Today, as COP25 kicked off in Madrid, CEOs
from 75 companies, representing all sectors of the US economy and employing
over two million people — along with the AFL-CIO, which represents 12.5
million workers — have issued a joint
statement in support of the US
remaining in the Paris Agreement.
At a pivotal moment for action on the climate crisis, these forward-thinking
business leaders — which include CEOs from tech giants Adobe, Apple,
Google, Microsoft and Salesforce; apparel giants Gap, Gucci,
Kering, Levi Strauss and PVH Corp; financial services leaders Bank
of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, ING and
Mastercard; and consumer
packaged goods giants Coca-Cola, Mars,
Nestlé,
PepsiCo and
Unilever — have joined forces
to take a stand for both the economic health and competitiveness of the country
and its companies, and the wellbeing of its communities and working families.
The US private sector has long been vocal in its support of the Paris Agreement
— especially since the President declared his intention to withdraw from the
Agreement
in the wake of the 2016 election: Coalitions of dozens of corporate
heavyweights
and institutional investors sent multiple letters and took out full-page
ads
in publications including The New York Times, urging the new President to
reconsider. Signatories to today’s proclamation also include Walt Disney
Company Chairman and CEO Robert
Iger and Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk, who both left the White
House’s economic advisory council when the President announced his refusal to
honor the Agreement.
In the past year, the private sector has renewed its clarion call for the US
government to step up its policies to protect the economy from climate change:
Last year, as protesters disrupted the Trump administration’s tone-deaf attempt
to promote fossil
fuels at
COP24 in Poland, 415 global investors, with $32
trillion in assets under management, joined the companies, cities and states
calling upon the government to take bold climate
action,
through the 2018 Global Investor Statement to Governments on Climate
Change.
Then, May 2019 saw the launch of the CEO Climate
Dialogue,
in which the CEOs of 13 US and global Fortune 500 companies aimed to build
bipartisan support for climate policies that will increase regulatory and
business certainty, reduce climate risk, and spur the investment and innovation
needed to meet science-based emissions-reduction
targets.
To date, the proposals seem to have largely fallen on deaf ears.
"Driving progress to combat the impacts of climate change requires a global
response that protects the planet and enables sustainable growth for everyone,”
says Douglas M. Baker, Jr., Chairman and CEO of Ecolab Inc. and
signatory to today’s proclamation. “The Paris Agreement brings all nations
together to address climate change, and the US must be a part of this important
initiative for the benefit of its citizens and the world."
Today’s “United for the Paris Agreement” proclamation reads:
“We the undersigned are a group of CEOs who employ more than 2 million people in the United States and union leaders who represent 12.5 million workers. Together, we know that driving progress on addressing climate change is what’s best for the economic health, jobs, and competitiveness of our companies and our country.
In 2017, many of us came together to rally behind the US’ participation in the Paris Agreement. We came together to say we are still in. … Today, we stand by our conviction that a commitment to the Paris Agreement requires a just transition of the workforce — one that respects labor rights and is achieved through dialogue with workers and their unions. Participation in the Paris Agreement enables us to plan for a just transition and create new decent, family-supporting jobs and economic opportunity.
*Staying in the Paris Agreement will strengthen our competitiveness in global markets, positioning the United States to lead the deployment of new technologies that support the transition, provide for our workers and communities, and create jobs and companies built to last. *
It also supports investment by setting clear goals which enable long-term planning. It encourages innovation to achieve emissions reductions at low cost.
*There has been progress, but not enough. This moment calls for greater, more accelerated action than we’ve seen. It calls for the strong policy framework the Paris Agreement provides, one that allows the US the freedom to choose our own path to emissions reductions. *
*The promise of the Paris Agreement is one of a just and prosperous world. We urge the United States to join us in staying in.” *
"For the sake of this and the next generation, we cannot ignore the climate
crisis we face today. Business, governments, civil society and individuals must
act together and we must be more ambitious,” said Roberto Marques, Executive
Chairman of Natura & Co. “Because when it comes down to it, we cannot run
businesses on a dead planet. This campaign is a great start and I would
encourage every business to get involved."
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Dec 2, 2019 1pm EST / 10am PST / 6pm GMT / 7pm CET