Oxford Partners With BlackRock on Sustainable Fund

The University of Oxford has partnered with BlackRock in the development of a sustainable investment tracker fund, marking the first time a prestigious UK university endowment has endorsed such a product that is also available to retail investors. The move comes as university endowments across the UK and US face growing pressure from students to respond to climate change and social injustices by making radical reforms to their investment portfolios. Half of the UK’s universities have already committed to at least partially divest from fossil fuel companies, according to People & Planet, a pressure group that has co-ordinated climate protests by students. Oxford university originally announced plans in April to divest its £4bn endowment from fossil fuels.