World Council of Churches endorses Global Roundtable statement

Here's the Global Roundtable statement issued yesterday.Download GROCC_statement_2-19.pdf .  The Roundtable includes senior officials from an array of corporations, universities, religious institutions, and NGOs:

  AIG

Air France

Alcan
  Alcoa   
    All China Federation of Industry and Commerce

Alliant Energy

Allianz

American Association of Blacks in Energy

American Council on Renewable Energy

American Electric Power

Anglo-American

Aristeia Capital

Association of British Insurers
    BASF Group
  Bayer 

Business Leaders Group on Climate Change

California Clean Energy Fund

Calvert Group
    Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers

Canadian Electricity Association
  Center for Health and the Global Environment, Harvard Medical School

Ceres
Chicago Climate Exchange
China Renewable Energy Industries Association

Citigroup
  City of Reykjavík

The Climate Group
  The Climate Institute
  The Climate Trust
  Coalition for Rainforest Nations

Columbia University
  Confederation of Indian Industry
  Conservation International

Covanta Energy
  Credit Suisse First Boston
Deutsche Telekom
Dow Chemical
  Dupont
  Earth Institute at Columbia University
  EcoSecurities 
  Electricité de France International North America

Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
    Endesa SA

Energetech Australia

Energy Holding Romania

Eni, SpA

Environmental Defense

Eskom

ETG International

European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecasts
European Commission Delegation to the United Nation
Exelon Corporation
  Federation of Canadian Municipalities
FirstEnergy Corporation

Florida Power and Light

Ford Motor Company

  General Electric
  German Electricity Association

Glitnir Bank
  Global Energy Network Institute

Global Environment Facility

Goldman Sachs & Co.
  Google  
  HDR Engineering

Henkel KGaA

Iberdrola, S.A

Iceland GeoSurvey (ISOR)
    ICF International

Indian Merchants Chamber
  ING Group
  Institute for Global Environmental Strategies
  Institute of Process Engineering, ETH Zurich 
  Insurance Information Institute
  Interface, Inc.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
International Chamber of Commerce

International Council on Mining and Metals

International Energy Agency
  International Gas Union
  International Research Institute for Climate and Society
  International Trade Union Confederation
    JPMorgan Chase

Keyspan Corporation

Landsvirkjun (The National Power Company of Iceland)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Lenfest Foundation

Los Alamos National Laboratories
Marsh and McLennan Cos.

MEDIAS-France
  MissionPoint Capital Partners
  Munich Climate Insurance Initiative

Munich Re
  Nand and Jeet Khemka Foundation
NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies 

National Commission on Energy Policy
National Development and Reform Commission of China:   National Coordination Committee on Climate Change and Energy Research Institute
    National Energy Assistance Directors Association
    National Council of Churches

National Grid
  Natsource
Natural Resources Defense Council 
  New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
  NGEN

Nippon Mining Holdings

NiSource

Norsk Hydro

NRG Energy

  OECD Environment Directorate
  Old Harbor Outfitters  
  Papua New Guinea, Office of the Prime Minister     

Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Princeton University

Rainforest Alliance

Recycled Energy Development

Republic of Iceland, Office of the President
  Resources for the Future

Reykjavik Energy

Ricoh Corporation

Rockefeller Brothers Fund
  Rolls-Royce

Office of U.S. Senator Olympia J Snowe
  Société Générale de Surveillance (SGS)

State Street Global Advisors
Stanford University

StoraEnso North America

Suncor Energy
Suntech Power

Swiss Re
  Tata Power    
    Toyota Motor North America
    Underground Coal Gasification Partnership

Union of Concerned Scientists

United Nations Development Programme

United Nations Environment Programme- Finance Initiative
  United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Secretariat

United States Combined Heat and Power Association
  University of Iceland
University of Tokyo

  U.S. Geothermal

U.S. Green Building Council
    U.S. Renewables Group

    Vattenfall
  Verde Venture Partners
  Volvo
  Vulcan, Inc.
  Walmart
  Western Governors’ Association 

World Business Council on Sustainable Development 

World Coal Institute

World Council of Churches

World Liquid Petroleum Gas Association

World Petroleum Council

  World Wildlife Fund

Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Energy and Environment

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Here's the executive summary:

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Climate change is an urgent problem requiring global action to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHGs). Energy use is vital for a modern economy. Burning fossil fuels produces CO2. Thus, confronting climate change depends, in many ways, on adopting new and sustainable energy strategies that can meet growing global energy needs while allowing for the stabilization of atmospheric CO2 concentrations at safe levels.

