Dr. Laurie Adkin (Political Science, UofA) writes to the Chancellor, University of Alberta
February 8, 2012
Dear Linda Hughes
I am writing to you with regard to an email I received yesterday from President Samarasekera’s office, announcing that she and the Chancellor intend to bestow an honorary degree upon Mr. Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, along with two other individuals.
My concern is specifically with the honouring of Mr. Brabeck-Letmathe for his “work on water”. (The invitation says little about the reasons for this honour, apart from the association with the “future of water.”) As you know, Mr. Brabeck-Letmathe is the Chair of Nestlé Group, one of the world’s largest multinational corporations and the world’s largest marketer of bottled water.
All around the world, civil society organizations have been mobilizing against the commodification of water access that Nestle has been promoting, and have been trying to bring attention to the environmental harms caused by the bottling of drinking water. Nestle has stated interests in the creation of a market in water permits in Alberta. While it is true that Nestle represents a particular position in the debate about whether water should be a commodity or a human right, and I have no objection to Mr. Brabeck-Letmathe being invited to debate, for example, Ms. Sunita Narain, I do find it unacceptable that the University of Alberta should legitimize Nestle’s corporate interests by bestowing honours upon its CEO.
You may argue that the university is not “endorsing” Nestle’s corporate goals and has maintained some kind of impartiality regarding these social questions by also bestowing degrees upon Dr. Hrudey and Ms. Narain, but the fact remains that it was completely unnecessary to bestow a degree upon Mr. Brabeck-Letmathe in order to recognize the work of the others, and that the decision to do so sends the message that there is no distinction to be made between private (corporate) interests and the public good. In this case, moreover, the university administration is choosing to recognize as a contribution to water conservation efforts the very activities that many associate with social injustice and environmental harm.
I don’t know whose idea this was, or what is behind this decision, but I must tell you that I think it is a very bad decision, and should be reversed.
Yours sincerely,
Laurie E. Adkin, Associate Professor
Department of Political Science and Environmental Studies Programme
University of Alberta
Dear Indira Samarasekera Re: the UofA Honorary Doctorate for Nestle Group Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe 