WUR: Stop the F&A Next conference.
WUR: Stop the F&A Next conference.
The Issue
To whom it may concerns,
We, a coalition of students and staff, demand that the WUR Executive Board cancels the upcoming F&A Next summit.
On May 22nd-23rd, the F&A Next event will take place in Omnia, Wageningen campus. This initiative, organized by Rabobank, Wageningen University & Research, Anterra Capital, StartLife, and FoodValley NL, claims to focus on innovation for sustainably feeding future generations.
However, it is crucial to highlight the affiliations and actions of the event’s main partners, which deeply conflict with our, and WURs', principles of human rights and ethical responsibility:
Rabobank has been massively investing for decades in industrial animal farming, fertilizers, pesticides and the livestock feed industry.
Bayer (owns Monsanto & Leaps), Syngenta, BASF, Corteva will be present at the summit, as speakers or partners. They are four of the five pesticide giant companies with billions of dolars of income from agrochemical sales that pose high health hazards like cancer and reproduction failure, and high impacts in their environment. Around 30% of the main sales of these four companies come from Higly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs), such as Glyphosate, Gluphosinate, Paraquat and Thiamethoxan. For more information on this check the Revealed link below. Lastly, Bayer has been accused of causing over than 290 000 suicides among Indian farmers.
Ties with Israel illegal settlements and war in Gaza:
Rabobank engages in financial activities with companies operating in illegal Israeli settlements. It ranks 26th among European financial institutions providing loans and underwriting services to enterprises involved in these settlements, with investments amounting to 0.9 billion euros (European Biogas Association). Rabobank is in the top five in Europe for most of the money loaned to the companies in question.
Anterra Capital is a signatory of the "Venture Capital Community Statement of Support for Israel" endorsing actions that contribute to the ongoing genocide of the people of Gaza.
Israeli Chemicals Ltd (ICL) will be participating as a speaker. It is an Israeli company that manufactures fertilizers and is responsible for the destruction of Palestinian livelihoods through agricultural experiments on occupied land and cooperation with settlement research & development centers.
These are just a few examples of the many companies and speakers involved in the event who are deeply (1) implicated in supporting the Israeli genocide and/or (2) openly violating human and environmental rights. v.st
We cannot remain silent while such entities are given a platform on our campus. Therefore, we urge you to join us in protesting against this event and signing this petition.
Don't Buy into Occupation:
https://dontbuyintooccupation.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DBIO-report-DEF_aangepast.pdf
Venture Capital Community Statement of Support for Israel
Revealed: The pesticide giants making billions on toxic and bee-harming chemicals:
Wageningen Integrity Code
https://www.wur.nl/nl/show/integrity-code-wageningen-ur.htm
Agribusiness as Usual: Agricultural Technology and the Israeli Occupation (2020)
84
The Issue
To whom it may concerns,
We, a coalition of students and staff, demand that the WUR Executive Board cancels the upcoming F&A Next summit.
On May 22nd-23rd, the F&A Next event will take place in Omnia, Wageningen campus. This initiative, organized by Rabobank, Wageningen University & Research, Anterra Capital, StartLife, and FoodValley NL, claims to focus on innovation for sustainably feeding future generations.
However, it is crucial to highlight the affiliations and actions of the event’s main partners, which deeply conflict with our, and WURs', principles of human rights and ethical responsibility:
Rabobank has been massively investing for decades in industrial animal farming, fertilizers, pesticides and the livestock feed industry.
Bayer (owns Monsanto & Leaps), Syngenta, BASF, Corteva will be present at the summit, as speakers or partners. They are four of the five pesticide giant companies with billions of dolars of income from agrochemical sales that pose high health hazards like cancer and reproduction failure, and high impacts in their environment. Around 30% of the main sales of these four companies come from Higly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs), such as Glyphosate, Gluphosinate, Paraquat and Thiamethoxan. For more information on this check the Revealed link below. Lastly, Bayer has been accused of causing over than 290 000 suicides among Indian farmers.
Ties with Israel illegal settlements and war in Gaza:
Rabobank engages in financial activities with companies operating in illegal Israeli settlements. It ranks 26th among European financial institutions providing loans and underwriting services to enterprises involved in these settlements, with investments amounting to 0.9 billion euros (European Biogas Association). Rabobank is in the top five in Europe for most of the money loaned to the companies in question.
Anterra Capital is a signatory of the "Venture Capital Community Statement of Support for Israel" endorsing actions that contribute to the ongoing genocide of the people of Gaza.
Israeli Chemicals Ltd (ICL) will be participating as a speaker. It is an Israeli company that manufactures fertilizers and is responsible for the destruction of Palestinian livelihoods through agricultural experiments on occupied land and cooperation with settlement research & development centers.
These are just a few examples of the many companies and speakers involved in the event who are deeply (1) implicated in supporting the Israeli genocide and/or (2) openly violating human and environmental rights. v.st
We cannot remain silent while such entities are given a platform on our campus. Therefore, we urge you to join us in protesting against this event and signing this petition.
Don't Buy into Occupation:
https://dontbuyintooccupation.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DBIO-report-DEF_aangepast.pdf
Venture Capital Community Statement of Support for Israel
Revealed: The pesticide giants making billions on toxic and bee-harming chemicals:
Wageningen Integrity Code
https://www.wur.nl/nl/show/integrity-code-wageningen-ur.htm
Agribusiness as Usual: Agricultural Technology and the Israeli Occupation (2020)
84
Petition Updates
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Petition created on May 20, 2024