 

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Energy efficiency must play an important role in these strategies, but long-term success will require a concerted effort to de-carbonize the global energy system. This means significantly increasing the use of non-fossil-fuel energy sources, significantly raising the energy efficiency of fossil-fuel power plants through advanced technologies, and developing and deploying technologies that trap and store the CO2 produced by the fossil fuels that will remain in use.
Cost-efficient technologies exist today, and others could be developed and deployed, to improve energy efficiency and to help reduce emissions of CO2 and other GHGs in major sectors of the global economy. Research indicates that heading off the very dangerous risks associated with doubling pre-industrial atmospheric concentrations of CO2, while an immense challenge, can be achieved at a reasonable cost.

Failing to act now would lead to far higher economic and environmental costs and greater risk of irreversible impacts. To meet this challenge and take advantage of these opportunities:

   

• The world's governments should set scientifically informed targets, including an ambitious but     achievable interim, mid-century target for global CO2 concentrations, for "stabilization of greenhouse     gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic     interference with the climate system," in accordance with the stated objective of the Framework     Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
• All countries should be party to this accord, which should include specific near- and long-term     commitments for action in pursuit of the agreed targets. Commitments for actions by individual     countries should reflect differences in levels of economic development and GHG emission patterns     and the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities.
• Clear, efficient mechanisms should be established to place a market price on carbon emissions     that is reasonably consistent worldwide and across sectors in order to reward efficiency and     emission avoidance, encourage innovation, and maintain a level playing field among possible     technological options.
• Government policy initiatives should address energy efficiency and de-carbonization in all sectors,     allow businesses to choose among a range of options as they strive to minimize GHG emissions and     costs, encourage the development and rapid deployment of low-emitting and zero-emitting energy     and transportation technologies, and provide incentives to reduce emissions from deforestation and     harmful land management practices.
• Governments, the private sector, trade unions, and other sectors of civil society should undertake     efforts to prepare for and adapt to the impacts of climate change, since climate change will occur     even in the context of highly effective mitigation efforts.
• Signatories to this statement will support scientific processes including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC); work to increase public awareness of climate change risks and solutions; report information on their GHG emissions; engage in GHG emissions mitigation, which can include emissions trading schemes; champion demonstration projects; and support public policy efforts to mitigate climate change and its impacts.

     

Responses:
World Council of Churches (see below)

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WCC SUPPORTS GROUNDBREAKING GLOBAL FRAMEWORK TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE
The World Council of Churches (WCC) has endorsed a groundbreaking climate change statement, fruit of an unprecedented consensus among high-level representatives of the corporate world as well as civil, religious and educational institutions.

This statement is "carefully drafted and urgently needed", wrote WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia in a letter endorsing "The Path to Climate Sustainability: A Joint Statement by the Global Roundtable on Climate Change" on behalf of the WCC. The Council "will continue to participate in the process of bringing the concerns this statement addresses to the world", he added.

Endorsed by an unprecedented group of companies and organisations from around the world, the statement calls on governments to set scientifically informed targets for greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. It also urges them to place a price on carbon emissions and to set forth policies aimed at addressing energy efficiency and de-carbonisation in all sectors.

Calling climate change "an urgent problem," the statement lays out a bold, proactive framework for global action to mitigate risks and impacts while also meeting the global need for energy, economic growth and sustainable development. It outlines cost-effective technologies that exist today and others that could be developed and deployed to improve energy efficiency and help reduce CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gases.

"The Path to Climate Sustainability" statement has been released today at a press conference in New York chaired by Jeffrey D. Sachs, head of the Global Roundtable on Climate Change (GROCC) and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University.

Endorsements come from critical stakeholders, including leading corporations from all economic sectors to smaller firms with very different perspectives and concerns; they also include an array of civil, religious, environmental, research and educational institutions as well as a distinguished list of world-leading experts from the fields of climate science, engineering, economics and policy studies. [See a list here.]

"The WCC is anxious to encourage large companies like those included in the Global Roundtable to take action in their own businesses and provide leadership in the private sector that will result in limiting the polluting emissions that are causing climate change", said Dr. David G. Hallman, advisor of the WCC Climate Change Programme.