Environmental protesters, including one student who is on hunger strike, have won their battle to get Aberystwyth University to declare a climate emergency and stop investing in funds linked to fossil fuels.

A protest held on the university campus on Monday, 25 November, saw Extinction Rebellion members and members of the students’ union call on the university to declare a climate emergency and to divest any funds that the university holds in fossil fuels.

That pressure told and the university announced that the university council had agreed to the demands following a meeting.

The university has also agreed to commit to a net-zero carbon emissions target by the end of the 2030/31 financial year.

University vice-chancellor Prof Elizabeth Treasure said: “I am delighted that the university’s council has taken the step today to declare a climate emergency and that we are taking active steps to divest from fossil fuels.

“As a university, we have a responsibility to contribute to a lasting change through our research and our teaching, but also in the way the organisation is run.

“By working together as staff, students and partners, we can drive forward this agenda.”

She said that by the end of this year, the university would have moved all money from funds that invest in fossil fuels.

The university has also launched a sustainability operations group, which it is hoped will meet for the first time in January 2020.

See this week’s south papers for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition on Wednesday