The US' Harvard University has decided to stop investing in fossil fuels after nearly a decade long of criticism from students and faculty.

Harvard Management Company (HMC), which manages the Massachusetts-based university's endowment, "has been reducing its exposure to fossil fuels," President Larry Bacow said in a letter Thursday.

"HMC has legacy investments as a limited partner in a number of private equity funds with holdings in the fossil fuel industry. These indirect investments constitute less than two percent of the endowment, a number that continues to decline," he added.

Noting that HMC has not made any new commitments to such limited partnerships since 2019, Bacow said HMC does not intend to make such investments in the future.

Harvard University's endowment was valued at around $41.9 billion as of June 2020 -- the largest academic endowment in the world.

The university earlier this week appointed its first-ever Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability, which aims to accelerate and coordinate research and education on climate change.

The Harvard Corporation, the university’s highest governing body, also directed HMC in April 2020 to develop a plan to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

"None of us will be spared the realities of climate change, which means we are all in this together ... we must find a way to work side by side to have any hope of changing behaviors, adopting policies, and decarbonizing the economy," Bacow said./aa