research, sit on governing boards, host recruitment events, and advise curricula,” in universities across the US, UK, Canada, and Australia, though the exact scope of their involvement is unclear, the study noted.
SIGNALS
More scrutiny over fossil fuel companies’ role within US universities
A joint US Democrats House committee found in April that Big Oil had privately acknowledged their efforts to downplay the risks of fossil fuels, including by suggesting funding white papers within colleges. Activist groups on campuses have increasingly been pushing for universities to “dissociate” from the fossil fuel industry. “This literature review confirms what students in our movement have known for years,” one activist told The Guardian.
Europe feels industry influence on campus, too
While the study focused on the role of funding in American, British and Australian universities, European campuses have also received hundreds of millions of euros from the industry in less than a decade, Investigate Europe and openDemocracy found. In the UK, some institutions accepted “direct advice on how to run engineering and geoscience degrees,” and were directed on how to answer probing questions from journalists and students. Universities have been grappling with funding cuts, the organizations noted, which may partly explain their willingness to accept cash injections from Big Oil.
Lack of transparency makes tracking influence difficult
Higher education institutions in many countries have shown a lack of transparency in disclosing their ties to certain industries, including fossil fuel companies, making it difficult to track how much money these companies have poured into colleges, the study noted. The same applies to foreign funding sources: In 2023, US universities received $22 billion in donations from undisclosed foreign sources, University World News reported, citing government data. A Rutgers University-based non-profit estimated that more than half the funding came from authoritarian governments in the Middle East.