Stanford board votes not to divest from fossil fuels despite protests

'We believe the long-term solution is for all of us to reduce our consumption of fossil fuel resources,' board says after years of protests at the California campus

Stanford University's board of trustees has voted not to divest from fossil fuels in a move that has drawn widespread criticisms from students and environmental groups as other colleges across the US have pledged to end oil and gas investments in response to campus protests.

The decision at Stanford, a prestigious university that has advertised itself as a "leader in combating climate change", comes after years of protests at the northern California campus, including a high-profile sit-in last year during which students demanded that the school "completely divest" its $22.2bn endowment from the fossil fuel industry.