[user104658]

What statue isn't a vanity project? I don't think it's an issue, Universities need things like statues and art installations and various displays of interest and with Greta, I think, there's an argument of it not so much being a celebration of an individual as just a representation of a very specific period of time - climate change activism, the plight of future generations, etc.

Also it's £24k which in terms of a University decoration budget is small potatoes. A one-off £24k is not going to prevent redundancies. If you were telling me it was going to cost £240k I would definitely say the money would be better spent elsewhere.