Populics

By Two Santa Clara Undergrad Students

Pope Francis, regarded as the head of the Catholic Church, stated, “A very solid scientific consensus indicates that we are presently witnessing a disturbing warming of the climatic system . . . A number of scientific studies indicate that most global warming in recent decades is due to the great concentration of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxides and others) released mainly as a result of human activity.” Despite the head of the Catholic order acknowledging that our planet now faces a climate crisis, there are still those who call themselves good Catholics and deny climate change’s existence and grace impacts. Amongst these hypocritical believers lies the administration of a Jesuit university in the heart of Silicon Valley.  

Father Kevin O’Brien, now president of Santa Clara University (SCU), recently joined the Santa Clara Board of Trustees as a complicit climate crisis funder. In the Spring of 2019, Father Michael Engh of SCU accepted a generous donation of $4 million for the Ciocca Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship courtesy of the Charles Koch Foundation. For those unaware, Charles Koch is indeed half of the notorious Koch Brothers duo. Father O’Brien agreed to continue accepting this money before being inaugurated in October 2019. 

The issue with the Charles Koch Foundation can be narrowed to…  just about everything that it stands for. Charles Koch and his late brother David donated millions of dollars to climate change denial groups so that their oil empire, Koch Industries, could continue thriving. Charles Koch is also responsible for thousands of gallons of chemical and pollutants contaminating fresh soil and water. This inherently leads to the loss of life in low income and indigenous communities as they are left to struggle with whatever society deems appropriate. In addition to the loss of human lives, which in and of itself should be a wake-up call, the contamination of natural resources on behalf of the Koch Brothers has led to the widespread destruction of ecosystems and wildlife. 

If not already enough, the Koch Brothers also treat lower income and diverse communities with utter disdain. Charles Koch has donated upwards of $30 million to dismantle workers’ rights and fund anti-immigrant legislation. In essence, the Charles Koch Foundation has actively and intentionally contributed to the destruction of the world and livelihood of millions for the benefit of a handful. Despite most of suburban America thinking that climate change will begin to rear its ugly head in the year 2030, it is already picking away at minority communities all across the country and globe. It is these climate injustices at the hands of Charles Koch’s funds that SCU endorses by accepting the money. 

This last spring and summer, more than 700 SCU students signed letters and a petition to advocate for the cancellation of future Charles Koch Foundation donations. Various students came together in the spring to tell the administration that this behavior should not be acceptable on a Jesuit campus. Santa Clara University prides itself on its dedication to environmental justice and sustainability, but its actions speak louder than any new department it creates to get a few dozen students to compost every week. This is not an attack on SCU’s Center for Sustainability or environmental advocacy departments, but the university must be held accountable for its hypocrisy. 

During the summer, two brave SCU students went to speak with Father O’Brien about how the acceptance of the Koch money disregards any Jesuit values that the university claims to have. Despite their best efforts and clear evidence that the Charles Koch Foundation funds the death of thousands, Fr. O’Brien turned them away and proclaimed that he will continue to accept the money. The letters signed by hundreds of SCU students and faculty were sent to Fr. O’Brien and he continued to make no public statement on the matter. 

Fast forward to the day of his inauguration, a small group of SCU students took part in a silent protest in the middle of the ceremony to raise awareness on the Koch issue, mistreatment of faculty, and SCU’s investment in the fossil fuel industry. Yes, Santa Clara University is still invested in the fossil fuel industry and refuses to pull out any investments for the time being. 

After holding a town hall and diversity forum where the Ciocca Center funding was discussed with students, the administration still held strongly to being in favor of the Charles Koch Foundation. One of Fr. O’Brien’s favorite responses to the issue is that accepting the money from the Koch Brothers does not compromise SCU’s values. While some would call this open minded acceptance, those of us with any moral integrity just refer to this as ignorance and a cheap lie. By accepting this money, SCU has blood on its hands. By continuing to accept $4 million from Charles Koch, SCU is now even more complicit in the climate crisis. The university can create as many sustainable initiatives as it would like, but at the end of the day, this behavior is not accepted through Jesuit values. Jesuits constantly try to instill in their students that this world is to be nurtured and respected, but the actions of Santa Clara University’s administration has only proven that these values can be tossed aside for the sake of “innovation” and development. 

The values of Santa Clara University went right down the drain the second that a new Jesuit president stepped into office and gave in to greed. SCU has now become a breeding ground for the Koch Brothers’ values and sense of immoral righteousness. Interim Provost Lisa Kloppenberg said it best at the town hall held only a few days after the inauguration protest, “It is a complicated matter that was thought about for quite a long time amongst quite a few people.” 

We, at SCU, believe her. We believe that the administration thought for a good while about how they were going to fuck over low income communities and reap the rewards. We believe that the donation was talked about by a lot of the administration and that they all came to a majority agreement that the environment is worth less than $4 million. 

However, we know that this is not a complicated matter. It is quite simple. You are either a part of the problem or you are part of the solution. SCU’s admin made the conscious decision to accept that money and endorse environmental injustice. If it gives you any comfort, we are ranked in the top ten universities for sustainability and environmental awareness. Another cheap lie.