US, major companies urge Biden to speed up emissions cuts
Economy & innovation — di Valentina Neri
The big names of the American economy want President Joe Biden to deliver more decisive and bold emissions cuts, within this decade.
US, major companies urge Biden to speed up emissions cuts
The big names of the American economy want President Joe Biden to deliver more decisive and bold emissions cuts, within this decade.
President Joe Biden is on the right track, having brought the United States back into the Paris Agreement and placed the fight against climate change at the heart of his mandate. If he truly wants to bring the net emissions of the American economy to zero by 2050, however, he needs to step on the accelerator — by committing right now to an emissions cut of 50 per cent over this decade. This appeal has been launched by a coalition of 310 major companies and investors that includes names of the calibre of Google, Microsoft, McDonald's and Pfizer. The initiative was organised by We Mean Business and Ceres.
A more decisive emissions cut is needed before 2030
During his mandate, Barack Obama had committed to an emissions cut by 2025 of 26–28 per cent relative to 2005 levels. A target that had already been deemed weak by some environmental organisations, the New York Times recalls, and that was subsequently dismantled by his successor Donald Trump. There is now great anticipation surrounding the new targets that Joe Biden will in all likelihood announce during the climate summit scheduled for 22 April, on the occasion of Earth Day.
At this week’s Climate Leadership Summit, President Biden must commit to ending support for international fossil fuels & put forth the country’s fair share of climate action
@POTUS – show the world that the US is actually serious about leading on climate!politico.com/news/2021/04/1…
@POTUS – show the world that the US is actually serious about leading on climate!politico.com/news/2021/04/1…
The 310 signatories have very clear ideas on the matter: by 2030, the United States must slash greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 per cent compared to 2005 levels. "A bold 2030 target is needed to catalyse a net-zero future, stimulate a robust economic recovery, create millions of well-paying jobs and enable the United States to build back better from the pandemic," the open letter reads. Not to mention that the administration, by pushing this far, could set an example for both other industrialised countries and the private sector. Many large companies have already committed to zeroing out their net emissions in the wake of the Paris Agreement. If they are guided by an ambitious strategy set at the central level, they will play their part in turning it into reality.
Over 300 businesses and investors are calling on @POTUS to adopt the ambitious and attainable target of cutting emissions by at least 50% by 2030. Read their open letter to President Biden: bit.ly/NDCTW #AllInfor50
The signatories of the open letter to Joe Biden
The appeal carries considerable weight, above all because it has been signed by the executives of more than three hundred companies that, taken together, employ around 6 million American citizens and exceed $3 trillion in revenue. The investors, for their part, manage assets worth more than $1 trillion. Scrolling through the long list of signatories, one encounters giants of technology (such as Google, HP, Salesforce, Microsoft), pharmaceuticals (Pfizer, Bayer), food (Mars, Kellogg Company, Nestlé), hospitality (Starbucks, McDonald's) and fashion (H&M, Gap, Ralph Lauren).